Voters will elect candidates in Chapel Hill, Carrboro and Hillsborough and for the Chapel Hill-Carrboro school board Tuesday.

In Chatham County voters will elect candidates in Pittsboro and other towns and decide whether to approve a 0.4 percent county land transfer tax.
For more information, see the Voters Guide in Sunday's News & Observer or go to our Election FactFinder at http://share.triangle.com/election2007


Today's question

What has the town of Carrboro learned from recent annexations that it can apply to make future annexations more smooth and productive?

Mayor

MARK CHILTON: No areas are eligible for involuntary annexation. However, there are two major lessons. First, the town should have been more proactive in engaging the affected residents in a discussion. That lesson can be applied in discussions about the Northern Small Area Plan. We tried to reach the community through two public forums, and we will conduct hearings on any proposed changes. Second, I tried to seek a middle ground, and I think the Board of Aldermen would have done well to compromise. I advocated delaying annexation so a) residents would have more time to deal with the consequences, b) the town could finish building the fire station before the annexation took place (so annexees would clearly be getting value for their increased taxes), and c) annexees could vote in the election immediately following the annexation.


CHUCK MORTON: Annexation is never popular in those areas proposed to be annexed. Property owners in these areas are rightfully concerned about increased tax obligations. All areas within any municipality's extra-jurisdictional area are subject to possible eventual annexation. When I was selling real estate, I always informed my clients of these situations. Communication is the key to making annexation work smoothly. The town needs to inform all affected residents early, and keep them informed of all deliberations and progress. More importantly, the town needs to listen to the concerns of the property owners, and give them ample opportunity to express those concerns. Furthermore, the town needs to consider the costs versus the benefits of annexation, not just for the town but for the property owners as well. The town must deliver value for the money.


BRIAN VOYCE: Annexation injustices include: 1) secretly planning for annexation without public input, to the point of officials misleading citizens; 2) timing the annexation to disenfranchise annexees, denying them an election for almost two years; 3) failing to provide different fire protection; 4) reducing police protection; 5) timing the annexation so four major developments near the annexed areas gained legal rights before annexees could vote; 6) splitting the Rogers Road community into two; 7) failing to annex the roads; 8) creating a task force, elements of which tried to whitewash annexees' opinions; and 9) using Òbanana republicÓ tactics to crush annexees' constitutional right to seek redress of their grievances with the General Assembly.


Board of Aldermen

FRANK ABERNETHY: It is my belief that if you're going to tell someone that you're going to annex them into the town, you don't make promises you can't keep. If the town promises people they can provide services, they need to make sure the service is going to be provided. The northern area was under the impression that they were possibly going to have an alderman for their area, but they did not get annexed until January and the election was held in November. So that promise was not kept. They were also under the impression the fire station would be built, and it keeps getting pushed back more and more.


JOAL HALL BROUN: I think that the town learned that it should: 1) Have a series of community meetings in the areas that will be annexed at least two years prior to annexation; 2) Provide for an advisory board of citizens who live in the annexed area to work with the town prior to and after the annexation; 3) Provide a manner so that the newly annexed citizens are not subject to one hefty tax bill, but allow the newly annexed citizens to pay in installments; 4) Appoint residents of the annexed area to the town's advisory boards subsequent to annexation.


DAN COLEMAN: There are two kinds of annexations, voluntary and involuntary. Recently Carrboro underwent a difficult involuntary annexation of several neighborhoods in the northeast of town. Although there are no additional annexations of that sort on the horizon, there are lessons to be learned from the recent experience and applied in the future should the occasion arise. For 14 months, I served on the New Horizons Task Force which discussed this issue at length. There, I learned a great deal about the problems with the recent process. This was particularly helpful to me since I was not yet an Alderman when the annexation was deliberated. Communication must be improved. Affected residents should be notified as soon as the Board of Aldermen or town staff begin discussing annexation. Information must be accurate and realistic, including time tables for provision of services and the anticipated taxes. Simple matters such as communicating meeting times and posting announcements in public places can be done better than in the past. A transition task force like New Horizons should be set up prior to the annexation to discuss issues that may arise. In addition, the timing of annexations must be improved. The annexation must be effective at the start of the fiscal year to prevent the large tax bills seen by recent annexees.


SHARON COOK: Hopefully the town has learned to respect the democratic process. Any future annexations must be timed to allow maximum opportunity for full voting rights for the new citizens. Residents of northeast Carrboro will not have elected representation on the town board for almost two years from the time of annexation. Taxation without representation goes against our most basic principles. Process matters. Making a genuine effort to keep residents aware of not only annexation plans, but any actions, such as rezoning or proposed developments which will impact their neighborhood is critical to the conduct of open and fair government. The opportunity for public discussion must take place well before an action is scheduled for implementation. The Carrboro Website has developed into an excellent tool for communicating with residents. This tool should be expanded to include e-mail distribution lists which can be used to inform residents about upcoming zoning changes, development proposals, road plans and other issues which will impact their neighborhood. When used in addition to legally required mail notifications, we can help assure that citizens are kept as informed and up-to-date as possible on town issues which will affect their lives.


LYDIA LAVELLE: My neighborhood, Fox Meadow, was annexed last year. I witnessed my neighbors struggle to deal with it. I was elected chair of the New Horizons Task Force. We crafted a series of recommendations to improve the process. Our recommendations included the following:

• Inform residents of upcoming hearings and votes starting with the intent to annex.
• Form a neighborhood transition group prior to annexation.
• Post signs in affected areas when preliminary annexation procedures start.
• Provide complete/accurate information.
• Use the public meetings to provide information rather than sell the idea.
• Time annexations effective July 1: closer to elections; consistent with the county property tax schedule.
• Have staff provide a yearly report of areas that could be annexed in the next two years.
• Identify Town staff person as a point of contact to give an educated assessment about the possibility of annexation.
• Do not annex until services are in place/scheduled.
• Consider adopting a policy of Òno involuntary annexationÓ except in limited circumstances (47 other states have this policy).

These recommendations would improve the process and I would work to implement them.


KATRINA RYAN: The two real problems with the 2006 annexation were that it was done largely without area residents' knowledge and the timing disenfranchised the area for the longest possible time. Since we know that Carrboro will grow to its planning jurisdiction limits, we should adopt a policy like Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, where there is a map posted prominently on the Internet and in town hall with a target annexation date for various areas. Most residents have five years notice that they have been targeted for annexation. Open process makes things much less contentious.