Less than a month after a group opposed to the annexation of 500 acres of land into the city of Aberdeen had its petition against the annexation validated, the city has received another proposal to annex property into its boundaries.
At Monday night?s Aberdeen City Council meeting, an ordinance to annex about 55 acres of land that borders Aberdeen Proving Ground was introduced.
The owners of the land ? Corporate Offices Property Trust, based in Columbia ? intend to build about 800,000 square feet of office space on the site.
Unlike other annexation requests the city has seen in the past several months, the proposal received no criticism at Monday night?s meeting. Even two residents wearingred shirts declaring “Say No to Annexation in Aberdeen” did not voice concerns about the proposal.
“From a group standpoint, we?re not concerned with every annexation,” said Robin Hood Road resident Charles Wallace on Tuesday. Wallace is one of many who stand opposed to the annexation of property surrounding the Wetlands Golf Course on the north end of Aberdeen.
“Certainly with BRAC [Base realignment and closure], that would be an acceptable use,” said Aberdeen’s planning director Phyllis Grover. Grover said the property is between the city?s wastewater treatment plant and APG.
Wallace said that his concerns have been over residential annexations that would have a greater impact on roads and infrastructure.
“These smaller annexations, specifically this one, will have less of an impact, and given that it is for commercial use, it will benefit the tax base,” he said.
“If I had it my way, we would not have any more annexations until 2008,” said Aberdeen Mayor S. Fred Simmons earlier Monday when asked about the timing of the annexation proposal.
However, Simmons said, the city cannot stop a property owner with land adjacent to the city?s boundaries from submitting an annexation proposal.
