FINDLAY | Mayor Muryn Renews Call for Annexation, Revenue-Sharing Talks With Townships and County; Says Letter Got No Response

Author: FFP Ai Bot

FINDLAY — Findlay Mayor Christina Muryn is again asking township trustees and Hancock County commissioners to sit down and work out a common approach to annexation, city utilities and revenue sharing, saying a year of outreach has drawn little response.

Muryn sent a letter Oct. 16 to township trustees and county commissioners asking them to meet and discuss a proposed framework, The Courier reported. As of Wednesday, Oct. 21, she said no one had answered. Apart from comments from the Allen Township trustees, she said, the city has received little feedback on draft agreements it has circulated over the past year.

“The issue of annexation has existed for decades and will continue to exist if today’s elected leaders do not attempt to work together,” Muryn said, according to The Courier.

What the city is proposing

The plan centers on a draft Master Cooperative Economic Development Agreement that would set one standard process for future annexations in townships that sign on. Key points reported by The Courier:

• Revenue sharing: For 10 years after land is annexed, the city would pay the township an amount equal to 2 mills of the property’s improved assessed value. If a tax abatement or other incentive delays the taxable value, payments would start after the incentive ends.
• Half-mile growth area: A half-mile band around the current city limits would stay part of the city’s growth plans, and annexation would still be expected there.
• Utilities without annexation: Beyond that half mile, properties in participating townships could connect to city utilities without being required to join the city.
• Existing customers: Long-time utility customers outside the city, such as Whirlpool on North Main Street and Ball Metal on County Road 99, both in Allen Township, would not be required to annex.

The draft says the goal is to give townships more certainty, give property owners more flexibility and avoid negotiating a separate deal for each annexation request.

Why it matters

The city already has revenue-sharing agreements with Marion Township, first set up in 2001 and updated in 2016, and with Liberty Township, set up in 2006, according to the City of Findlay’s annexation page. There is no such agreement with Allen Township, so annexations there fall back on the declining, time-limited payments set by Ohio law in Ohio Revised Code 709.19.

Properties outside the city that are connected to city utilities pay the city’s “outside rate,” which is 1.5 times the standard rate, according to the city.

Sources

https://thecourier.com/news/1551434/mayor-seeks-talks-on-annexation-revenue-sharing/
https://www.findlayohio.gov/community/annexation-asked-and-answered
https://www.findlayohio.gov/government/city-departments/annexation-information
https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/section-709.19