A question that has come up several times before the Warrenton Board of Aldermen was resolved during their regularly scheduled meeting Jan. 6, when City Attorney John Young stated that notice of the annexation tied to the proposed data center was not legally required.
The issue again came to the forefront last Tuesday when two county residents addressed the issue with the board.
Resident Jess Sutton outlined information she had received in a series of public records requests submitted to the city. She referenced a story from the Warren County Record on Dec. 19, 2022 noting that the site for the proposed data center is listed as 178 acres. She said the petition for annexation was filed in April 2023, letters were sent to adjoining landowners of the 178 acres, but no one she knows got one. She then references the annexation of 337 acres on Sept. 5, 2023.
Alderman Christine Wait asked if the issue was that notice was not properly sent. Sutton responded that letters were sent to adjoining landowners for the 178 acres, but not landowners for the entire 337 acres. Sutton then discusses more information she has obtained that shows that notice was provided with respect to the 178 acres, but not the 337 acres, according to city records.
Wait said the city would need to look into the issue.
Residents Cheryl Roberts-Longhibler and Raymond Bergeron both said they were not notified of any annexation during last week’s meeting
City Attorney John Young said notices are not required by law and are merely a courtesy to residents. He added that to the point that someone is missed it would not invalidate the annexation of the property.
In other matters, the board unanimously approved, by a 6-0 vote adding the Juneteenth holiday (June 19) to the list of city recognized holidays.
The board also unanimously approved two bills for the water and sewer rates for 2026.
Water rates will be:
Sewer rates will be:
