Longmont City Council voted against annexing 150 Francis St. into the city on Tuesday night.
The property owners, Tonja Pulfer and Mark Van Wagner, asked for the annexation of their property in order to tie into city sewer lines. The property currently has a 50-year-old septic system.
The timing of the project is related to the concept plan proposed by the adjacent Bohn Farm development. The owners at 150 Francis St. would like to tie into the utilities that would run along the easement between the proposed development and their property.
The property owners would be able to tap into city sewer services even if the land were not annexed, but only if their septic system were failing, according to Harold Dominguez, city manager. According to the city, the septic system, while old, is still working.
At the point the septic system begins to fail, the property owners would have to pay all of the costs of tapping into the city’s sewer system which is several hundreds of feet away, according to Don Burchett, planning manager for the city of Longmont.
Members of the public spoke against the annexation citing potential development as a concern. As of Tuesday, no further development plans had been submitted for the property.
Residents stated that Spruce Avenue was the main thoroughfare in the area. If additional development commenced in the area, Spruce Avenue would be strained to accommodate the increase in traffic.
The ordinance failed to pass with only Councilors Marcia Martin, Aren Rodriguez and Tim Waters in support.
Since the unincorporated property is surrounded by property within the city limits, the likely first responders to the property in the event of an emergency would be members of the Longmont Public Safety team. Residents and city staff acknowledged that the road that leads onto the property is unpaved and does not have an outlet or a turn-around at the end. This caused concern for the safety of local first responders.
Mayor Joan Peck suggested that the city address the concern regardless of annexation with Boulder County to see if the situation might be remedied.
The property owners will still be able to apply for an annexation in the future, but will have to wait at least a year before they can submit the same application, according to city officials.
