A group of political appointees spent much of the spring and summer reaching a decision to recommend new Snohomish County Council boundaries that closely resemble the ones that exist now.

Now the County Council has decided it wants a different option with a bigger change. Unlike the plan the county redistricting committee presented, County Council members of both parties have suggested putting the Tulalip area into the same district with Everett and Mukilteo.

Known as Plan 2, it also keeps Granite Falls in the northern District 1 with Stanwood and Arlington.

It’s a scenario that pleases the council’s lone Republican, who represents the northern district.

“I’m good with this,” Councilman John Koster said after a hearing on Wednesday.

There was agreement as well from two Democrats whose districts would be affected most by switching the plans. One of them is Brian Sullivan, whose District 2, covering Everett and Mukilteo, stands to take in Tulalip if the plan moves forward.

The other is Council Chairman Dave Somers, who prefers to keep Granite Falls with the other areas in the Stillaguamish watershed, rather than with the areas in his district within the Snohomish watershed. The alternative favored by the redistricting committee, known as Plan 1, would have put Granite Falls into the council’s eastern District 5 with Lake Stevens, Snohomish and Monroe.

The Tulalip Tribes sent out a letter in August saying they would support being in the same district with either Everett or Marysville. The Tulalip area, like Everett, tends to vote for Democrats. It shares school and fire districts with Marysville, though.

The hearing to finalize the decision is scheduled to continue at 10:30 a.m. Oct. 17 and could lead to a vote. The county charter requires that the five council districts be redrawn to make their populations equivalent after each federal decennial census.

The new borders are scheduled to take effect Jan. 1.

The county’s current population is about 713,000. Ideally, each County Council district would have slightly more than 142,000 people.

Councilman Dave Gossett’s District 4, covering the county’s south-central suburbs, and Koster’s district both need to shrink in population. The other three districts need to gain residents. In the latest option to move forward, Districts 2 and 5 take in parts of Silver Lake, currently in District 4.

Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465, nhaglund@heraldnet.com.