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Board Passes Resolution on Annexations

BY FLORENCE GILKESON: Staff Writer

A resolution opposing involuntary annexation made it past the Moore County Board of Commissioners Monday night on a 3-2 vote.

Thirteen residents speaking on the issue during the public-comment period were almost evenly divided in their views. Speakers opposed to the resolution were representing municipalities, and those in favor were largely residents of Pinewild or owners of property in Pinewild.

The audience was heavily loaded with Pinewild residents.

'The people need to have a voice if they're being annexed,"said Board Chairman David J. Cummings shortly before the board voted on the resolution. "I feel the people should have the right to vote. I'm not concerned about the money the county would lose. I'm concerned about the welfare of the people we represent."

Commissioner Tim Lea said he agrees with a number of points covered by the resolution but argued that it calls for a study on the annexation issue after assuming certain findings before the study can be conducted.

Also opposing adoption of the resolution, Commissioner Colin McKenzie argued that the resolution had not been previously discussed by the board and had been placed on the consent agenda for automatic approval during the Monday meeting.

"We just spent two or three months debating what to do about a tractor implement that was to be provided to the county, free of charge," McKenzie said. "Are we treating our citizens right by running this through in one meeting, on a consent agenda, without any thought, and discussion with the residents that live in municipalities?"

McKenzie said the consent agenda is not the place for controversial items.

The resolution, patterned after ones adopted by three other North Carolina counties, is titled 'Resolution Supporting the Orderly Provision and Expansion of Local Public Services.' It carries no legal weight because state law sets up procedures for involuntary annexation.

However, it contains provisions calling for municipalities to discontinue the practice of involuntary annexation and in the future to carry out annexation only by petition of the people being annexed. The resolution calls for a study to be undertaken immediately to determine the impact that future annexations might have on the county budget and asks municipalities to join in the study.

'Poke in the Eye'

Cummings pulled the resolution from the consent agenda at the beginning of the meeting. He noted that several residents had signed up to speak on the subject during the public-comment period and announced that the period would be moved back to precede the board's consideration of the resolution later in the meeting.

The resolution was placed on the agenda at the urging of Pinewild residents opposed to the proposed annexation of their gated community into the village of Pinehurst.

Southern Pines Town Council-man Chris Smithson, the first speaker, said he is a resident of Moore County as well as of the municipality. He pointed out that four towns clustered in the southern part of the county make up 36 percent of the population and account for 50 percent of the real estate taxes collected by the county.

Smithson said that the county often does not provide services to rural areas outside municipal limits. If municipalities do not step in and provide services to these areas, many such communities would be allowed to languish, he said.

"Is that a message you want to send?" Smithson asked.

Smithson said that it actually costs the county less if areas are annexed and that any financial loss is insignificant.

"Do not let a gated community dictate to you," he said. "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water."

George Lane, president of the Pinehurst Civic Group, also urged the commissioners not to adopt the resolution, which he called 'a poke in the eye' at municipalities. He said it was not an appropriate time to consider the subject.

Lane is among the community leaders spearheading the Moore County Summit, a program in which the county, municipalities and community groups are cooperating to tackle issues of mutual concern. Summit participants have discussed such things as water and sewer needs and school financing issues, but not annexation. Lane also read a message from Pinehurst Mayor Steve Smith urging the board not to adopt the resolution.

'Liberty and Justice'

But it was the pro-resolution faction that drew the heaviest applause during the comment period.

Charlie Mardigian of Pinewild drew hearty applause after reminding the gathering that 80 percent of Pinewild residents objected to annexation when polled several months ago. He said that North Carolina is one of only four states that retain an involuntary annexation law. He said Pinewild residents already pay significant taxes but receive no services from Pinehurst.

Greg Zywocinski likewise drew applause when he called on Pinehurst to 'stop this crazy forced annexation.' He lives in Southern Pines but owns property in Pinewild.

Also speaking in favor of the resolution were Lydia and John Boesch and Robert Norman, all of Pinewild.

Lydia Boesch, an attorney, identified herself as co-author of the (friend of the court) brief filed in the North Carolina Supreme Court on behalf of more than 230 Pinewild property owners in regard to another annexation case, Nolan vs. Village of Marvin.

She said municipalities are misapplying the state law and called 'this old statutory tool 'nothing more than a tax grab.' She quoted the state high court as ruling in favor of Nolan by ruling 'that there must be a meaningful extension of services in order for a forced annexation to be valid.'

Boesch said Moore County does have an interest in this controversy because the annexation would represent thousands of dollars in lost sales tax revenue.

Her husband added that although Pinehurst talks about services it plans for Pinewild, the village does not talk about services that Pinewild residents provide to Pinehurst.

Norman referred to a last line in the Pledge of Allegiance, "liberty and justice for all." Norman said he does not oppose voluntary annexation and thinks people should have the right to vote.

"I want liberty and justice for us," Norman said. "This is disgusting."

Not County"s Business

Pinehurst resident Tom Campbell asked the commissioners not to adopt the resolution. He said that Pinewild residents do indeed use village services, including use of Village Hall"s assembly room for community meetings.

Frank Zamaroni, a member of the Whispering Pines Village Council, said the resolution comes at a critical time for cooperative efforts between towns and the county, a reference to the Summit. He urged the board not to adopt the resolution.

Pinehurst Village Manager Andy Wilkison asked why the county is even considering such a document when annexation is not a county issue.

"You"re aware it has no legal authority," Wilkison said. "Just because something is controversial doesn"t mean the county commissioners have to address it."

Southern Pines Town Manager Reagan Parsons said he agrees with the part of the resolution that calls for "orderly provision and expansion of local public services" but added his concern that adoption of the resolution could curtail the extension of needed services into outlying areas.

Aberdeen Town Manager Bill Zell wanted to know why the county wants to change a law that has worked satisfactorily for 50 years. He said that the county has authority to stop annexation if problems arise.

"Pull Back, Study"

When it came time for the commissioners to discuss the subject, Commissioner Michael R. Holden took the lead by saying that it is time "to pull back and study" the issue. In fact, he said it is time for the state to take a second look at the issue.

"Nobody up here wants to tell towns what to do," Holden said, adding that rural residents get to vote for county commissioners but don"t get to vote for town board members. "On the other hand, we don"t want the towns to tell us what to do,"

Commissioner Virginia Saunders also expressed support for the resolution.

Lea said that forced annexation was an issue of concern because he lives in an area that could be affected by such municipal action, but he said the resolution is faulty because it refers to the findings of a study that has not been conducted. He said the resolution should be amended to reflect a change in procedure.

Lea expressed fear that passage of the resolution would limit "all the good will built up in the Summit process."

Holden expressed his frustration with these objections by tossing a sheet of paper in the air and thumping the table. Saying that the board cannot make everybody happy, he expressed opposition to forced annexation and said the people should have the right to vote on the issue.

"As a commissioner, I represent the municipalities as well as the citizens who live outside municipalities," said McKenzie, a former member of the Pinehurst Village Council. He said that he represents the people of Pinehurst and the people of Pinewild.

McKenzie said municipalities pay more county taxes than those living outside town limits. He cited statistics showing that in recent years, Pinehurst, representing 10 percent of the county population, pays from 23 to 26 percent of the taxes collected annually by the county.

"Why spend county funds for a study to determine the impact of future annexations on the county"s budget and sales tax?" McKenzie asked. "Certainly our county finance officer has this capability. If we upset the greater population who live in the municipalities, then will be need another study to determine what effect that will have?"

At voting time, however, board divisions so evident in the past year and a half surfaced as usual.

First there was a motion, then a substitute motion, both ending in 3-2 votes with Cummings, Saunders and Holden favoring adoption of the resolution and McKenzie and Lea voting to amend the resolution and against its adoption..

No action was taken to initiate the study, nor did the board vote to return the issue to a future agenda.

Florence Gilkeson can be reached at 947-4962 or by e-mail at florence@thepilot.com.