The Cost of Freedom — The Effects of Annexation in Morgantown, WV
Opposition to Annexation
David Bailey is a resident of Morgantown. His family has owned property off of John Poole Road, a small, private drive off of Green Bag Road, for nearly 100 years.
According to the current city limit borders, John Poole Road and Bailey’s property exist well outside of Morgantown city limits.
Bailey’s family has had the joy of hunting, farming and living off the land for many years, but with the proposal of the new annexation plan, he feels that freedom is at risk.
“My family has cookouts and bonfires and we shoot guns at the small range on my property. We let areas grow wild for the wildlife that lives there. If this annexation should take effect, I will have to pay new taxes and unnecessary fees for the things I’ve done freely my whole life,” says Bailey.
“I choose to live outside the city, now I am being told that I don’t have a choice. I don’t like that. I feel like I may have to move away from the place where I was born and raised.”
If the annexation plan is approved by the County Commission, Bailey will see an increase in taxes for the structures on his property, and a fire protection service fee of $0.0766 per square foot per year.
Bailey has a 2,600 square foot home, and a roughly 1,600 square foot barn.
For Bailey, the fire protection service fee adds an additional $322 on top of all of his other taxes.
What is municipal annexation?
West Virginia is one of four states in the United States that has no ban on forced municipal annexation. In Morgantown, WV, residents are fighting City Council’s proposed municipal annexation plan to expand the boundaries of Morgantown City Limits.
Municipal annexation is a process by which a municipality expands its boundaries into adjacent areas not already incorporated into said municipality.
In Morgantown, residents of the Suncrest, First Ward and Mileground areas are standing their ground against a proposed plan that would expand the city’s territory by more than a third.
This expansion will annex more than 3.8 square miles of property, encompassing 12,380 residents and 367 commercial businesses.
According to The City of Morgantown’s draft annexation plan, residents living in what would include the new city limits will be imposed with a rise in taxes and new city service fees.
In addition to new fees and taxes, city residents will enjoy lower insurance premiums, enhanced police and fire services, and access to street services like road treatment and snow plowing.
City Council for Annexation
Rachel Fetty sits on the Morgantown City Council, serving as Deputy Mayor. She also lives in the First Ward District of Morgantown, and is an advocate for the municipal annexation plan.
“This annexation plan brings a plethora of good things to those that did not previously live within city limits,” says Fetty.
Should the proposal take affect, Morgantown City residents will receive lower insurance premiums, enhanced police, fire and street services, and better access and funding to neighborhood projects.
The Morgantown Fire Department has the lowest ISO rating in Monongalia County. This rating places them in the top five percent of fire departments across the nation.
Because of this, if municipal annexation passes, those relocated within the city limits will see lower insurance premiums.
“The best perk in this plan is access to city street cleaning services that these areas did not previously have,” says Fetty. “This includes clearing streets of trash and debris, treatment of streets for weather events, and snow plowing.”
As a part of the new Morgantown city limits, streets may be eleigible for resurfacing and larger sidewalk installation projects.
The current 2019 Paving Plan will expend $1.8 million to resurface portions of 21 streets and install several segments of sidewalk.
The streets transferred to the city following addition of the territory will be incorporated into the resurfacing plan, should the annexation pass.
“Many people tend to complain about the conditions of their streets, so this is an opportunity for some to see better roads,” says Fetty.
F.A.I.R Inc’s Efforts to Fight Annexation
Forced Annexation Isn’t Right, Incorporated (F.A.I.R, Inc.) is an opposition group at the forefront for concerned Morgantown residents.
The group is led by their president, Jim Manilla, former mayor of Morgantown, and resident living in the affected area of First Ward. Manilla was born and raised in Morgantown.
“Ultimately, F.A.I.R’s goal is to put a stop to the city council’s proposed annexation plan, which they announced in early May,” says Manilla.
The group’s largest concern is the increase in taxes, levies and service fees for those who would be incorporated into the expanded city limits.
“The cost of living is expensive enough to begin with in Morgantown, but with this annexation proposal, residents and business owners are expected to see an unnecessary rise in taxes and city service fees,” says Manilla.
Residents can expect to pay a municipal levy that they had not experienced before. Class II properties will be assessed a municipal levy of $0.25 per $100 of tax-assessed value, and Class IV property will be assessed a municipal levy of $0.50 per $100 of tax assessed value.
“That’s a large increase for some. In addition to the levy, residents will be expected to pay a fire protection service fee calculated based on square footage of the structures on the property. Living outside of city limits, we were never expected to pay this,” says Manilla.
F.A.I.R, Inc. hosts informational meetings to inform citizens of the changes they may endure should the annexation application be accepted by the Monongalia County Commission.
For the annexation plan to pass, the County Commission schedules a public hearing to consider input on the plan application. After the public hearing, the County Commission evaluates the application. The Commission will enter an order stating the reasons for granting or denying the application.
Because West Virginia has no annexation ban, Manilla and the rest of the team at F.A.I.R, Inc. are working closely with legal counsel to write a bill banning forced annexation in the state.
