| Annexation fight:
Round one to Bristol
Virginia Business
February 2004
Did
the city of Bristol steal valuable commercial property
away from its Washington County neighbors? A three-judge
panel appointed by the state Supreme Court says no,
tentatively clearing the way for the city to annex about
800 acres.
The county last year claimed that city leaders secretly
promised a local developer more time to build a hotel
on city-owned land in Bristol if, in exchange, the developer
would ask the city to annex his property in Washington
County near Interstate 81. State law forbids cities
from annexing county land unless the county agrees or
the property owners request it. Six other property owners
are also part of the annexation request.
City officials denied the county’s claims during
the two-day trial in Abingdon. The county has said it
will appeal the ruling to the Virginia Supreme Court.
Bristol City Manager Paul Spangler, though, says the
county knows it can’t reverse the unanimous ruling
and is just stalling. The city has spent $130,000 so
far on legal costs. “That’s their tactic,
to delay and run the legal bills up and hope the property
owners will drop out,” says Spangler.
Virginia
Business - February 2004
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