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Douglasville Response to Chairman Worthan - 2007/02/27 09:06
February 5, 2007
STATEMENT BY THE DOUGLASVILLE CITY COUNCIL ON ANNEXATION
http://www.ci.douglasville.ga.us/dgls-news.shtml
In our respective positions of Mayor and Council members of the City of Douglasville, we are making this statement on the subject of annexation.
We have restrained ourselves in the past when misinformation and unfair charges have been made against the City of Douglasville on the subject of annexation. We have functioned in accordance with Georgia laws and local ordinances in receiving, considering, and acting on annexation requests we have received from private property owners. We have listened to arguments from Douglas County's officials concerning specific annexation requests, and have taken these officials' views very seriously in our decision making process.
But we can not ignore the erroneous and misleading statements which have been made recently against the City of Douglasville by some members of the Douglas County government and by the statewide organization of County Boards of Commissioners: the Association County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG).
The statements to which we are referring include Commission Chairman Tom Worthan's column in the February issue of The Chapel Hill News & Views and a report from the ACCG which has been widely circulated at the State Capital. Therefore, we are directing the City Manager to transmit a copy of this statement to the members of our local State legislative delegation and to The Chapel Hill News & Views, as well as to the statewide organization of Georgia cities: the Georgia Municipal Association (GMA).
Through this statement, we want to bring the following facts to the attention of the citizens and businesses of the City of Douglasville, in addition to all of the members of our local State legislative delegation.
Annexation Is a Private Property Right. We believe this to be a fundamental truth, even though some appear to be anxious to deny a person the right to decide whether he/she wants their land to be inside a city or remain in an unincorporated area. The ACCG and various county government members of that organization would restrict what we believe to be a basic right of a property owner. They would take away a property owner's ability to make a decision on whether he or she could seek to have their land annexed into a city.
Annexation in Douglasville Is at Property's Owner Request. Georgia law provides several ways in which property can be annexed into a municipality, but the City of Douglasville historically has annexed property only at the owner's request. This is the "100 percent method," meaning that 100 percent of the property being considered for annexation has been submitted by the owners. Mr. Worthan's column said: "Legally, a property may be annexed into a city only if the city can provide services the county cannot." Frankly, this is not true. We assume he is referring to Georgia laws that permit annexation through less than the 100 percent method after a city has prepared a plan for extending certain services into the areas proposed for annexation; however, even those methods do not include the restriction claimed by Chairman Worthan. Keep in mind: The City of Douglasville historically has used only the 100% method, with the exception being the February 5 annexation of an "unincorporated island" on Prestley Mill Road to protect the adjacent single family residential subdivisions.
Georgia Has a Workable Annexation Law. As a result of GMA working with ACCG only a few years ago, Georgia's annexation laws were changed to ensure the views of county government were heard by city government as part of the annexation process. On the limited number of occasions in recent years in which the City of Douglasville has received an annexation petition, we have taken very seriously the State expectation that the two governments have meaningful discussion on all aspects of an annexation request. We frequently have included as stipulations of annexation and zoning the specific points presented to us by Douglas County officials. And we have not approved every annexation request which has been filed with the City, because in some cases we felt the proposed developments were not in the best interest of this community.
What Happens to Land Which Is Annexed into Douglasville. In his Chapel Hill News & Views column, Chairman Worthan said: "The City of Douglasville has a history of annexing property to allow higher density development..." The truth is that virtually all property annexed into the City of Douglasville has increased in density simply because most of the property was vacant land at the time of its annexation. But the vast majority of that vacant acreage has become some of best single-family residential developments in all of Douglas County: Chapel Hills, Saddlebrook, Grace Lake, Charlton Crossing, Tributary at New Manchester, Kensington, Kensington Gardens, and Sweetwater. Chairman Worthan says: "The only people who benefit from annexation are developers." Yes, construction of these residential subdivisions and other development in the City of Douglasville has benefited developers. New growth in a community generally is beneficial to the citizens and their government. And everyone should remember the Douglas County government is a major beneficiary of the new development within the City of Douglasville.
"A History of Annexing Property." As noted in the preceding paragraph, Chairman Worthan points to Douglasville's "history of annexing property." Every city in this nation that grows does so by moving out..."moving out" being the addition of land through annexation. In response to Chairman Worthan's comment in his column concerning "a history of annexing property" and in response to the map on Douglas County's web site which is attached to Mr. Worthan's column, we want to point out the following: That map shows annexations reaching back to 1985, which covers some 22 years. But the reality is that during the two administrations of Mayor Thompson, the City has averaged about three annexations each year. And the total amount of land annexed over this seven-year period (25 separate annexation petitions) is some 605 acres, which is less than an average of 87 acres a year. Clearly, this Mayor and this City Council in Douglasville have not been on a "land- grabbing expedition."
High Density Housing on Annexed Property. Chairman Worthan says: "The City of Douglasville has a history of annexing property to allow higher density development." The fact is that in the past 20 years the City has approved only three high density multi- family (apartment or townhouse) developments on land annexed into the City which was not part of a planned community development with mixed land uses. Two of these apartment developments are at Lee Road and I-20, and we believe the I-20 interchanges are an appropriate location for high density development. The third high density housing site is at Blairs Bridge Road and Mount Vernon Road near I-20, and this land already had been zoned by Douglas County for apartments before it was annexed. It is true that the City's Sweetwater and Tributary developments include multiple (mixed) land uses, including a section designated for high density residential housing as well as several sections designated for single family housing.
Crowded Schools and Congested Roads. We believe both local governments are concerned about crowded schools and congested roads. We listen to the School System when rezoning requests are being considered; and as a demonstration of our concern, the City Council appointed a School System official to the City Zoning Board. (To underscore our interest in our School System, let us note that in the past few years we have been able to incorporate donation of a middle school site as part of the rezoning process; and on another occasion, donation of part of the land needed for a high school site.) We are working to relieve congestion on our streets and roads; and are looking at different ways, locally and at the State level, to generate additional revenue for road projects. Let us cite a couple of residential building permit statistics from the Development Authority of Douglas County (DADC): In 2005 and 2006 combined, the City of Douglasville issued permits for 967 single family units and 8 multi-family housing units for a total of 975 new housing units. In 2005 and 2006 combined, the Douglas County government issued permits for 3,116 single family units and 123 multi-family housing units for a total of 3,239 new housing units. Keep in mind the true measure of school crowding and road congestion is found in the number of new housing units approved and built, and not in the density of housing developments. When you look at the statistics cited above, it is easy to see which local government's actions are contributing the most to school crowding and road congestion.
Managing Growth. Chairman Worthan says: "Annexation is a managed growth issue." We agree. And in looking at each petition which comes to the City of Douglasville from the owner of private property who is seeking annexation, the City Council considers how the City's current Comprehensive Plan -- our Future Land Use Plan -- would be impacted by the annexation and the proposed use of the property. After all, that property basically is adjacent to our city limits. What happens on land annexed into the City affects the property on all sides, including the land already within our city limits. It is unfortunate that all too frequently, Douglas County has tried to use its Comprehensive Plan as a tool to limit the growth of Douglasville. Logically, land adjacent to the urban area of any city should be viewed for future development at a density higher than land several miles from that city and from major highways. But Douglas County too often has sought to build an artificial "low density moat" adjacent or near this City so it can claim virtually any annexation is a move to increase density, being contrary to its Comprehensive Plan. Having a great amount of "agriculture residential" land use adjacent to any growing urban community raises questions about that plan's objectivity.
Public Safety. We are very pleased the Douglasville Police Department and the Douglas County Sheriff's Office have a positive working relationship, and that each is of assistance to the other. We have a joint unit working on Interstate 20, and the City police officers assigned to this F.I.N.D. unit have been deputized so they have full police powers in unincorporated Douglas County...because most of their F.I.N.D. unit law enforcement activities on I-20 occur outside Douglasville's corporate limits. But they are working with the Sheriff's Office to make sure all citizens of Douglas County -- wherever they live -- have sufficient law enforcement protection. We appreciate the fact that the Sheriff's Office from time to time provides valuable assistance to our patrol activities in that part of the City of Douglasville near Cobb County. But it is totally wrong and is a disservice to the brave men and women who wear the Douglasville Police Department badge for any County official or the ACCG organization to say the Sheriff's Office must supplement the services of our Police Department in order for citizens to have sufficient police protection.
Public Safety Headquarters. In his column, Chairman Worthan seems to question whether our Police Department can serve the entire City from our Police Station in downtown Douglasville. We would point out that the Sheriff's Office also is in downtown Douglasville, and the distances from this office to various points in south and west Douglas County are further away from downtown than the Thornton Road - I-20 area of Douglasville. We think both local law enforcement agencies do a very good job with their patrols. We are pleased the Sheriff's Office recently added a precinct on Thornton Road, because of the needs primarily in unincorporated Douglas County. The City Council is working with the two residential developments in Douglasville near Sweetwater Creek State Park on having a police precinct there. And we are sure the City Police Department and the County Sheriff's Office will benefit from both precincts in the years ahead.
In Summary. We, the elected officials of the City of Douglasville, are committed to continuing to work to make our community a better place, a safer place, a higher quality place in which to live, work, and play. In order for a municipality to be a desirable place for its citizens, it must be a vibrant and a growing community. Most of our growth has been, and will be, within our current corporate limits; however, there will be times in which annexations occur. When annexations do occur, we expect the annexed areas to contribute to this community being a better place, a safer place, a higher quality place in which to live, work, and play.
Mayor Mickey Thompson
Mayor Pro Tem Henry Mitchell III
Councilman Charles Banks
Councilman Michael Carter
Councilman Roy Mims
Councilwoman Callye B. Holmes
Councilman Dennis McLain
Councilman John Schildroth
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