City of Tumwater moves to annex 12 unincorporated ‘islands’ in Thurston County
Hundreds of Thurston County residents could soon become residents of Tumwater, as the city moves to annex 12 unincorporated areas of land that are already within or surrounded by city limits.
Tumwater City Council on Tuesday night moved to schedule a joint public hearing with the Board of County Commissioners for Jan. 18 to discuss the joint approval of an interlocal agreement to allow for the annexation to occur.
The “islands” of unincorporated land were created over time as annexations occurred in some surrounding areas and not in others, typically due to the owner of a piece of property opposing annexation. But in 2020, the state legislature passed a new law that allows cities and counties to annex these islands through a jointly approved interlocal agreement.
The 12 islands within the city’s Urban Growth Area range in size from a quarter of an acre to more than a hundred acres housing a couple hundred people.
Littlerock/Trosper Island, the largest of the 12 islands, houses approximately 250 people. The area covers 131 acres that stretches north from 50th Avenue and follows Percival Creek south to Trosper Lake and then further south to Littlerock Road.
All other islands being annexed house less than 30 people each.
There are benefits and deficits to living within city limits, one of the largest concerns being a rise in property taxes. According to information provided to the council by city planner Brad Medrud and their consultant Gary Cooper, taxes usually go down, but not this time.
Currently, the tax rate for the Littlerock/Trosper island specifically is $13.53 per $1,000 of assessed value. After annexation, it would be bumped up to $14. This is due to an excess levy in effect for the McLane Fire Department that was approved by voters. Once the excess levy expires in a couple years, it will decrease to $12.80.
To calculate property taxes, take the value of the property, which can be found on the Thurston County assessor’s website, and divide that by $1,000, then multiply that result by the post-annexation tax rate.
There are several other components to annexation, including the extension of city services such as police protection, municipal traffic and street management, and more. Some of the unincorporated areas are already on city sewer and water services.
Some of these additions mean annexed residents will pay about $40 a month more to live within city limits, according to Medrud and Cooper. Once the levies have expired, that will go down to about $20 a month more.
The City and County will be conducting an online open house on the island process on Dec. 1 and invitations will be sent to affected property owners. The public will be able to provide comments and opinions at public hearings on the interlocal agreement on January 18, 2022, and the proposed City annexation ordinances in March and May 2022. Once the interlocal agreement is approved, the City Council has overall final say on the annexation ordinances, Cooper said.
Cooper said people who live in these islands are adjacent to city amenities now, so it’s very likely they’re taking advantage of city parks, for example, but aren’t paying into the tax that supports them. He’s hoping that having open discussions on the annexation will prevent any residents from opposing the process.
“What you do is you provide complete and accurate information, and you move forward with the conviction that this makes sense for the community as a whole,” Cooper said.
Residents would not be required to switch to city sewer and water after the annexation process is over, but being within city limits will make it easier to do so if a well or septic system fails. And instead of the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office, residents will receive primary response from the Tumwater Police Department.
Fire services, garbage pickup, and schools will not be affected by the annexation process.
Council member Eileen Swarthout said the annexation idea was originally brought to them by Mary Hall, the Thurston County auditor. She told the council this annexation would make it easier to send out ballots for elections. The county auditor’s office currently has to make separate ballots for residents living in the “islands” as well as count them separately. By absorbing these areas into the city, they’re joining a much larger voting district.
The annexation would bring an estimated $200,000 a year in revenue to the City of Tumwater, which will be used to cover costs in the general fund and the Metro Parks Department.
“These are not always pleasant experiences,” said Mayor Pete Kmet during the council meeting. “But I think for good government purposes it makes sense to bring these islands in. It provides efficiency of services, and assures that the tax revenues from these areas are supporting these services that they’re receiving.”
This story was originally published October 27, 2021 at 10:48 AM.
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