Editorial

FRIENDLY ANNEXATION MAKES FOR ORDERLY GROWTH

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Annexation for a city comes generally in two variations, and of the two, the voluntary sort garners a far more agreeable image than the land grab. Fortunately, Cape Girardeau finds itself in the appealing former circumstance. Two petitions of voluntary annexation await action by the city council, including property to the west and north of current corporate boundaries. We believe taking these areas into the city makes good sense for Cape Girardeau and its citizens, increasing the city's population and endowing a model of orderly growth.

Most recently, Cape Girardeau exercised its annexation prerogatives by taking in the Twin Lakes subdivision, across Interstate 55 in the northwestern reaches of the community. Residents of the subdivision requested the action. This time, one movement is again beyond the interstate, with the property at issue along Bloomfield Road, County Road 206 and Wolf Lane, stretching the boundaries in the southwestern portion of the city. The other, farther along in the annexation process and having amassed no opposition during a public hearing, involves a tract east of Cape Rock Drive and west of Old Sprigg Street Road. This brings the northern edge of the soon-to-be constructed Lexington Avenue extension into the city limits.

Annexation should never be an instrument wielded casually by a city. Every annexation should bring with it a feeling that all parties have benefited: property owners, residents of the affected land and taxpayers of the municipality. If a city can't properly serve the owners of the newly annexed land with police and fire protection, sewers and water lines, it has no business engaging in the process. If property owners don't feel the tradeoff of higher taxes doesn't measure up to the advantages of municipal incorporation, they should resist the move. In the case of a voluntary annexation, it can be assumed reasonably that such considerations have been weighed by the parties involved and found acceptable. This is the most meticulous sort of community growth -- expansion when it makes sense for the well-being of all involved.

We applaud the property owners in these two areas for petitioning for annexation into the corporate limits of Cape Girardeau. Likewise, we urge the city government to move along these petitions to expand community boundaries and effect reasonable growth for the city.