Is annexation good for anyone?

As a resident of the Armorel area, I took particular interest when I heard of plans by the Blytheville City Council to study the possible annexations of several outlying neighborhoods.

The neighborhoods in question are Armorel Estates and Birchwood, both in the Armorel area, as well as Meadow Lawn, located north of Wal-Mart, and Ramblewood, located off of North Franklin.

For the record, I don't live in any of those neighborhoods. But as a resident of the greater Armorel area, it's still something that caught my attention, and perhaps I can offer some perspective on the matter.

My knee-jerk reaction is the same as many of my neighbors — that is, somewhat negative. It just seems somehow wrong — un-American even — to use legal force to bring a group of people into a municipality who already made a conscious decision not to live there. Though there could conceivably be an election on the matter, it will likely be the whims of Blytheville voters which will determine the outcome, as the voters in Armorel and the other neighborhoods would be a distinct minority.

Beyond that, there's been those who have implied that people living just outside the city limits are somehow "freeloaders" — taking advantage of what the city has to offer without actually living there. Quite the opposite is true, actually. Those living outside the city limits contribute just as much to the local economy as anyone else — without ever having a vote to cast on any matter of city governance.

I was also taken aback by comments from Municipal League consultant Jim von Tungeln, who advised council members against having a public hearing on the matter, for fear such an event would serve to mobilize opposition to the idea. God forbid the city be open, honest and straightforward with its plans. So much for promoting democracy and open government. (Kudos to Jim McClain for advocating a public forum.)

But after giving more thought to the matter, there are a number of potential advantages to annexation for residents of outlying neighborhoods. For one, police and fire protection could improve — which could result in lowered insurance rates. For another, I know I sometimes wish I had access to the city's code enforcement protection, which would come in handy in the event that a neighbor decides to turn his front lawn into a used car lot. And it would also be nice to have a vote the next time the City Council decides to push a sales tax hike.

Besides all that, adding a few thousand people to its population — besides increasing the city's take of state turnback funds — could boost the city's profile, statewide. And that's something that could benefit the entire area.

It's also worth noting that annexation would have no bearing on school district boundaries. Those living in the Armorel area for the school district would have no reason to fear switching schools. That myth can be laid aside.

That said, I remain skeptical of the wisdom of annexation. Mainly, I'm just not confident the city of Blytheville has the means to support any new neighborhoods. Annexing these areas would create a need for more police officers, more police cars, more firefighters and maybe even a new fire station. More man hours would be needed at city hall to manage the various needs and requests of thousands of new Blythevillians. Garbage trucks would have more miles to travel. And the city would quickly become responsible for a whole new slew of city roads, some of which are already in horrible condition (see Meadow Lawn.)

It's no secret that despite diligent and industrious efforts, the city of Blytheville, at present, struggles to provide services to its current set of city limits. It's been years since there's been any major street repairs. It took a tax referendum to provide adequate support to the city's police and fire departments. And there's been countless news articles in the past year detailing the city's budget cuts.

In other words, one must ask how a city struggling to manage its current population and land area could expect to effectively take in more land area?

At the end of the day, I think I stand with Councilman R.L. Jones, who has been alone on the Council in opposing spending $8,500 in taxpayers' money to study the possibility of annexation. It just doesn't seem prudent to blow that kind of cash on something that just doesn't seem like a very good idea. Especially when there are so many other better ways the city could put that kind of money to good use, whether it's fixing pot-holes, improving drainage or any other of a range of problems that any of us could name.

Perhaps a couple years down the road — after the city gains access to its streets fund, the parks and recreation fund develops, and the city gets a better grasp on its budget situation — expanding its boundaries and growing its population might be something worth pursuing.

But not now. Right now, the city of Blytheville has its hands full. It should leave the outlying neighborhoods alone.