Lacey gains about 1,000 new residents as council approves annexation
The city of Lacey has sought for years to annex the Capitol City Golf Course and its surrounding area, an island of unincorporated Thurston County property surrounded by the city.
That longtime goal finally happened Thursday when the City Council voted to annex Capitol City Golf Club Estates, Chambers Estates, Capitol City Townhomes and the golf course, adding about 1,000 new residents in the process. The annexation is expected to officially take effect Sept. 1.
The council spent all of 10 minutes approving it, but the annexation had been years in the making.
Some residents were resistant to change, so the city sweetened the deal by connecting residents to city sewer in exchange for their agreement to be annexed. However, that offer wasn’t strictly driven by annexation desires. City officials also were concerned about the number of septic systems in the area and the threat failing systems posed to the city’s Well No. 4.
Phase 1 of that septic-to-sewer conversion is almost complete, planning manager Ryan Andrews told the council on Thursday.
The 288 acres that were annexed have an assessed value of $134 million, he said. After property owners agreed to be annexed through power of attorney documents, the city now controls about $100 million in assessed value, or about 75 percent, which is more than the 60 percent required for annexation, Andrews said.
Other details:
▪ The area will now be served by Lacey police and not the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office. Andrews said that change will add about 1,100 more calls per year to the Lacey police call volume of 42,000 to 46,000 calls per year. The annexation will not unduly burden police with additional calls, Andrews said.
▪ The area will be served by Lacey Fire District 3, including the Chambers Estates neighborhood west of Rainier Road, which was previously served by East Olympia Fire District 6. Andrews said he has talked to both fire chiefs and they are aware of the change.
▪ The annexation area is bordered by Yelm Highway, 66th Avenue Southeast, the Chehalis Western Trail and Ruddell Road.
▪ The annexation will take effect in about two months to give the city time to transition utility bills and addresses, Andrews said.
Although the council approved the annexation, councilman Michael Steadman abstained from voting. He said he supports the annexation, but he is “big on fairness” and believes the city wasn’t unfair to the Chambers Estates neighborhood.
“If one person is getting their sewer paid for, they should all get their sewer paid for,” he said.
However, during the annexation presentation, the city showed a map of all those who agreed to be annexed by signing power of attorney documents. The map showed that some in Chambers Estates agreed to that step, while others did not. The map shows the neighborhood is still largely served by septic systems and a drain field.
Lacey Mayor Andy Ryder disagreed with Steadman’s view, pointing out the city is about to embark on a wider septic-to-sewer program for city residents.
“I honestly don’t think we’re treating anyone differently here, but duly noted,” Ryder said.
This story was originally published July 2, 2021 at 5:15 AM.
