West Hill Annexation Into Renton Unlikely

Day two of King County Election results are nearly unchanged for initial numbers, keeping West Hill in unincorporated King County.

King County confirmed receipt of Patch’s request for comment on the issue, but have not yet provided a statement from King County Executive Dow Constantine. Patch will update this article when the County sends a statement.

Renton Mayor Denis Law had his to say about the annexation failure:

A majority of West Hill residents that voted on the annexation issue have expressed their desire to remain part of unincorporated King County. This decision allows us to end discussions regarding governance for this area and focus our attention on serving Renton citizens.

We worked unsuccessfully with King County staff for the past several years in an effort to bridge the funding gaps that we would face by providing city-levels of services to the area with an inadequate tax base from the area.

The county recently stated that they plan to continue to reduce services to unincorporated areas, especially in road maintenance and repairs, which will have long-term impacts to this community. In terms of public safety, we hope that West Hill residents will demand that the King County Sheriff’s Department meet the staffing commitments they have made in order to meet the high-levels of crime in the area.

There are a lot of dedicated residents in the West Hill area committed to making their community a safe and vibrant place to live and conduct business. We feel this area has been neglected for many years and that it’s important that the county work with community leaders in finding ways to address their goals and reasonable expectations of county services.

Longtime West Hill resident Paul Berry. who voted against the annexation, said there was no organized opposition group, but instead a majority of residents who voted against the proposition.

He’s lived on the hill for 43 years and been involved with the West Hill Community Association for a decade.

“We were just a disparate group of folks who have gotten together and have coordinated activities,” he said of some West Hill residents who have loosely banded together to oppose annexation into Renton.

When asked about the current results, Berry said the numbers are “what I expected, and what I wanted.”

Community involvement is difficult, but it is key to the success of the neighborhood, he said, adding that a community must advocate for the change it desires.

Check back for more updates from Patch.

Click here for previous coverage of the West Hill annexation campaigns.

More Elections Coverage:

Washington Election Results 2012

Results, Nov. 7, 2012:

For annexation

• Votes: 1,681
• Percent: 45.23

Against annexation

• Votes: 2,035
• Percent: 54.76