Ryall Acres escapes annexation attempt
By JIMMY GALVAN Managing Editor

The Ryall Acres community will not become a part of the city of Jasper.

For now.

In a surprising move during the Tuesday, Oct. 9 meeting, Jasper's city council voted not to approve the annexation of Ryall Acres. The motion was made by councilwoman Gloria Monzingo and seconded by Diane Pace and approved unanimously.

Monzingo questioned whether any Ryall Acres residents had requested that the city annex the community.

Jasper Mayor David Barber said "no."

Barber admitted on Wednesday, Oct. 10, that he was "surprised" at the council's decision to not annex the community.

"They didn't even want to discuss it," Barber said. "I have talked about annexing Ryall Acres for years and talked about it to the city manager. I can understand the residents out there wondering what the benefits would be to them but that is why we would host public hearings.

"It just makes sense to me to annex that area," Barber said. "We service their water, electric and they have paid to tie into the city sewer.

"Our police and fire answer a number of calls out there. They have all the services there - it wouldn't cost the city much to annex it. I don't understand why the city wouldn't want to annex it."

The city had already drawn up an ordinance setting a time and date for public hearings on the proposed annexation.

The annexation would have encompassed 476.935 acres of land. Public hearings had been scheduled for Nov. 19 and 26.

According to documents provided by the city, capital improvements to the area would include improving the streets in Ryall Acres within two and a half years.

"The city of Jasper finds and determines that this proposed service plan will not provide any fewer services and will not provide a lower level of service in the area proposed to be annexed than were in existence in the proposed area at the time immediately preceding the annexation process," the document states.

Barber admitted that the timing to annex the community might have come at the wrong time when other city street and drainage issues were on the same agenda.

Barber said he expects the issue to be brought up again in the future.

"Just because we table some issues doesn't mean we won't bring it up again," Barber said. "I think it will come up again - it might take a little bit more lobbying for it."

He admitted that with City Manager Alan Grindstaff out of town for the Tuesday, Oct. 9, meeting, it meant no person could speak on the city's behalf for the annexation of the Ryall Acres.

"As mayor I couldn't voice a position on it during the meeting but it would help to have someone there presenting the facts of the issues for the city," Barber said. "In hindsight, we probably should have left that off the agenda."

Barber said he didn't believe the city received a negative response to the issue but needed more of an explanation as to why the city was considering the action.

"There was no one saying 'no, we don't want it,'" Barber said. "That was just going to be the first step in doing it. We would have held public hearings for the residents to voice their opinions on it."

Several residents attended the Oct. 9 meeting and signed up to express their concerns over the pending action.

Tim White spoke on behalf of the residents to the council.

"We're not sure what extra we are going to get from the city," White said. "We already have city water, sewer and electricity and we have to wonder if we have enough police to take care of the city and us.

"Are the roads going to be maintained and are we going to have sidewalks and if that is the case are we going to lose a five-foot easement on our property?" White said. "A lot of the people out there don't want to be annexed. We are kind of surprised that all of this happened."

White said Ryall Acres has three fire hydrants that service 71 homes and asked if the city has plans on increasing that number if the area was annexed.

"The only good thing we see is the leash law," White said. "We might have a little dog problem but other than that we don't see anything extra that we are going to get."