State senator submits local bills that include removal of Davidson County Airport from Lexington city limits
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
North Carolina Senator Steve Jarvis, who represents Davidson and Montgomery counties, has submitted three local bills that will directly affect the City of Lexington and other local municipalities.
The biggest impact would come from Senate Bill 908 which would remove the Davidson County Airport from the corporate limits of the City of Lexington.
Want to know more about what is happening in Lexington? Support local journalism, subscribe to The Dispatch.
Senate Bill 907 would require municipalities in Davidson County to “obtain the approval of the Davidson County Board of Commissioners prior to annexing an area over which the board has jurisdiction” and Senate Bill 909 would exempt county-owned property from zoning and planning ordinances in local municipalities.
All three bills were filed by Jarvis on May 31. SB909 was sent to Senate Rules and Operations committee, while SB907 and SB098 were recommended to Senate Finance committee.
Lexington Mayor Newell Clark said, although leadership at the city were understandably alarmed at these bills which mostly impact Lexington, he is encouraged that there is an ongoing conversation with the county and the senator to make sure these impacts are minimal.
“I appreciate Senator Jarvis putting those bills out there because it brought all of us to the table for some discussions we needed to have,” said Clark. “We needed to get some of these folks in the same room...The senator said he is committed that we get both parties in agreement and we are working through that process so that these bills are effective and helpful for both parties.”
The bill that would have the biggest impact is the proposal to remove the Davidson County Airport from the corporate limits of Lexington.
Currently, any company housing a vehicle at the airport must pay taxes for both Lexington and Davidson County. If the airport was removed from the city limits, they would no longer have to pay double taxes.
Jarvis said this reduction in taxes by de-annexation from Lexington would help recruit more companies to house their corporate jets at the airport. He also stated the bill has the support of the Davidson County Airport Authority.
“There are companies looking to locate in the area that have some big jets (and) there are other airports within a 30-mile area to house their planes just as easily. We want them here. It is about the economic development of the airport,” said Jarvis.
Jarvis also noted that Davidson County has continuously made substantial financial investments into the airport, including $5 million to build several corporate hangars, the installation of a runway lighting system and a fuel tax rebate program.
More: Commissioners consider adding $3.8 million for corporate hangars at Davidson County Airport
Clark said that there needs to be more discussion about how removing the airport from the city limits would impact the current services they are providing as well as the reduction in the city tax base.
“Anytime you are talking about removing tax base it is a concern,” said Clark. “When you start talking de-annexation, we have to be at the table. If they are concerned about economic development, what do we need to do, what does that look like.... Taxes are not always the deciding factor for why a corporation would come to our airport. Oftentimes it comes down to convenience. There are different ways to look at this.”
Clark said currently the airport only provides around $100,000 in taxes yearly, but with the expected addition of more corporate hangars and other economic development this could increase exponentially.
"There is a great potential for growth here and none of us want to hinder that. We have made our own investment through city services, repaving roads and the fire department. We have contributed in our own way for future growth, and we need to agree on what is the best thing for all parties concerned,” said Clark.
If the bill passes, the City of Lexington would no longer be responsible for the road repair services it currently provides. It would also remove the airport from the area covered by Lexington Fire Department #2.
Senate Bill 909, labeled as a public building development act, is specifically to exempt county-owned property on State Street, slated as the site for the expansion of the Davidson County Jail, from the Lexington Unified Development Ordinance.
Jarvis said Lexington’s current UDO does not allow for the building of a jail, and this needed to be corrected. He added that the bill would allow for city representatives to be included in conversations about the exterior appearance of the proposed building.
“The bill moves it to the point where the county is able to build the jail. There are specifications to have a Lexington City council member and a staff member from the city to sit on the aesthetics committee. We have discussed it in great lengths with the mayor and city manager,” said Jarvis.
Clark said the city has recently included a conditional zoning process which would allow for the expansion of the Davidson County Jail, but the main concern is the appearance of the building which sits in the Lexington Uptown Business District.
"The conditional zoning involves all of the processes ... including aesthetics. We want to be at the table with the county when they discuss where it should be and what it should look like. We have done so much work on improving the appearance of our central business core,” said Clark.
Jarvis said Senate Bill 907 would require local municipalities to get input from the Davidson County Board of Commissioners before annexing any property for development, excluding residential housing. He said this does not give one board authority over another, they just should have a discussion before annexing any county property.
“One legislative board cannot bind another city board, we just want them to agree,” said Jarvis. “We just want more people at the table. It brings more options, more ideas and more potential. The county wants people to come here and to move the economy forward.”
Clark said city leadership is still in discussion with Jarvis about the impact this bill would have on business recruitment and how it is worded.
“Voluntary annexation should be up to the business owner; we should all be in support of a business wanting to be part of the city. The way the bill reads, it seems like the commissioners have the final say, but that’s not the way it works...When someone is requesting to be annexed both the city and the county should be involved in the discussion,” said Clark.
Jarvis said he proposed these bills to bolster economic development and growth in the area. He said he is still working with the City of Lexington and Davidson County to finalize the specifics of these bills. He said these bills are a “pilot program” to handle the rapid growth throughout the state.
“From a state standpoint, we have two really big cities, Raleigh and Charlotte, that are expanding at an enormous rate. If we don’t have local control over development, we won’t be able to handle the infrastructure needs, the roads, the utilities. Look at it as a global initiative to start making plans to handle this explosive growth,” said Jarvis.
Clark said at first it appears these three bills will negatively affect the City of Lexington, but he is hopeful further discussion will bring an amicable resolution.
"After speaking with the senator, I was encouraged by what the intent was behind these bills and where we could get together as a group to do some fine tuning. We are working out things together,” said Clark.
General news reporter Sharon Myers can be reached at sharon.myers@the-dispatch.com. Follow her on Twitter @LexDispatchSM.
This article originally appeared on The Dispatch: Bill could remove Davidson County Airport from Lexington city limits
