Racine council moves 5th District polling place to Cesar Chavez Community Center

The Racine Common Council voted unanimously Tuesday to move the 5th District polling place from Roosevelt Elementary to the Cesar Chavez Community Center at 2221 Douglas Avenue.

President Horton read the item (0006-26), moved to approve the change and the motion was seconded. Alderman Jorgensen asked the clerk to summarize why the site is changing. The City Clerk said Roosevelt Elementary is scheduled for demolition in 2026 and that no accessible alternative locations were found in the district. “So I am not a fan of moving polling locations. However, Roosevelt Elementary is being demolished sooner than we thought within 2026,” the clerk said, adding that Cesar Chavez has two gyms and staff will coordinate signage, greeters and voter direction on election day. The clerk said the budget in the item covers advertising — postcards, signs and day-of text messages — and estimated the new site is less than a half-mile away, about a 10-minute walk from the former location.

Alderman Jorgensen praised the clerk’s outreach and research into options. “I’d like to applaud the clerk and her department on doing a lot of research and making this as seamless as it can be,” Jorgensen said. President Horton made the motion to approve and Mayor Corey Mason seconded it. The clerk opened the roll and reported the item passed unanimously; individual recorded votes were not read aloud.

The council did not indicate further administrative steps during the meeting beyond the notification plan described by the clerk. The move takes effect for the coming election cycle; the council took no other action on polling-location policy at the meeting.