Annexation without Representation

 

Today I’d like to talk to you, not as an authority, but as a member of the community trying to reason through some things. My hope is that you’ll be my sounding board as I try to come to grips with something that just happened in my area.

A property owner has decided to convert his family farm into a new housing development in Calhoun off Liberty Road, which is where our family home has been for almost 13 years. Nearly 70 acres are slated to become a development of 172 houses.

 

Now, I’m a real estate investor. And at face value, this sounds like something I would be on board with and even applaud.

 

But instead, something about it doesn’t feel right.

 

Before I get into that, let me explain a conflict I have within myself.

 

First, I’m a firm believer that a man or woman should be able to do with their own property whatever they see fit — with the caveat that it doesn’t interfere with someone else’s same right to their property.

 

Because of this belief, I’m not a fan of HOAs and will not own a property in one. And truthfully, I feel we have fairly vast government overreach in a lot of our local ordinances and permitting processes.

 

So, on one hand, I believe a man should be able to subdivide his property and turn it into housing if he wants to make a profit.

 

And just so you know, I know the owner of this property personally and respect him and his family. And the same goes for the developer. He and I had a long phone call yesterday about the development.

 

So, you’re probably asking, what could be the issue?

 

Here is where it doesn’t feel right.

 

This development is going in on a rural road that connects Highway 53 and McDaniel Station Road. It’s about a mile drive from either direction to get to where the development will be.

 

The reason that matters is that in order to get the sewer needed to achieve the desired housing density, the owner and developer sought to have the property annexed into the Calhoun city limits.

 

The Calhoun City Council approved the annexation.

Meaning a portion of what had been unincorporated Gordon County is now part of the city — while the surrounding property owners remain county residents.

 

So why does this matter?

 

Those surrounding property owners do not vote for the Calhoun officials making land-use decisions about this newly annexed property in the middle of their community.

 

And that feels significant when the development is going to use a county road as its entrance.

 

Residents who spoke in opposition at the City Council meeting raised concerns about whether the existing infrastructure could handle the additional development and population.

 

And I understand those concerns.

 

The county residents in that area are about to experience more traffic on a road that I know personally can feel small when two full-sized pickups pass each other. There are questions about what the additional traffic will mean for getting on and off Highway 53 and what other effects the development could have on the surrounding farms.

 

Yet the people living immediately around the development didn’t elect the city officials who made the decision.

Hence my question: Is this annexation without representation?

 

There are other things about it that feel strange to me.

 

For example, who responds if there’s a car wreck in front of the development? Is it the Calhoun Police Department or the Gordon County Sheriff’s Office?

 

I’m sure those jurisdictional questions have answers. But it’s still strange to think about driving miles through the county, turning onto a rural road, driving another mile and suddenly finding a small stretch where one side of the road is inside the City of Calhoun while the other side remains county farmland.

 

Another thing I’ve been thinking about is the amount of building going on in general.

 

One question I asked the developer was whether he knew how many houses had been built in Gordon County since 2023.

 

He said that was a good question, but he didn’t know.

 

And I think that question deserves its own column.

 

I’ve started digging into Census data on housing growth, building permits and population growth in Gordon County. But there is an important distinction between houses that have already been built and occupied and the housing pipeline — developments that are under construction, approved but not yet built, or still working their way through the process.

 

I want to dig further into those numbers before drawing any conclusions.

 

Because as a real estate investor, I want to know whether our housing supply is growing in proportion to our population or whether we are building faster than the market can absorb it.

 

That matters to more to us than developers.

 

If supply begins substantially outpacing demand, it can eventually affect homeowners trying to sell and landlords trying to rent.

 

But I’ll save that discussion for another day.

 

Here is the thing: Growth happens. And if I’m honest, I’ll be sad when this particular development comes in.

I have often jogged by that farm and enjoyed its beauty. Once, I watched a pair of bald eagles swoop down after their prey and fly off. I even got it on video.

 

And maybe that’s the emotional side of all this.

 

They’re paving paradise and putting up houses — along with whatever all those commercial buildings are.

 

Our farms are going away.

 

Payne Farms is gone. The sunflower fields on Highway 41 are gone. And now this farm is about to change, too.

 

I understand that people have the right to develop their property. I understand that our community is growing. And I understand that growth requires more places for people to live.

 

I’m just trying to figure out where the balance is between protecting property rights, accommodating growth and giving the people who already live there a meaningful voice in what happens around them.

 

I don’t know that I have the answer.

 

But, thanks for being my sounding board today.

 

Joe and Ashley English buy houses and mobile homes in Northwest Georgia. For more information or to ask a question, go to www.cashflowwithjoe.com or call Joe at 678-986-6813.