City of Centralia staff are now moving to begin annexation negotiations with Lewis County after the Centralia City Council voted unanimously to approve staff-recommended annexation proposals during its Tuesday, March 11, meeting.
The vote followed more than an hour of discussion and questions between city staff and Centralia City Council members. The conversation touched on everything from potential sewer hookup issues residents and the city might face to which areas they want to try to annex first.
Now that the Centralia City Council has approved proposed annexation areas, the Lewis County Board of County Commissioners must officially initiate the annexation process by passing its own resolution to commence the negotiations, according to the council’s meeting agenda report.
Areas selected for annexation will be given notice of the city’s intent to annex. Residents within those areas will then have 30 days to request to be a party to the interlocal agreement with the city. If an area disagrees with the proposed annexation, then the annexation will not proceed.
If annexation does proceed, all parties involved will work together to develop the annexation interlocal agreement using guidance from the Municipal Research and Services Center.
Prior to the interlocal agreement being signed, public hearing notices must be provided at least once a week for four weeks leading up to the interlocal agreement’s public hearing. Once the public hearing is held, either in joint or separate hearings, the interlocal agreement can be signed and the Centralia City Council can pass an ordinance to officially annex an area.
Three phases of annexation were laid out by city staff — the first looking at annexation occurring over the next two years, the second looking at it over the next two to 10 years and the final phase being planned annexation 10 years out and beyond.
The council’s vote concerned phase one annexation, and included the following areas:
• Fords Prairie subarea A, which includes the northwestern part of the Fords Prairie neighborhood south of Russell Road and west of Eshom Road
• Fords Prairie subarea B, which includes the neighborhoods south of Russell Road on Greenwood and McKinley lanes, Fieldcrest and Mason avenues, Prill Road, and areas east of Eshom Road and north of Mt. Vista Road, stretching east to Scheuber Road North
• The section of land east of Nick Road and west of the Chehalis River
• The neighborhood south of South Street just east of Interstate 5
• The neighborhood south of East Summa Street between Centralia Avenue and Pacific Avenue including State and Grove streets
• The neighborhood and land along the Skookumchuck River south of East Oakview Avenue and east of North Pearl Street
• The neighborhood and land east of Blair Street on North Davis Hill
• The land on North Harrison Avenue including Port of Centralia owned land
A total of 14 areas, some with subareas, were previously identified by city staff as potential annexation targets. The areas not included in Tuesday’s vote will be included in the second and third phases of annexation.
“These are in the Urban Growth Area (UGA). The Urban Growth Area is part of the (Washington state) Growth Management Act, and the idea behind that is to plan for growth, not to have a permanent area that’s kind of in flux, one day we’ll accept it in,” Centralia Mayor Kelly Smith Johnston said. “I’m concerned that we have had these properties in the UGA for so long without annexing them, so I think it’s appropriate that we do that. And I do think it will be challenging.”
On top of additional work for the Centralia Public Works Department with new utility hookups and roads to maintain, the Centralia Police Department will also have to expand its jurisdiction.
Centralia Community Development Director Emil Pierson added that Centralia Police Chief Andy Caldwell will be presenting possible policing solutions at an upcoming city council meeting.
Some benefits of annexation include additional tax and utility revenue for the city, preserving floodplains, land which can be developed for more housing or businesses, and to protect the local aquifer by reducing the number of potentially leaking septic tanks.
City staff have already been working with Lewis County officials to ensure a smooth transition of jurisdiction over the areas being considered for annexation from the county to the city.
