North Pacheco Annexation Protest Letters Certified

Enough letters were submitted to the Local Area Formation Commission on Tuesday protesting the proposed annexation of North Pacheco to force the issue to a vote.

According to Lou Ann Texeira, executive officer of LAFCO, the county election department certified 47 of the 51 letters protesting the annexation, which means that the matter must now either be dropped by the city or put to a mail-in vote of those 126 residents.

Texeira said Thursday that the initial step in the process is for the LAFCO board to approve a resolution that the panel approved the annexation subject to protests from the affected area, which it did in January. That will probably happen in April, she said. 

Once that formality is out of the way, the Martinez City Council must decide whether or not to drop the annexation all together, or go forward with a mail-in election. It is not clear whether a majority of the residents in the area support annexation. Several were on hand at LAFCO Tuesday to object to the notion, but at least one resident said she supported the move. 

Should the annexation be approved, officials say it will cost property owners an average additional $100 per year on their tax bill, due mostly to the city's Measure H, which funds park improvements.