East Limestone (Huntsville, Madison, Athens: foreclosed, rentals, new home)

[sedriskell]

Limestone tried to make it more difficult for cities outside of the county to annex anymore land in Limestone, but that fell through. I think the state legislature batted it down. As far as I know, Huntsville Madison Decatur and even Trinity, are still aloud to annex to their hearts content.

[Sarges Dad]

I hope they do not. I moved here because I hate the city. I may be far enough north in East Limestone that they wont bother me and my 9 acres.

[A&M Bulldawg]

Originally Posted by Sarges Dad

I hope they do not. I moved here because I hate the city. I may be far enough north in East Limestone that they wont bother me and my 9 acres.

Well, I think it would be better for East Limestone to become a city before cities like Huntsville will annex it and will have residents paying high property taxes.

[djmaxwell]

Originally Posted by A&M Bulldawg

Well, I think it would be better for East Limestone to become a city before cities like Huntsville will annex it and will have residents paying high property taxes.

If it becomes a city it will have higher taxes in sales, property, or both. The reason an area becomes a city is to provide additional services which cost money. That money has to come from somewhere. Chances are, if it somehow became its own city, the taxes would be higher than if it were part of Huntsville. Fewer people to spread out the associated costs.

[djmaxwell]

Originally Posted by Sarges Dad

I hope they do not. I moved here because I hate the city. I may be far enough north in East Limestone that they wont bother me and my 9 acres.

I don't think they can annex you without your permission. I live in the Rock Creek subdivision off of Old Railroad Bed. I can no longer locate the article, but about the time Huntsville annexed this area, someone looking to purchase here had an issue with the annexation. The annexation happened before they closed, but they complained. Because of technical issues with the annexation, Huntsville had to redo the annexation. When it was all said and done, the people that were the squeaky wheel did not end up in Huntsville. If you look at the GIS maps on the city's website, you will see the one house in the subdivision is outside of the city limits.

In addition to that, I believe all of the most recent annexations were at the request of the property owners.

DJM

[A&M Bulldawg]

Originally Posted by djmaxwell

I don't think they can annex you without your permission. I live in the Rock Creek subdivision off of Old Railroad Bed. I can no longer locate the article, but about the time Huntsville annexed this area, someone looking to purchase here had an issue with the annexation. The annexation happened before they closed, but they complained. Because of technical issues with the annexation, Huntsville had to redo the annexation. When it was all said and done, the people that were the squeaky wheel did not end up in Huntsville. If you look at the GIS maps on the city's website, you will see the one house in the subdivision is outside of the city limits.

In addition to that, I believe all of the most recent annexations were at the request of the property owners.

DJM

Why? I thought a lot of residents don't and/or didn't want to be within the city limits of Huntsville because of high taxes.

[djmaxwell]

Originally Posted by A&M Bulldawg

Why? I thought a lot of residents don't and/or didn't want to be within the city limits of Huntsville because of high taxes.

It's all trade offs. The higher taxes gain, in theory anyway, a greater level of services such as fire & police, sewer, curbs & gutters, zoning restrictions, building codes, etc. Most people requesting annexation are owners of large parcels of undeveloped land who believe that it will have greater resale value for the purposes of development if it has city services.

[sedriskell]

You DO have a choice about whether or not you want to be annexed. The thing is, if you have an emergency, most areas of East Limestone will get emergency services from Madison or Huntsville, which can be VERY costly. In some ways it is less expensive to live in a city. However, if you don't plan on using emergency services, then you are probably OK to just live in the county.

[Sarges Dad]

City has nothing to offer me. Property value is fine here with out it.

[sedriskell]

Then don't get annexed... you do have a choice...