It can pay to be one of only two people to show up for a meeting.

Evanston resident John Zbesko and Ald. Elizabeth Tisdahl (7th) tried to find a way Thursday to keep Zbesko’s home in the Seventh Ward as the Evanston City Council attempts to redraw ward boundaries to best represent population shifts reflected in the 2000 census.

“This (map proposal) splits our neighborhood in half,” said Zbesko, who lives on the 1100 block of Noyes Street. “I’d really like to stay.”

Zbesko and Tisdahl met years ago through the Democratic Party of Evanston, Tisdahl said.

Dozens of chairs stood vacant Thursday at the Ladd Arboretum, 2024 McCormick Blvd., when only Zbesko and one other resident attended a meeting to discuss the proposed map, called “map 15.”

Though Tisdahl said she plans to add 88 residents to her ward, she does not want to lose any residents to another.

“(The aldermen) agreed to be willing to consider slight changes to map 15 to meet the needs of my constituents,” Tisdahl said.

Tisdahl resolved to confirm the feasibility of the possible boundary shift on the city’s redistricting software Wednesday.