Carrboro annexes 2 areas

Residents fighting annexation into one local town received perhaps the final blow to their cause Tuesday evening.

After months of debate, the Carrboro Board of Aldermen voted 5-2 to authorize the annexation of two areas into town limits by Jan. 31, 2006.

Aldermen Jackie Gist and Mark Chilton voted against the ordinance to incorporate what town officials referred to as areas A and B.

Area A includes the Camden, Highlands, Highland Meadows and Highlands North neighborhoods.

The northern portion of Rogers Road, along with the Fox Meadow and Meadow Run subdivisions, make up Area B.

Some of the aldermen who voted in favor of the annexation cited their duty to act in the best interest of the entire town as one of the reasons for their vote.

“My vote is to look for the long-term vibrancy of southern Orange County. That’s what I was elected to do,” said Alderman Joal Hall Broun.

Gist, who voted against annexation, said her vote hinged on how the town’s feeling of community would be affected by the incorporation of the new areas.

“I really don’t like the idea of bringing in people who don’t like Carrboro,” she said.

Hundreds of residents attended informational meetings on annexation leading up to Tuesday’s decision to voice their opposition.

Others petitioned state legislators, while some even petitioned Chapel Hill leaders to annex the areas into their town limits.

About 852 people live in the two areas, which encompass 321 acres of land.

Much of the discussion Tuesday revolved around a 17-year-old joint planning agreement, which outlines into what town unincorporated areas would be annexed.

“That’s good government,” Mayor Mike Nelson said Tuesday morning. “It’s very rare in North Carolina for governments to make explicit their plans that far in advance.”

But Nelson acknowledged the possibility that legal action could be taken by the town’s new residents.

“It’s almost become part of the process,” he said.

After Tuesday’s meeting, that possibility was all but assured.

At least one resident says he plans to file a lawsuit against the town to reverse the decision.

Rudolph Ryan, who lives in the Highlands neighborhood of Area A, said he and other neighborhood leaders plan to file suit within the next three to four weeks.

“The legal remedy is the soundest remedy at this point,” he said.

During the meeting, the aldermen also adopted resolutions to support citizens who are annexed.

Those resolutions include the allocation of funds to assist households in connecting with the Orange Water and Sewer Authority.

Members also approved a motion, which asks town staff to secure a location for a fire station in the newest area of the town.

If town staffers do not find a location by June 7, the town will be able to acquire property through eminent domain, which allows municipalities to condemn property for use by the local government.

But all these provisions are subject to the outcome of Ryan’s lawsuit, which could lengthen the timeline for the process.

“We’ll take it as far as we have to — all the way to the North Carolina Supreme Court,” Ryan said.

Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.