Sammamish City Council votes to accept Camden Park annexation petition

In a decision several years in the making, the Sammamish City Council members on Tuesday voted to accept an annexation petition from the Camden Park neighborhood.

“We’ve kept the spirit alive for these past two years. … We’ve also expanded our effort to include two sister neighborhoods,” said Christopher Toombs, secretary of the Camden Park Homeowners Association and chair of its annexation committee. “Camden Park has continued to demonstrate a robust interest in annexation into Sammamish.”

The request covers the Camden Park Subdivision, Camden Park Estates, Devereux and The Trails at Camden Park, which together submitted a petition signed by owners of property worth 10 percent of the assessed value in the proposed annexation area.

Toombs and others from the neighborhood have done significant research, legwork and communication with residents throughout the areas being considered for annexation, said Kamuron Gurol, Community Development director.

“This is the kind of annexation, frankly, that you kind of dream about,” Gurol said. “This is the poster child for people having their act together and doing things right.”

In amendments recently adopted by the King County Council, the county’s Urban Growth Boundary was modified to move six lots into the area that the city is allowed to annex. Thus those homes can now be included in this annexation petition. City staff had completed an annexation strategy study in November of 2007, and more recently staff members visited the neighborhoods to assess the infrastructure, and also completed a financial summary of the potential changes. That information was presented to council members at previous meetings, including their regular meeting last week.

The petition accepted by the council this week represents homeowners of 10 percent of the assessed value of the areas being considered. The next step is for the residents to collect signatures representing 60 percent of the assessed value and bring that back to the council.

If the process moves forward, the proponents of the annexation and city officials hope it will be complete by March of 2009, because then the property taxes for the neighborhoods in question will be assessed by the city rather than the county. That would mean a lower rate for the homeowners and new property tax revenue for the city.

The city will be mailing fliers to residents in the area, inviting them to an informational meeting on Nov. 5 at Rachel Carson Elementary School.

In other news, the council:

•Heard quarterly reports from Parks and Recreation Director Jessi Richardson and Public Works Director John Cunningham. To view either report, visit www.ci.sammamish.wa.us/Events.aspx?ID=1321.

•Heard from two residents during the public comment portion of the meeting regarding the proposal for the city to take over the portion of private road along 248th Avenue Southeast between 14th and 17th. The residents urged the council to “do it right” if they do begitake ownership and begin to maintain the road and enforce laws.

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