Last Friday’s Winston-Salem Journal editorial says a moratorium on annexation is “too risky” because the “fiscal integrity of our cities is too important.”

The Journal continues:

North Carolina annexation law gives municipalities a lot of power. From the city viewpoint, it’s one of the best laws in the country. At the same time, there are few states in this country where the cities enjoy as much financial strength as ours do. The two facts are connected.

That’s an interesting point of view from the paper of record in a city that finances downtown baseball stadiums yet takes out two-thirds bonds to perform basic maintainence tasks.

I’ll be fair, though. I spoke with a representative of the Fair Annexation Coaltion and he noted Winston-Salem did a good job of keeping citizens informed and involved (as much as North Carolina law allows, which isn’t saying much) regarding annexation plans.