Holbrook City Council Receives Draft Of Annexation WorksheetMay 3rd, 2008
By Tammy Gray-Searles
“The first requirement is that the party seeking annexation submit a full plan of projected development of the property to be annexed, including methods of financing such projects, before the process can even begin,” Holbrook City Attorney Sterling Solomon noted regarding a draft annexation worksheet.
The city council asked Solomon to create a worksheet that developers and other groups or individuals seeking annexation could use to properly follow the procedures for requesting annexation. As Solomon noted, the council asked that the document be written in layman’s terms, so that it could easily be followed.
The council’s request came after developer Pacific Holt Corporation asked the city to annex property it owns in Perkins Valley. At that time, the council determined there was insufficient information for considering the request, and asked Solomon to create an outline of steps for annexation for all future requests.
Prior to requesting annexation, according to the proposed document, the party making the request must submit a detailed map that is to scale, and a plan for infrastructure that includes financing, and timelines for construction and dedication to the city.
“This step must occur prior to the initiation of the annexation steps and time-line listed below; so no further steps will be taken and no adoption of any annexation ordinance will occur until this plan is submitted by a developer or party seeking annexation,” the worksheet states.
If the requirements are met, the city will then request the name and address of each property owner and the assessed value of the property that is included in the annexation request, and file a petition in the Navajo County Recorder’s Office. A 30-day waiting period must then be observed before any additional action is taken. The city must advertise the annexation proposal in a local newspaper at least 15 days before the end of the petition’s waiting period.
A public hearing must also be held within the last 10 days of the waiting period, and the city must post the notice of the hearing in at least three conspicuous places in the annexation area and mail notices of the hearing to each property owner whose land is proposed to be annexed.
Within one year of the last day of the waiting period, the developer must collect and submit signatures from more than one-half of the property owners. The value of the land owned by those whose signatures are collected must be at least one-half of the total assessed value of the property included in the annexation.
Once the signatures have been collected, the petition is completed and filed with both the city clerk and the county recorder. The council must hold two readings of an ordinance authorizing the annexation and hold a vote on whether to approve the annexation following the second reading. Following council approval, there is a 30-day protest period before the ordinance becomes final and takes effect.
According to Solomon, the minimum time it might take for annexation to occur is 107 days. The process would take much longer if the annexation included any land owned by governmental agencies, such as the county, state or federal government.
The proposed worksheet has been submitted to city council members for their review, and they are expected to consider approving it at a future meeting. The majority of the document simply outlines the legal process, with only a few city-specific requests, such as the requirement that maps and financial plans be submitted prior to the city taking any action.
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