Greatwood and New Territory already have Sugar Land mailing addresses, but the city is putting annexation plans in motion for both communities. The subdivisions have been in the city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction for over a decade, with the idea of full Sugar Land citizenship looming.

City Council held a workshop on the process Sept. 20, and the city will present a annexation budget amendment for approval Nov. 15. An exact date for annexation has not been set, but Lisa Kocich-Meyer, the city’s director of planning, said the move would indeed happen.

“The way we are evaluating annexation is it wouldn’t have an impact on our current services,” Kocich-Meyer said. “It wouldn’t increase the cost of services or diminish quality of service.”

Municipal utility districts and city staff will negotiate transferring services to Sugar Land. While few think the city cannot match Greatwood’s and New Territory’s quality of life, a primary resident concern is potentially higher tax bills. However, some resident could end up paying lower property taxes to the city than they currently pay to their MUDs.

The MUDs will dissolve after annexation while Greatwood and New Territory’s levee improvement districts will remain, homeowners association members and city staff said.

“I would want to make annexation something we can take advantage of and benefit from,” said Robert Chirich, New Territory HOA treasurer.

Advent of annexation

Hundreds of annexations occur across Texas each year, according to the Texas Municipal League. Home rule cities like Sugar Land have the inherent right to annex territory because they have populations of more than 5,000, and because their citizens have adopted home rule charters.

When Sugar Land signed strategic partnership agreements with Greatwood’s and New Territory’s MUDs in 2007, residents negotiated with the city to make annexation “a win-win,” said Louis Manuel, vice president of the New Territory HOA and president of MUD No. 111.

“We negotiated to keep some of the land that is actually on what I would call on the other side of the levee,” Manuel said.

He said the city must give residents a year’s notice before annexation takes effect. City staff is recommending that Sugar Land annex New Territory and Greatwood concurrently, rather than in phases. Assistant City Manager Jim Callaway said the target date for concurrent annexation made last year was December 2017.

He said staff will ask the council to approve an annexation ordinance Nov. 15, along with an annexation budget. In the meantime, he said education and outreach are needed.

“It’s not a new topic,” Callaway said. “We experience a lot of people who think they’re already annexed.”

Changing providers

Annexing Greatwood and New Territory would increase Sugar Land’s population by about 34 percent and its land area by 16.6 percent, City Finance Director Jennifer Brown said. Kocich-Meyer said property taxes collected from those areas would go toward increased service needs for Greatwood and New Territory.

Brown said annexation would require 71.5 more employees and 36 more service vehicles for annexation than what was budgeted for fiscal year 2016-17. Brown and Callaway said staffing and resources would be needed before annexation takes effect so services can be provided on day one.

The MUDs and HOAs provide services that would otherwise be handled by the city, including water and sewer utilities, and street repair. After annexation, the burden for those services would shift to the city. The annexation budget will be discussed in a City Council workshop Oct. 13, Brown said.

Greatwood HOA President Jack Molho said he hopes to see an improvement in the services provided, particularly public safety.

“Obviously we expect to see an increase in police patrols,” he said. “We expect the city to provide more manpower and resources.”

The Fort Bend County sheriff’s office oversees Greatwood and New Territory while the latter community pays about $400,000 per year for an additional constable patrol, Chirich said.

Sugar Land Police Capt. Stuart Denton said the department has presented a plan to the city manager’s office on the number of officers, supervisors and detectives needed for the new area.

“Currently, the city is divided into five patrol beats,” Denton said. “We’re going to configure a couple of our beats and create a sixth beat. With that sixth beat, we need another lieutenant, who is the beat officer.”

However, he said current Sugar Land residents should not expect a reduction in public safety services. Sugar Land police could reduce response times in the communities, he said.

For fire and rescue needs, Brown said the city would provide ambulances services at Fire Station No. 6 in Greatwood.

“We at the police department are excited about this,” Denton said. “We look forward to bringing [Greatwood and New Territory] into the true legal limits of Sugar Land.”

Asking the neighbors

Molho said he expects it will be a “seamless transition,” although he said residents would notice a change.

He said the Greatwood community would get a kind of “discount” after annexation because it will no longer pay into the groundwater reduction plan. Currently, the community pays $2.47 per 1,000 gallons of water so the city partially substitutes surface water sources for the groundwater withdrawals.

Molho also said he favored the prospect of Greatwood and New Territory residents being eligible to vote and run for office in city elections.

Manuel said he considers annexation to be in the best interest of residents. Like Molho, he is eager to vote in city elections and for increased police presence.

Chirich has lived in the community since 2008. He said if opposition to annexation exists in his community, it is likely the minority view.

He welcomed the chance to reduce people’s HOA dues and eliminate the neighborhood’s constable patrol, although that is still under consideration, he said.

Effect on businesses

For the businesses in New Territory and Greatwood, the process has been easy so far. They do not pay city taxes or follow the city’s permitting process.

William Solis, owner and operator of Ruthie’s Tex-Mex restaurant off Hwy. 90, said he does not expect to make too many changes after annexation. Solis said he only opposes annexation if it will be a detriment to the business.

“If it’s in the good spirit of progress, I don’t have a problem with it,” he said.

At Groove Music School nearby, owner Gonzalo Arjona is against it.

“I’d rather they don’t do it,” he said. “It’s going to raise the taxes.”

Arjona said he hoped Greatwood and New Territory business could be grandfathered into Sugar Land’s permitting process for businesses.

Given that both areas are largely built-out and overwhelmingly residential, Kocich-Meyer did not anticipate many more structures to be built after annexation. She said permanent zoning would be placed on all businesses but retroactive permitting would not be required.

“I wouldn’t anticipate that that would drive commercial development just by being in Sugar Land,” she said.