Huber Heights' annexation of Bethel Twp. land at center of new House bill
Apr. 1—Spurred from a saga that saw chunks of Bethel Twp. land annexed into Huber Heights, a Miami County lawmaker is hoping to pass a bill that would have given his county commissioners the power of veto.
"We're wanting to reform the law related to annexation to simply say that county commissioners in this county over here need to have a voice in this in order to prevent problems from coming," Ohio House Rep. Johnathan Newman, R-Troy, told this outlet in an interview.
Newman and Rep. Adam Bird, R-New Richmond, are pushing to tweak Ohio's annexation laws with House Bill 113.
The biggest change the bill proposes is granting county commissioners of would-be annexed land the responsibility to determine whether the annexation serves "the general good."
The annexation of Bethel Twp. land to Huber Heights, which sits across the border in Montgomery County, has been marked by strong opposition from township leaders and Miami County commissioners.
In July, Huber Heights approved an annexation request of nearly 300 acres of farmland that was once part of Bethel Twp., with the intent of expanding a new-build Carriage Trails neighborhood.
That annexation was strongly opposed by the leaders of Bethel Twp. and Miami County.
It came through so-called Type 2 expedited annexation, which Newman described as "when all the people living on the property that is to be annexed... sign (a petition saying) that they want to be annexed."
Newman said Ohio's Type 2 annexation law currently gives the very few people living on the land the power to decide to annex and then sell their land to a neighborhood developer — potentially leading to a population shift of hundreds or thousands.
"Here's the deal: If it was a neighborhood of (500 people) and all 500 people said, 'Yes, we want to be annexed to Huber Heights,' then, OK," Newman said. "But that's not what's been happening. What's been happening is, this is farmland where almost nobody lives."
In this case, the proposed development is zoned for mixed-use purposes with the intent of building hundreds of new homes, apartment buildings, a new school, a public park and a fire station.
Bethel Twp. residents have been concerned that new development would overcrowd nearby schools and otherwise alter their way of life.
"Folks move to Bethel Twp. for a reason; we don't want to live 10 feet from our neighbor. We want the quiet and tranquility of a rural lifestyle," township Trustee Julie Reese said in June 2024. "We want the country roads without a stoplight on every corner, we want to drive those roads and look out the window at the crops growing and the cattle grazing. Annexation is destroying our way of life."
Newman said that Type 2 annexation is basically a matter of paperwork if the landowners want to annex and the annexing municipality agrees. While Newman said he's sure Huber Heights is acting in good faith, he feels the power is off balance.
"The county commissioners and townships need to have more say in this," Newman said.
The Ohio Municipal League, a lobbying organization for Ohio's cities and villages, told this outlet that it opposes H.B. 113.
"House Bill 113 is a response to an isolated issue of disagreement in one small area of the state and would interfere with a system that has worked well for over 20 years, providing greater predictability in the annexation process for Ohio's local governments across the state," OML Director of Public Affairs Bevan Schneck said in a statement to this outlet.
Schneck framed the bill as "unnecessary" and said it would "compromise the ability of our communities to meet the critical challenge to provide more housing opportunities." He said current law "respects the rights of Ohio's property owners."
H.B. 113 is slated to have more hearings in the House Local Government Committee in the coming weeks.
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