In other news on the annexation front, Fayetteville plans to forcibly annex about 600 homes in an affluent gated community, Gates Four. The city would get $5.7 million in new revenue from these folks and spend $3.1 million to provide services that Gates Four residents say they neither need nor want. Some see this as a municipal money grab, netting Fayetteville $2.6 million in new revenue.
Gates Four sued to avoid being annexed in the big 2003 sweep that forcibly annexed about 43,000 residents into Fayetteville. (Many of those folks still have not received services even though they have been paying city taxes for 5 years!) The lawsuit was settled and the Gates Four annexation could be reconsidered in 2008.
Fayetteville Councilmen and Mayor, all up for re-election this year, originally scheduled to forcibly annex the Gates Four community this Oct 28, which would mean the Gates Four property owners, as new Fayetteville residents, could vote in the municipal elections in November. ?Upon further consideration?officials felt it was better to move the date to after the election cycle.? No need to let citizens have any say in their representation, after all.
