Although the front page article in the March 28, 2022 edition (Battle Ground Council looks to annex ‘islands’ of property) contains many inaccuracies spoken by some city council members at its meeting on March 21, perhaps none is more glaring than the omission of the fact that it was an action by the Battle Ground City Council which created the “islands.”
In 2011, after two failed annexation efforts by the Cedars Golf Course, LLC, a third attempt was deemed successful by the Battle Ground City Council. The petitioner’s third petition changed the early-used legal bases and boundary designations and specifically excluded Cedars residents. Otherwise it would not have been able to meet the property value threshold for annexation necessary to allow the desired rezoning of open space and Urban and Low Density Residential properties for R3 development.
More specifically, the third petition, submitted Nov. 4, 2011, was said to achieve the 60% property value threshold which “purposely” removed those [Cedars subdivisions] houses from the petition (City of Battle Ground, Staff Report, Nov. 21, 2011), thus creating the Cedars I, Cedars II, Cedars III/East, and Cedars IV “islands.” This chapter of the city’s annexation history, Cedars Annexation AX:01-11, concluded with the adoption of Ordinance No. 11-99 on Nov. 21, 2011, the ordinance that created the “islands.”
As The Reflector continues coverage of these issues, we truly hope it will take the time to find the real story rather than simply parroting the talking points of the city.
Michael Kramer and Barbara Voigt, Brush Prairie
