The Austin City Council vote on the annexation of 55 acres of land west of the J.

Tuesday, May 09, 2000

The Austin City Council vote on the annexation of 55 acres of land west of the J.C. Hormel Nature Center got one step closer Monday, but the chances of any groundbreaking for a residential development this year get slimmer with each step.

As things stand now, it seems that it won’t matter what the council decides. Should the council vote no, there will be no annexation. Should the council vote yes, the annexation issue is almost certain to go to referendum.

Either way, the proposed residential development probably won’t become a reality in 2000, despite the developers’ willingness to accommodate and answer concerns about the nature center.

The three council ordinance committee members – as well as the rest of the council – met Monday to discuss the annexation and to hear further arguments for and against the proposed residential development. The annexation issue was moved to the committee at the last council meeting for two reasons: the vote would take a larger majority without going to committee and because the usual route is through committee.

After listening to arguments from both sides, Second Ward council member Jeanne Poppe made a motion to recommend the council approve annexation; she was seconded by First Ward member Neil Fedson. Fedson noted that he hoped the issue would go to referendum. Ordinance chairman and Third Ward council member Dick Lang voted against the motion.

Lang explained that if "the people" wanted a referendum, it was up to them, not the council, to make it happen.

"We are your elected body, which means we have to make the tough decision, but if the people aren’t happy with that decision, a referendum is your option," Lang said. "But that has to come from you, the people. You have the power to initiate referendum in the charter."

The majority of the 20 citizens who showed up for the committee meeting were in opposition to the development. Mike Pratt, who has actively opposed the development from the beginning, said he’s thinking the council is going to vote against the annexation.

However, should the council vote in favor, Pratt is prepared. He already has 150 signatures – five times the number of signatures needed to initiate the referendum process – opposing the annexation by ordinance. Once a citizen turns in 30 signatures of registered voters, then he or she has another 30 days to gather 10 percent of the number who voted in the last election, or roughly 970 signatures, to force a referendum.

After the meeting, Poppe said she made the motion because she thinks the housing is needed in Austin and, ultimately, to move the annexation process along. As for the question of how she feels about a referendum, the veteran council member said she thought a referendum would be the most likely outcome.

"And that’s fine," Poppe said, referring to the referendum possibility. "That’s democracy in action. That’s the way it should be. Then it will be up to both sides to get out and educate the public before the vote."

Rick Kahn, president of the Greater Minnesota Affordable Housing Co., said he was pleased to see all the council members at the meeting.

"It underscores how committed they are to hearing both sides and being fully informed before they vote," Kahn said. "I hope the council will vote for the annexation Monday. People need to understand, however, that if it passes, Monday’s vote won’t determine the final shape of the development. People still could have input on conditions and demands in the developer’s agreement."

Some of the conditions for building the developers already have said they concur with include a 200-foot buffer zone on the east side of their property line, the side closest to the nature center; land for a city-owned bike trail; as well as less dense housing and certain landscaping requirements. Kahn also said the group would be happy to do any type of environmental study the city requires.

Helen Dixon wants to see the citizens of Austin decide on the development, not the council or city staff.

"The general public can give their opinion by voting in a referendum," Helen Dixon, who also opposes the development, said. "I think the council and the developers finally got it straight. It’s not just the neighbors who are against this. We live nowhere close to the nature center."

The council will vote on the annexation issue at its regular meeting on Monday, which starts at 5:30 p.m. in Council Chambers on the lower level of the Municipal Building.