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I know that's a dirty word in Morgantown but why hasn't this happened? Morgantown seems to be missing a lot of potential tax revenue due to a good portion of the actual city limits being occupied by WVU which is not taxable and students who don't work. Potential areas I would think to expand the city limits to would include Suncrest Town Center, Pineview Drive/Mon General area, Star City, Granville, Pierpont, and the Mileground. What's the reasoning behind not expanding the city?
It's not feasible. For example, I'm not sure I'd be willing for Westover to give up certain aspects of its autonomy and it's lower tax-rate, just to be a part of Morgantown where my tax base would contribute to paving streets on the other end of the county. People like to know that if they are paying more for taxes, it will be redistributed back into their own neighborhood. In the future, it's only likely that annexation occurs in situations such as what we witnessed in 2014: a neighborhood on the periphery of Suncrest was having drainage issues that they couldn't afford to replace, so they basically had to ask MUB for assistance. The only means of exchange was becoming part of the city.
Business districts will never want annexed, as it would be pointless, from their perspective, to give an extra 1-2% in b&o taxes to their new municipal authorities. In short, annexation won't happen because, those who won't currently pay tax don't see how they are draining the resources without paying into the system.
It's not feasible. For example, I'm not sure I'd be willing for Westover to give up certain aspects of its autonomy and it's lower tax-rate, just to be a part of Morgantown where my tax base would contribute to paving streets on the other end of the county. People like to know that if they are paying more for taxes, it will be redistributed back into their own neighborhood. In the future, it's only likely that annexation occurs in situations such as what we witnessed in 2014: a neighborhood on the periphery of Suncrest was having drainage issues that they couldn't afford to replace, so they basically had to ask MUB for assistance. The only means of exchange was becoming part of the city.
Business districts will never want annexed, as it would be pointless, from their perspective, to give an extra 1-2% in b&o taxes to their new municipal authorities. In short, annexation won't happen because, those who won't currently pay tax don't see how they are draining the resources without paying into the system.
Great answer, thanks. One more question....I live technically outside of Morgantown (in the Pineview Dr. area). Who maintains my area of town?
I lived off Pineview on Northwest. For us, no one maintained it! I think some of the property owners around us came together to pay for a plow in the winter, but other than that there wasn't much. In terms of emergency services, it would be county.
I happen to live within the city limits in a residential neighborhood. There really are few benefits for such areas to be with the limits due to increased taxes and more regulation. It doesn't bother me personally, but I can understand who some would get their panties up in a wad over it. Probably 80% of what is really Morgantown is outside the city limits.
That really isn't unique to our city. Most cities aren't officially expanding except in unusual circumstances.
The county must provide services for unincorporated areas in West Virginia, and they get most of the benefits of being incorporated without the negatives of added taxes and more control. Water... garbage... sewage, Mon County residents can get all of that without paying city taxes, and the Sheriff provides a service similar to the city police while the Volunteer Fire companies are usually adequate to the needs.
Westover annexed the Morgantown Mall and parts of the surrounding area not too long ago and I remember it took a long time for that to happen. There are a lot of holes of unincorporated areas in the Morgantown area. I don't see already incorporated areas joining with the city of Morgantown. It would be a challenge to get areas such as Pierpont to join the city because of tax purposes. But imagine the revenue for the city if that happened.
Eastpointe down in Clarksburg were already annexed into the city before the development was built. Bridgeport was growing rapidly with retail development at the time with the Meadowbrook Mall being built and Bridgeport would have gladly gobbled up that land if Clarksburg didn't annex it first.
In Pennsylvania it is virtually impossible for cities to annex. Thus all of the major retail development in Washington County is right outside the city of Washington. Greensburg in Westmoreland County is the same way.
Westover annexed the Morgantown Mall and parts of the surrounding area not too long ago and I remember it took a long time for that to happen. There are a lot of holes of unincorporated areas in the Morgantown area. I don't see already incorporated areas joining with the city of Morgantown. It would be a challenge to get areas such as Pierpont to join the city because of tax purposes. But imagine the revenue for the city if that happened.
Eastpointe down in Clarksburg were already annexed into the city before the development was built. Bridgeport was growing rapidly with retail development at the time with the Meadowbrook Mall being built and Bridgeport would have gladly gobbled up that land if Clarksburg didn't annex it first.
In Pennsylvania it is virtually impossible for cities to annex. Thus all of the major retail development in Washington County is right outside the city of Washington. Greensburg in Westmoreland County is the same way.
The reason it's so difficult that n Pennsylvania is that every square inch of the state is already incorporated. Outside of cities and boroughs (cities and towns in WV) there are townships. In west virginia, those areas are unincorporated. Of course, that means you pay 3 different property taxes, 3 different income taxes, and so on.
The roads around those areas are a disaster. If the City can't afford to maintain what they have already, how can they keep up with more?
That was why I made the thread.....those areas have a lot of commercial and residential development and therefore a bigger tax base that the city can access to maintain roads. Like I said in the OP, a good portion of "actual" Morgantown consists of WVU which cannot be taxed and student housing
You can't really compare the Westover annexation of the Morgantown Mall area with the areas around Morgantown. A political change took place on the County Commission that enabled Westover to pull that off against the wishes of the people in the area affected, but the Mall area does not have nearly the resources to fight such a move as do the Biafora dominated areas surrounding Morgantown. My hunch is that, if faced with an annexation attempt, Biafora would go beyond roadblock phase and entertain an aggressive resistance with lots of money behind it. The city doesn't have the money to fight with him.
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