Steve Mensing, Editor
♦ A huge issue for Salisbury City Council is Salisbury’s inequitable treatment of its forcibly annexed residents. The city of Salisbury city council needs to do the right thing and voluntarily de-annex those forcibly annexed neighborhoods suffering callous bondage to the city. Voluntarily de-annexation would be a wise and empathetic choice for the city to make. Another possible option might be for the bully of the county to offer the forcibly annexed something worthwhile to remain captive. Its apparent to anyone studying the forcibly annexed folks’ plight that they received no equitable exchange for being taken over. The forcibly annexed, never desiring to be part of Salisbury, lost big. Let’s consider what they lost:
• Their property tax rate doubled.
• Many were forced to pay in the vicinity of over $5,000 to run water and sewer lines out to the curb when they already had wells and septic tanks up to code.
• Salisbury duplicated already existing services in the forcibly annexed neighborhoods. For example many forcibly annexed were saddled with extra utility costs for Salisbury putting up light poles when most of the forcibly annexed already had Duke Energy light poles. Other duplicate services included police, fire, and EMS. Some forcibly annexed neighborhoods got stuck paying excessive storm water fees per month for non-existent storm water drains and runoffs.
• The loss of superior law enforcement protection from the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office and instead only receiving limited patrolling from a badly understaffed Salisbury Police Department. In a time of increased break-ins and burglaries, the forcibly annexed require more than cursory patrol. Just imagine the “safety” of the forcibly annexed in the trailer parks out by the airport.
Many struggle economically in the forcibly annexed areas and are unable to keep up with their city taxes. Perhaps the forcibly annexed ought to practice civil disobedience such as refusing to pay city taxes and for nonexistent city services. Organized disruption of city council meetings is yet another avenue. An extremely squeaky wheel gets action. Link up with Salisbury’s other disenfranchised neighborhoods and minorities and create a new majority to expunge city council.
Here are a selection of previous Rowan Free Press articles focusing on the plight of the forcibly annexed and various ways they can get out from under Salisbury’s heel:
http://rowanfreepress.com/2013/06/19/let-my-people-go-the-forcibly-annexed-in-salisbury-want-out/
http://rowanfreepress.com/2013/02/27/breakout-the-growing-de-annexation-movement-in-salisbury-nc/
http://rowanfreepress.com/2012/04/21/forced-annexation-an-interview-with-larry-wright/
