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Council should delay vote on annexation

The Brooksville City Council is only one vote away from annexing nearly 900 acres south of the city, a move that almost certainly will result in the Hernando County Commission suing to stop the land from being developed.

But the City Council could avoid, or at the very least delay, a confrontation in court if it postpones voting on the matter Monday night, and grants the commission's request to review the plans together.

That is a sensible request; the council has no reason to hurry this process when it doesn't know what the landowner plans to do with the property, or have a clear understanding of the effects it might have on the county's infrastructure.

The commission has already warned the city that if the land, two parcels owned by Bell Fruit Co. and James DeMaria, is developed into a subdivision, it will require amending the comprehensive growth management plan, which designates the sites as rural.

In addition, the commission has other concerns, including that it cannot afford to improve the county roads that would ferry the traffic from a residential/retail development, and that it does not wish for those roads to be annexed by the city.

The commission also points out that this proposed annexation would make the city boundaries uneven and illogical, creating areas of unincorporated property where landowners must rely on city services without the benefit of being inside the city limits or having a voice in their government.

These all are valid points and they should be addressed before the annexation is approved, not after, as Brooksville Development Director Bill Geiger and Councilwoman Mary Staib have stated.

The city is growing too fast. Its size has doubled in the past three years and so will its population in the next five to 10 years. It will be a struggle to provide basic services, such as police and fire protection, to that influx of residents, especially when neighborhoods on the edges of the city resemble outposts.

It is entirely reasonable for the city to attempt to grow. But it is equally reasonable for those who might be adversely affected to insist that it grow more slowly and that adequate plans are in place to accommodate that growth.

The City Council has an opportunity to show that it has matured in that respect by postponing its Monday vote on the annexation petition, and agreeing to meet soon, and as often as necessary, with the County Commission.

[Last modified October 1, 2006, 07:18:30]