‘No reason for delay,’ residents say
Waiting four years for de-annexation is too long, neighborhood leaders tell City Council
Leaders in areas recommended for de-annexation from Memphis contend the proposed timetable – at best four years – will take too long and want the separation done much sooner.
“We never gave consent (to be annexed). We should have the right to leave and leave right now,” Patti Possel, a key figure in South Cordova said Friday.
“The will of the people in these neighborhoods is clear,” Beth Jennings, president of the Southwind Residence Property Association, said. “Residents have petitioned the council in favor of de-annexation. Surveys for the right-size Memphis task force show overwhelming support for de-annexation. There is no reason for delay.”
There was some belief that de-annexation of less-populated areas by City Council ordinance would result in separation from the city sooner than more populated areas, such as South Cordova and Southwind/Windyke, recommended for citizen votes by referendums during a 2019 election.
But city officials said no matter which route is taken to de-annexation – by referendum or ordinance – the effective date would be 2021.
“The reason for the 2021 implementation date is that the recommended de-annexations represent approximately a $7 million net loss in annual revenue, and we need four years to prepare for that,” Kyle Veazey, spokesman for Mayor Jim Strickland, said Friday.
The Strategic Footprint Review Task Force issued its recommendation Thursday to de-annex six areas, including South Cordova and Southwind/Windyke. Other communities, including Rocky Point, the Riverbottoms in extreme southwest Memphis, part of northern Frayser and the Eads community south of the U.S. 64 corridor in East Shelby County were also recommended.
The northern edge of Raleigh was removed from consideration.
The task force results, subject to review by the City Council, culminated a year-long study and were reached from a 28-page Feb. 2 report called Rightsize Memphis. Under the proposal, referendums regarding South Cordova, Southwind/Windyke and Rocky Point would coincide with the “next legally available elections.” The other areas – Eads, the Riverbottoms and the northern edge of Frayser – were recommended for City Council ordinances.
“By de-annexing these areas, we will right-size Memphis – making ours a more densely populated city,” Strickland said in a statement, “which makes service delivery more efficient. It’s the right action to take for the long-term health of Memphis.”
Those delays could mean changes to the areas and are not in keeping with the wishes of residents who have actively sought to leave the city.
“Local officials have studied de-annexation and developed a plan,” Jennings of Southwind said. “Now the Memphis City Council should act. The Council should de-annex South Cordova, Southwind and Windyke. The Council should de-annex them by ordinance. And the Council should de-annex them now.”
South Cordova was absorbed by Memphis in July, 2012; Southwind/ Windyke on Dec. 31, 2013, both much to the chagrin of residents who fought annexation for years. The characteristics of the recommended areas range from the desolate Riverbottoms with no residents, no record of service calls, and prone to flooding to South Cordova with
4,146 residents – the most of any area considered.
The city and consultants surveyed 10,672 people in those areas regarding the possibility of de-annexation from Memphis. A majority, including about 93 percent of people living in South Cordova and Southwind/Windyke study areas, wanted out of the city.
“The administration supports the referendums because they give the affected citizens a voice,” Veazey said in an email, later adding: “We’re backing the referendums because we listened to the residents, who told us that’s what they want.”
Possel of South Cordova contends part of the reason for waiting until 2021 is so Memphis can show the estimated 7,000 residents of the areas on the 2020 federal census. She believes – and others agree – Memphis will benefit by acting as soon as possible because the city will not have to provide service in the primarily-residential neighborhood between Walnut Grove and the Wolf River bottoms. She also contends, the neighborhood is not receiving adequate services anyway for their tax dollars.
“City personnel will have less ground to cover and fewer calls to handle, Doyle Silliman, president of the Windyke Homeowners Association, said. “As the service area shrinks, Memphians will feel like they have more police on the streets. By letting us go now, Memphis actually saves money, lots of money, real dollars city taxpayers would otherwise face for infrastructure and service improvements in outlying areas.”
Asked about the next step, Possel said residents “are going to keep fighting.”
“We’re not falling over and playing dead,” she said.
Reporter Linda A. Moore contributed to this story