MILTON, W.Va. — The city of Milton has apparently backed off on plans to annex a large number of homes and businesses into its city limits. The city was looking at a plan which would bring more than a thousand new residents and about 450 households into the city limits. The city has now withdrawn the plan.
A number of the residents living in the zone of annexation have been vocal opponents of the idea. They have a fear the move could be no more than a “bait and switch” maneuver.
“Since they have withdrawn the application they can reapply at any time,” said opponent Steven Harper. “Had they let it go to a vote of the county commission it would have to wait one year. I’m just enough of a pessimist to think, they are going to wear the people down.”
Harper says as things presently stand there is nothing to block Mayor Tom Canterbury and the city from restarting the application for annexation with some rewording of the fine print as soon as next week. Canterbury believes if that is the plan, opponents would have to begin their difficult fight all over again and go through the laborious task of gathering signatures in petition against the plan for a second time.
“If you can just back off and then go back in a week, and then they have to go through all that stuff again,” said Harper. “It’s going to wear you down.”
Last week Canterbury told MetroNews the area to be annexed involved properties on the outskirts of town along with what he described as a “doughnut hole” within the city limits. Harper says there is no doughnut hole in the city and the annexed area is nothing more than a bid to double the size of the town. Although the city calls it a “backing off” and “reevaluation.” Harper believes more is at play.
“He (Canterbury) stated they will, and I underline WILL, be applying again and he stated there would be no change,” Harper said on MetroNews Talkline. “Why would you back off on your application if you’re making no changes?”