Northpinellas: Residents to vote on annexation

If a majority of the voters approve the annexations, the areas of Sandy Woods, Townhomes of Lake Seminole and Carriage Bay will become the latest additions to the city.

If all three referendums pass, the three areas would bring 141 acres, 883 registered voters and about 1,800 residents into the city.

Today's vote marks the first time Pinellas voters will head to the polls since Nov. 7, the day of the presidential election and the beginning of controversy that lasted weeks.

Heeding the recent advice of Elections Supervisor Deborah Clark, the city hired an extra worker for each of the three polls to remind voters to drop a clean ballot into the box.

"They'll ask voters to remove hanging chads from the back of their ballots," said Seminole City Clerk Lynne Keane.

Maxine Huff hopes the majority of the punched holes will be in the column for annexation. Huff became a Seminole resident on Nov. 6, when the City Council approved voluntary annexation requests from her and six other homeowners on 108th Avenue in the Sandy Woods area.

"Everybody is so happy to be in Seminole," she said.

Mrs. Huff says she likes the way the city is run and the services it provides, including the new recreation center. She helped coordinate efforts to bring the entire Sandy Woods area, bordered on the west by 117th Way N and 118th Street N and on the east by the Pinellas Trail, into the city.

"I just hope (the referendum) passes," she said, adding that two unsigned fliers against the annexation have circulated throughout her neighborhood.

Opponents say they worry about higher taxes and fees from the city once annexation is approved. They say they don't believe the city's figures showing it's cheaper to live in Seminole than in the county.

Dorothy Book, who has lived in an unincorporated area near Seminole for 28 years, joined five other people to pass out fliers in the three neighborhoods the past three Sundays.

"We had such a good response," she said. "So many people thanked us."

Mrs. Book said the city encourages annexation because it needs to increase its tax base. "In my opinion, the city of Seminole does not play fair," she said. "They just don't tell the truth."

The proposed annexation pales in comparison with one in June, when 2,410 acres and 8,615 registered voters were brought into the city. That annexation doubled the city's land area and increased the taxable value of city property by about 60 percent.

Mitch Bobowski, the city's general services director, said the size of the area to be annexed doesn't matter.

"The city views each one of these referendums as an indication that the people want to come and belong to the city," Bobowski said. "Whether they're smaller than the previous one doesn't matter. We're still happy to have the people want to join our community."

The Townhomes of Lake Seminole subdivision sits off Seminole Boulevard between 102nd and 86th avenues. The 212-unit condominium complex is bordered on the south by Seminole and on the north by the county.

The Carriage Bay neighborhood, which is in the Bay Pines area, is bordered on the south by the Pinellas Trail and on the north by 62nd Avenue N.

Votes in each area will be counted separately.

If a referendum passes, the annexation would take effect Feb. 2. If one fails, state law prohibits another annexation vote for at least two years.

Voting information

Townhomes of Lake Seminole residents will vote in the clubhouse, 9209 Seminole Blvd. Residents of Sandy Woods area will vote at Seminole Community Library, 9199 113th St. N. Residents of the Carriage Bay area will vote at Seminole United Methodist Church, 5400 Seminole Blvd. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE:

More voters to decide on joining Seminole

City may attract 3 neighborhoods

Back to North Pinellas news

Contact the Times | Privacy Policy
Standard of Accuracy | Terms, Conditions & Copyright

Special Links

Mary Jo Melone

Howard Troxler

From the Times
North Pinellas desks