Yelm City Council approves interlocal agreement with county to bring annexation one step closer

Annexation for some properties in unincorporated Thurston County is now one step closer, as the Yelm City Council unanimously approved an interlocal agreement with the county.

Gary Cooper, planning and building manager, presented key facts and information to Yelm city councilors during a meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 9. He noted on July 8, 2024, Yelm City Council adopted a resolution that authorized staff to work with Thurston County to develop an interlocal agreement as part of the annexation process.

“We have been working with the county since then and have crafted an interlocal agreement,” Cooper said. “Obviously, this is one step towards doing an annexation, and again, I have to emphasize that approval of the interlocal agreement does not approve the annexation.”
Cooper noted that council’s approval would just be a prerequisite of annexation, and that he’d likely be back during the Tuesday, Jan. 18, Yelm City Council meeting with a proposed ordinance for annexation.

“We’re going to be doing a lot of things between now and then, assuming we approve this, and I’ll let you know what those things are after you vote,” Cooper said. “The interlocal agreement is basically just establishing the roles between the city and the county if the council does approve the annexation. It’s kind of like how they pass the baton to us — giving us property records, establishing who would be responsible for doing permits that are currently underway in urban growth areas, storm water maintenance records, all those kinds of things.”

Councilor Brian Hess asked Cooper for clarification regarding residents living within annexation areas, and asked if their property taxes will change because they’re no longer paying a county tax but rather a city tax.

“Our last estimate shows that they would slightly go up about $10 per month, but that varies year to year. There’s a lot of years where it’s cheaper,” Cooper said.

Councilor David Johnstone asked Cooper if well requirements would be the same as the current requirements within the urban growth agreement. Cooper confirmed that the two requirements are the same.

Hess also asked Cooper about a property on George Street, within zone eight, as he’s heard discussions with the property owner about having a historical element there. Hess wanted to know if Yelm will continue to honor the historical element at the property on George Street.

“It’s either one of their buildings is registered as historical, or a portion of the property is registered as historical,” Hess stated.
Cooper told the council that the property will continue to be treated as a historical location.

Following the council’s questions, Cooper informed those at the meeting what the next steps regarding annexation will be. He stated that letters were sent to property owners on Wednesday, Dec. 10, in regards to any potential upcoming changes.

“It’s about six pages because it’s introducing what we’re proposing, but it’s also got a frequently asked questions flyer that discusses the water and sewer requirements,” Cooper said. “Your garbage pickup is not going to change. It has all the things that we get asked when we propose the annexation, so we’re hoping we can get that out there before people get concerned about a lot of changes that aren’t going to take place.”

He added that an open house is scheduled from 6 p.m. to 8 on Tuesday, Dec. 23, at the Yelm Community Center. Cooper will also return to present during a Yelm City Council meeting at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 16, at Yelm City Hall.