It’s like a puzzle with no box top. And to make matters worse, the top isn’t missing: it just doesn’t exist.

     That’s something like the task city leaders face. Efforts to redraw city ward lines under a legal requirement to redistrict seriously began Tuesday night, and Mayor Les Bumgarner warned aldermen that the process will not be easy.

     Bumgarner gave aldermen a proposed ward map drawn by a non-profit consulting firm, the Central Mississippi Planning and Development District in conjunction with its Southwest office.

     Bumgarner stressed the map is only a starting point.

     “I think there will be plenty here for people to dislike,” Bumgarner said.

     Aldermen briefly discussed the proposed plan, but no serious discussion occurred. The board plans to hold work sessions on the topic, but no dates have been scheduled.

     Bumgarner hopes to have redistricting done within the next few months.

     Final lines must be in place by the time qualifying begins in January 2013 for municipal elections. But because of Mississippi’s history of intimidating minority voters, the city’s final ward lines must be approved by the U.S. Department of Justice.

      The city needs to get a final map to the Department of Justice several months before January qualifying, Bumgarner said.

     Many residents in the central part of town would see their alderman change under the proposed map.

     Ward Six would expand farther south, with portions of Brookway Boulevard and West Cherokee Street forming its southern border.

     Under the proposed map, Ward Three extends much farther north into the city, and Ward Two grows in size to both the west and north.

     Ward Four’s border shrinks southward in the northwest corner, but otherwise its boundaries remain the same. Ward Five takes in the lost portion of Ward Four, and loses some territory to Ward Six, but otherwise its lines remain the same.

     Under the proposed ward lines, Ward Five would be the largest at 2,141 people and Ward One the smallest at 2,048.

     Under federal guidelines, no ward can deviate up or down from its ideal population by more than 5 percent.

     Ideal ward population is determined by dividing the city population by the number of wards. The 2010 census puts Brookhaven’s population at 12,513, giving each ward a target population of 2,086.

     Currently, Ward Four is approximately 18 percent too large and Ward Two about 20 percent too small, according to data received by the board in a prior board meeting.

     Redrawing lines is not just as simple as moving people around, though. Minority voting strength must be preserved under provisions of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

     As far as possible, new ward lines must also follow natural boundaries such as streets.

     There’s another obstacle redrawing city lines must account for. Incumbent aldermen must remain residents of the ward they represent, and that may represent some problems.

     “The biggest obstacle is where the aldermen live,” Bumgarner said.

     Dorsey Cameron of Ward One lives closest to the southern boundary of his ward, virtually fixing that line in place. Ward Four’s Shirley Estes and Ward Five’s D.W. Maxwell also live relatively close to the edges of their wards.

     While discussion was limited Tuesday night, some preliminary proposals were aired. Under the current lines, Ward Five includes the full length of Brookway Boulevard, and Maxwell wants to keep it that way.

     Ward Five would not include any of Brookway Boulevard to the east of Highway 51 in the proposed map. That area would go to Ward Six.

     Maxwell suggested the top of his ward could go to Ward Six if he retained the length of Brookway Boulevard. Ward Six Alderman David Phillips has not stated an opinion on the issue.