Jamie Munks
The State Journal-Register
Ward 7 Ald. Joe McMenamin, a proponent of annexing city-surrounded unincorporated land into Springfield, contends partisan politics played a part in the city council recently shooting down an annexation proposal.
Aldermen in October, in a 4-6 vote, rejected Mayor Jim Langfelder’s plan to annex into the city 48 acres of unincorporated land, dubbed “holes in the doughnut,” which a panel discussed at a Friday morning Citizens Club of Springfield meeting.
The board of Woodside Township — where the land is located — is made up entirely of Republican trustees, and seven of Springfield’s 10 aldermen are Republicans, said McMenamin, who considers himself an independent. “I didn’t get a phone call,” McMenamin said. “…Several aldermen got a ton of phone calls.”
Ward 10 Ald. Ralph Hanauer, who also sat on the panel at Friday’s meeting, said he received many phone calls and emails leading up to the council’s vote from people concerned about the proposed annexation.
McMenamin voted in favor of the annexation, along with Ward 3 Ald. Doris Turner, whose ward would have absorbed those 48 acres in question. Hanauer was among the aldermen who voted “no.” Five of the six aldermen who voted against the annexation measure are Republicans.
State law allows municipalities to annex unincorporated areas that are 60 acres or less if they are bounded entirely by that municipality, by passing an ordinance.
Proponents of Springfield annexing these “holes in the doughnut” argue that having pockets of unincorporated land within the city’s outer boundaries creates confusion for police and fire services, as well as public works when it comes to road work and snow plowing. Drawing the additional property into the city also adds to its tax base, but it takes tax revenue away from the township.
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McMenamin said he thought the annexation was going to “fly through” the council with a unanimous vote. “We shouldn’t have Springfield residents subsidizing infrastructure for those holes in the doughnut,” McMenamin argued.
The annexation of unincorporated land by the city isn’t uncommon, and a glance at any Springfield map shows a number of “holes in the doughnut.”
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Joe McMenamin for Ward 7 