Annexation Vexation

Approaching 1 in the afternoon, and the temperature is 77 degrees, humidity is 19%, and there's a light breeze blowing from the west-northwest.  I've walked Rosie and Lucy, and spoken with several people in the Githens Acres neighborhood.  The city of Boulder is again trying to cajole the property owners of Githens Acres (GA) to agree to annexation.  I know of three families that want to do this, out of forty-seven.  The neighborhood is having a community meeting this Sunday at Lynn's house, and a speaker who is knowledgeable about the city's plans for GA will be there for a presentation and question and answer session. The neighborhood is surrounded by city property, and the city has actually purchased two lots in it in the past fifteen years.  One has fruit trees planted on it, and also has a coyote den.  The other property has a house, and the city rents the house and property to a young couple.
   This neighborhood was on Mr. Githens' apple orchard.  There are 47 houses on 58 acres in the subdivision.  The lots range in size from .95 to 5 acres.  It is stipulated that the lots cannot be split, sold, and built upon.  Each existing lot may have one house - no more.  I was here, in Boulder, the last time the city wanted to annex GA.  There were several families then that supported the city, but a much larger majority said, "No."  Most of the lots have their own water well and septic system; a few newer houses are already hooked up to the city water and sewer system. The county taxes pay for street signs and for the lightly traveled road.  (The road is barricaded at one point to prevent vehicular through traffic - pedestrians and bicyclists may pass through easily, but a Smart Car won't fir through.  This is because, when the street was open, instead of the use of only the homeowners, the neighborhood became an excellent "cut through" to reach several new schools that opened.  Traffic on the residential street went from 80 cars a day to over 2,000 - and the wear and tear on the county residential street was tremendous.)
   If the city succeeds in it's annexation plan, everything will change in the neighborhood.  Currently the street is a two-lane black top; there are no sidewalks, no street lights, and no bike lanes.  People jog through this area with their dogs, or just walk their dogs, bicyclists don't have to worry about traffic, children and their pets play in the street.  There is a huge amount of wildlife, and most people speak to one another in a friendly fashion.  The city wants to replace the county residential street with a city blacktop, including streetlights, sidewalks, and bike lanes.  In building the new roadbed, they will cut down into the water table and will contaminate most home water wells, making the water undrinkable - even though they will graciously allow the property owners to use the well water to water their yards.  The Silver Lake Irrigation Ditch, which runs through most of the properties, will become the property of the City of Boulder, and the city will be able to do what they choose with the irrigation water.
   Each property owner will be held fiscally responsible for the building of the new roads and laying of water and sewage lines.  Each owners' assessment will depend upon how much footage they own that abuts the street; if you live on a corner, or have a long, but narrow lot; you will have to pay much more than other owners.  Plus each owner will be responsible for the cost of placing water and sewage pipes from the main line, in the middle of the road, to connect with their own systems.  This small enclave is currently served by the Sheriff's Department, and follows County laws. If annexed, if will be under the Boulder Police Department and will have to learn and follow City laws.
   Then there is the whole can of worms regarding power - a lot of folks in GA have solar panels, and use Excel Energy as their electric and/or gas company.  The City of Boulder is trying to establish their own municipal power station, and they're starting by condemning Excel Power facilities, which they intend to take over and continue using as the Boulder Muni.  There are a lot of small areas that are County owned, but are surrounded by the City, like Githens Acres.  The municipal power board has been talking about not permitting Excel to provide energy or gas to these areas in the County but surrounded by City.  Then the City wants to force annexation on the county properties....
    Githens Acres has a lot of older residents, who purchased their properties well outside of the Boulder City limits, 30, or more, years ago.  At that time, the houses were an investment.  Now, they may end up causing the end of the quiet, laid-back neighborhood.  The last time the city pressed for annexation, the cost for my brother-in-law's road improvement was $525,000.  That was just for the road, not for the water and sewer pipes and their connection.  That was, I think, seven years ago.  My brother-in-law is now a retiree, while my sister still works 40 hours a week.  I know that they cannot afford to pay for the costs of annexation.  I wonder about the 15 other retiree home-owners, and I am deeply troubled.
    Can you tell I'll do my best to oppose, in any way possible, the annexation of my favorite neighborhood?

Spring in Colorado

It looks like we might have a week or so without snow - I think Spring is finally arriving in Boulder.  Rosie and I did encounter four different snow flurries yesterday morning, but the sizes of the flakes and the amount that fell was minuscule.  The squirrels are running amok, and birds are courting and building nests.  My brother-in-law's yard has multiple patches of snowdrops and wild violets blooming, and the green leaves of the crocus and daffodils are growing almost visibly.  Rosie visited the groomer Saturday, and is now a sleek velvet, except for her ears, chest, leg feathers, and the plume of her tail - and the groomer left her top-knot, at the owners request.  She's ready to start diving into the koi pond several times a day now.
   Nedi is still his skinny little self, while Lovey is starting to get a bit of a belly...  They both run and play like mad, but I have to remember that while Nedi just turned four, Lovey will turn nine in August.  She is like Boo and Rosie - they still think they're 6 months old, and not their actual years.  Lovey's only problem is her lack of canines for biting during fights - I've broken up only two fights since Christmas, and Lovey did not appear to be winning either one.  Having lived in the same place for 8 years (as of yesterday), and beginning our ninth year here, she believes that she is the Queen of all she sees.  The truth is, younger cats have a much greater advantage, as they have teeth and claws, both, to use.  In any event, she seems to have settled down a bit, as she matures.
   I sent my "polite letter" of complaint to the apartment management regarding the emotional service dog next door.  The owner was told what the rules are in the complex regarding dogs - they must not be turned loose in the communal back yard; there is a leash law in effect; if your dog poops, then the owner is responsible for picking it up; dogs who bark at neighbors moving inside their apartments are considered a "nuisance."  The young lady insists upon turning her dog loose, leaving the poop wherever the dog leaves it, and letting her dog bark, not only at me, but at anyone in the back yard.  I had just picked up 8 piles of dog poop and was carrying it to the dumpster, when I met the apartment manager - he commented on the nasty odor of the bag I was carrying.  I told him that it wasn't used kitty litter, it was the dog poop from the service dog.  He was appalled.  He arranged to sit on a tenant's second floor balcony overlooking the communal back yard.  After three hours, he had seen and heard enough.  I am one of five tenants who have complained about the dog, according to the apartment manager.  The service dog's owner frequently heard me tell the dog, when it was on my patio, barking at my movements inside,that (a) it was a bad dog to bark at neighbors, and (b) this is my patio and the dog shouldn't be here.  When she paid her rent, she was informed that the apartments were giving her a 45-day notice to move.  So she now blames me completely, has written a very nasty letter to me and delivered it by placing it under my door, and has informed me that I "have disrespected" her, and that she "is no longer my friend and will not look or smile at" me.  I feel sorry that she has been given notice.  I am sad that she blames it all on me.  But - she needs to know that the laws of the county, city, and apartment community apply to her, as they do to all residents.....