RSSPoll results show Terrace Heights residents prefer incorporation
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Annexation is out, and incorporation is in, according to a recent poll of the Terrace Heights community.
Of the 4,000 questionnaires mailed last month, 155, or 4 percent, were returned. Ninety-one favored incorporation, and 64 opted to leave things as they are. No one endorsed becoming annexed into either Yakima or Moxee.
The survey was submitted in the Terrace Heights Improvement Association’s newsletter by residents Mike Dooley and Brad Christianson.
The association provides directory assistance, maintains the historic Civic Center and works to enhance the community’s appearance. The newsletter features content generated by community residents.
Dooley said the percentage of responses is typical for surveys, and that an additional 30 to 40 questionnaires have yet to be tabulated.
Based on the initial findings and talks with local residents, Dooley believes there’s ample support to pursue incorporation.
He’s planning on hosting a meeting in early November to further discuss the idea. If all goes well, he wants to form committees to do more research.
“A lot of people do want to continue,” Dooley said. “If it didn’t look at least feasible, we wouldn’t pursue it.”
People have either endorsed the idea or have requested more information, Dooley said. They most commonly want to know how much they’d owe in taxes and what services they’d get for those taxes. The committees would be charged with finding those answers, Dooley said.
Other, legal requirements for incorporation include launching a petition, a review by a boundary review board and an election. If voters approve the proposed incorporation, a primary election — followed by a general election — is held to nominate city leaders.
Dooley said he wants Terrace Heights residents — numbering 9,000 — to take control of their own destiny rather than wait to become annexed. He fears Terrace Heights could become a target for annexation because of its business growth, including the new Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences.
Harrah was the last city to incorporate in Yakima County 62 years ago. West Valley tried and failed to incorporate in 1993 and 2001, mostly because voters questioned whether the area had a large enough tax base to support itself.
Terrace Heights is recognized by community residents as extending from about the Yakima Ridge to St. Hilaire Road, Mieras Road and the Yakima River. The area comprises about 22.9 square miles — about five square miles smaller than Yakima.
Should Terrace Heights incorporate, County Assessor Dave Cook said it could generate a maximum of $1.4 million in property taxes a year.
• Erin Snelgrove can be reached at 577-7684 or esnelgrove@yakimaherald.com
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