Palmer council considers annexation

Aug. 5, 2005

DAWN DE BUSK\Frontiersman reporter

PALMER - The edges of Palmer are bristling with new subdivisions and businesses, prompting City Council to mull the pros and cons of annexing parts of the Mat-Su, especially along the Palmer-Wasilla Highway, into the city's boundaries.

During a July 28 work session, the council addressed its plan for the city to absorb more land, and the timeline needed for the Mat-Su Borough Assembly to approve that plan by February.

Controlling standards in construction, supplying water and sewer to residents, providing police protection and fire services and increasing the tax base topped the list of benefits of annexation.

"The city can regulate what's going on. The racetrack, with all its noise, might have been shut out by the city," Council Member Jim Wood said. "We'd also have more control of the development along the Palmer-Wasilla Highway. I would be in favor of looking at a longer stretch of the Palmer-Wasilla."

Palmer Mayor John Combs, who claimed he was a five-year proponent of annexation, cited an example of uncontrolled growth along the Palmer-Wasilla Highway, when an asphalt plant moved next to a single-family home.

"The borough seemed to think that was OK, but with the city, that wouldn't have happened," he said. "Everyone should be welcome, but don't rub elbows."

During its regularly scheduled meeting Tuesday, the council plans to review the annexation discussion that took place last month.

"It's all conversation at this point," said Sara Jansen, Palmer's community development coordinator.

During discussions, Trunk Road is a conceptual boundary, but the water and sewer boundaries are just beyond Trunk Road, Jansen said.

North of Palmer, along Palmer-Fishhook Road, there's still a lot of undeveloped land and not much forecast as to how it will be developed, she said.

However, the area near the Alaska State Fairgrounds appears interesting, with some fairly large parcels being developed along the Glenn Highway and some subdivisions having trouble with water, she said.

"Behind the fairgrounds, those people aren't chomping at the bit to be annexed," Jansen said, concluding that the city doesn't have a firm idea of where annexation might be most appropriate.

Whatever decisions the city makes won't be addressed without discussions with Valley residents, she said.

Prior to the actual annexation - and required by code - there will be opportunities for public input, according to Palmer City Clerk Janette M. Bower.

"People ask about their horses. They ask: 'Can I keep the old shed on my property? Can I still burn on my property?'" Jansen said. "The process will be a balancing act, meeting people, addressing concerns while at the same time, moving forward with annexation plan."

Palmer City Manager Tom Healy said there are two schools of thought.

"Some people want to know what's happening, how their property is zoned or being zoned. Then, others want the city to leave them alone, and not tell them what to do with their land," he said.

Council Member Tony Pippel said most people view change skeptically and residents want reassurance. Residents will want to know how the use of their land will change, he said.

Sometime this autumn, the city will hire a consultant to tackle the project: To analyze various boundary lines, review the economic impact of those new boundaries, and mail out letters to property-owners whose land might be annexed.

Combs suggested each letter to business owners and homeowners, who fall in potential annexation lines, should include how it will be zoned and then explain what the zoning code means.

"We're going to run into more discussion with agricultural parcels," Combs said. He suggested pre-meetings with small groups, such as residents of Equestrian Acres, to answer those questions ahead of time.

Business owner and Three Bears vice president Dave Weisz said he didn't weigh Palmer annexation plans or sales tax when deciding where to situate the new Three Bears store in the Valley.

"Our big store in Kenai has 5-percent sales tax. The Kenai Peninsula Borough is raising its sales tax another 1 percent," he said.

"We figured someday it would be annexed," Weisz said. "We look forward to having water and sewer service available. There were a lot of headaches involved in getting the permit to operate on a well system. If it's city water, the city deals with that."

Most of the council members and other people who commented at last month's work session said providing water and sewer services would be a huge plus for residents within the new Palmer boundaries.

"We can most efficiently provide services that people want. The borough is too big to deal with it. The city's the natural place to go," Pippel said.

Rick Koch, Palmer's director of public works, disagreed about the city's obligation to supply everyone with water and sewer.

"Water and sewer isn't an essential service," Koch said. "But it's a big hook to hang our hats on."

He explained that those services could be offered by a for-profit business.

Fire and police protections, although it makes people feel more secure and is a benefit of living within the city limits, can be a more costly service, Koch said.

Palmer Fire Chief Dan Contini said once firefighters leave the city limits and the fire hydrants, they rely on tanker trucks to supply water. The cost of the fire-protection service would increase with the need for constructing more fire departments and paying staff to replace the dwindling number of volunteers, Contini said.

"Potential boundaries should be defined by geographical features like the middle of a lake or a mountain, not the middle of the road," Koch said. "Wasilla Creek is a good boundary."

Combs had addressed earlier the importance of eliminating middle-of-the-road boundaries so that residents on both sides of the streets would have the same services and so roads would be either borough- or city-maintained.

"This is an important community decision," Healy said. "The city boundaries will outlive us all."

Dawn De Busk can be reached at

352-2252, or dawn.debusk@

frontiersman.com.