Staff recommends the City Council hold a public hearing on the annexation. Upon completion of the hearing, staff recommends the City annex the petitioned property with the staff recommended conditions of approval. 

Sanbel on behalf of McCall Development submitted a petition to annex land using the provisions of Section 7-2-4600, MCA. The property is located south of Elysian Road and east of East Lane. The land being annexed is described as:

Area #1: 
A tract of land situated in the northwest one-quarter (NW1/4) of Section 19, Township 1 south, Range 26 east, Yellowstone County, Montana, being Lot 4A of the Amended Plat of Lot 4, Block 27, Lot 5A, Block 24, & Lot 6A, Block 20, Annafeld Subdivision, Fourth Filing; And Tract 2A-1A of Am. Tract 2A-1 of Am. Tract 2A of Am. Tract 2, Certificate Of Survey No. 3594, on file in the office of the clerk & recorder of said County, under Document No. 4072378, said tract being more particularly described as follows, to-wit:
Beginning at a point on the existing city limits line being the southeast corner of said Lot 4A; thence, from said Point of Beginning and leaving the city limits line, S 89°57’56” W along the south line of said Lot 4A, a distance of 659.38 feet to the southwest corner of said Lot 4A; thence, N 00°09’03” W along the west line of said Lot 4A, a distance of 637.83 feet to the northwest corner of said Lot 4A; thence, S 89°57’58” E along the north line of said Lot 4A, a distance of 389.13 feet a northeasterly corner of said Lot 4A, said corner also being on the existing city limits line; thence along said city limits line and the northerly and easterly lines of said Lot 4A, the following seven (7) courses and distances:

1. S 00°02’02” W a distance of 29.81 feet;
2. S 89°57'58" E a distance of 184.98 feet; 
3. S 00°02’02” W a distance of 155.58 feet;
4. S 89°57'58" E a distance of 185.93 feet;
5. S 00°08'35" E a distance of 246.53 feet;
6. S 89°57’56” W a distance of 100.00 feet;
7. S 00°08'35" E a distance of 205.00 feet to said Point of Beginning; 

said described tract having an area of 9.7246 acres, more or less; including all adjacent right-of-way of East Lane; said tract also being as shown on attached ‘Annexation Exhibit’; and

Area #2:
A tract of land situated in the northwest one-quarter (NW1/4) of Section 19, Township 1 south, Range 26 east, Yellowstone County, Montana, being Lot 5A-1 of said Amended Plat of Lot 4, Block 27, Lot 5A, Block 24, & Lot 6A, Block 20, Annafeld Subdivision, Fourth Filing And Tract 2A-1A of Am. Tract 2A-1 of Am. Tract 2A of Am. Tract 2, Certificate Of Survey No. 3594, on file in the office of the clerk & recorder of said County, under Document No. 4072378, said tract being more particularly described as follows, to-wit:
Beginning at a point on the existing city limits line also being the northeast corner of said Lot 5A-1; thence, from said Point of Beginning, along said exiting city limits line, the following three (3) course and distances:

1. S 00°02'02" W a distance of 361.07 feet; 
2. N 89°57'58" W a distance of 76.01 feet; 
3. S 00°02'02" W a distance of 42.93 feet to a point being the southeastern-most corner of said Lot 5A-1; thence, leaving said city limits line and continuing along the south line of said Lot 5A-1, N 89°57'58" W a distance of 181.33 feet to the southwest corner of said Lot 5A-1; thence N 00°09'03" W along the west line of said Lot 5A-1, a distance of 403.71 feet to the northwest corner of said Lot 5A-1; thence N 89°58’09” E along the north line of said Lot 5A-1, a distance of 258.64 feet to said Point of Beginning; said described tract having an area of 2.3170 acres, more or less; said tract also being as shown on attached ‘Annexation Exhibit’; and

Area #3:
A tract of land situated in the northwest one-quarter (NW1/4) of Section 19, Township 1 south, Range 26 east, Yellowstone County, Montana, being the southerly 30.00 feet of the westerly 467.35 feet of Tract 2A of Amended Tract 2, Certificate of Survey No. 3592, Document No. 4044778; said tract being more particularly described as follows, to-wit:

Beginning at a point on the existing city limits line being the southwest corner of said Tract 2A; thence, from said Point of Beginning, N 00°09’54” W along the west line of said Tract 2A and the existing city limits line, a distance of 30.00 feet; thence, leaving said west line and city limits line, N 89°58’09” E a distance of 467.35 feet to a southeasterly corner of said Tract 2A, said corner also being on the existing city limits line; thence along the east line of said Tract 2A and the city limits line, S 00°09’54” E a distance of 30.00 feet to the southeastern-most corner of said Tract 2A; thence, leaving said city limits line and continuing along the south line of said Tract 2A, S 89°58’09” W a distance of 467.35 feet to said Point of Beginning; said described tract having an area of 0.3219 acres, more or less;

The property is zoned PUD- Planned Unit Development. This is a zoning district recognized by the City. 

It is the City’s custom to have staff prepare a brief analysis of predicted impacts to services and facilities. Staff finds the proposed annexation complies with the adopted Annexation Policy criteria as follows:

1. The area must be located within Zone 1 or Zone 3 of the Limits of Annexation Map.
   • Area is within Zone 1.
2. The City must be able provide adequate city services at a cost acceptable to the City within a time period mutually agreed to by the property owners requesting annexation and the City.
   • Annexation is part of a proposed subdivision. Improvements will be handled through the Annafeld, 6th Filing Subdivision Improvement Agreement.
3. Existing or proposed public improvements within the area to be annexed must meet City standards.
   • Improvements will be built to City standards and handled through the Annafeld 6th Filing Subdivision Improvement Agreement.
4. All property owners within the area to be annexed must sign a Waiver of Right to Protest the creation of Special Improvement Districts.
   • A Waiver of Right to Protest the creation of Special Improvement Districts is included with the Annafeld, 6th Filing Subdivision Improvement Agreement.
5. All residential property owners within the area to be annexed must create or join an existing park maintenance district.
   • Park Maintenance District #4041 will be utilized for any additional parkland for this area.
6. Residential densities planned for development within the area to be annexed must meet an overall average minimum density of primary dwelling units per acre as per the current City of Billings Growth Policy or similar planning documents.
   • Area will be developed according to the proposed Annafeld, 6th Filing Subdivision, with an average density of 10 dwelling units per acre.
7. The proposed land use within the area to be annexed must conform to the goals of the Adopted City of Billings Growth Policy.
   • The proposed annexation is consistent with the following goals of the Growth Policy:
     1. Strong Neighborhoods (livable, safe, sociable and resilient neighborhoods): Neighborhoods that are safe and attractive and provide essential services are much desired. 
     2. Home Base (healthy, safe and diverse housing options): Planning and construction of interconnected sidewalks and trails are important to the economy and livability of Billings. 
     3. Essential Investments (relating public and private expenditures to public values): Planning and construction of safe and affordable interconnected sidewalks and trails are important to the economy and livability of Billings.  Developed parks that provide recreation, special amenities (community gardens, dog parks, viewing areas), and active living opportunities are desirable for an attractive and healthy community. 

Departmental Response: City and County Departments were given the opportunity to comment on this annexation. City departments responded favorably, and detailed responses are provided below. 

• Water and Sanitary Sewer: Public water and sanitary sewer service is available to the property proposed for annexation. The water service for this subdivision will consist of new 12-inch water main in Street 1 (temporary name), East Lane and in a portion of St. Peter Lane (north of Street 1 (temporary name). 8-inch water mains will be installed in the remaining streets in Annafeld Subdivision, 6th Filing. Sanitary sewer service will be provided by connecting to the existing City of Billings’ sewer mains. Sanitary sewer service to Annafeld Subdivision, 6th Filing Phase 1 and Phase 3 will be provided by connecting to the existing 8-inch gravity sanitary sewer mains located in Eva Marie Lane, St Peter Lane, and Johanns Meadow Lane
• Storm water: Any development will be compliant with the adopted Stormwater Management Manual. 
• Transportation: The area will be accessed from East Lane, Eva Marie Lane, St Peter Lane, and Johanns Meadow Lane. All of these streets are developed rights of way. 
• Fire Stations: The Billings Fire Department currently serves the subject property through the Billings Urban Fire Service Area agreement.  The Billings Fire Department will continue to serve the property upon annexation.  As this and additional annexations are built out, additional fire department resources will be needed to meet and maintain our high level of service due to the increased call volume and burden on our department these annexations create.  The nearest fire station, Fire Station #5, is located at 605 S 24th Street West, which is 2.87 road miles, or 6 minutes away.
• Parks: No Parkland or Trails will be required as part of this annexation, however parkland is being dedicated as part of the subsequent subdivision process.
• School facilities: Elysian School (School District #23) provides service to students within this subdivision for elementary and middle school. School District #2 provides service to students within this subdivision for high school (West High School). Elysian School did not respond. School District #2 responded stating West High School is over capacity at this time, with 2176 students attending out of a maximum capacity of 1731 students. 

General City Services: These are the City services that are provided to all residents and businesses in the City, such as police and fire protection, street and storm drain maintenance, and garbage collection and disposal. The service providers that responded did not object to the annexation of this property.

• Police: This area receives service but is a bit disjointed from other areas. There is adequate ingress/egress and there will be no need to modify beat structures at this time. Recent staffing additions will help provide service to this area. However, continued development and annexations without commensurate resources will adversely affect ability to deliver service.
• Public Utilities: The Public Works-- Distribution and Collection Division had no concerns with the annexation request.
• Public Works -Street and Traffic Division: The Street and Traffic Division stated that it has no concerns with serving the property.
• Public Works-Solid Waste: The Solid Waste Division had no concerns with annexing the property, but pointed out that State Law allows the property owner to choose what garbage hauler may service the property after it is in the City. 
• Ambulance Service: The City does not provide ambulance service, however it does dictate the level of service provided by American Medical Response (AMR). By City ordinance, 90% of ambulance calls must be answered within 8 minutes. Depending on factors at any given time such as traffic and congestion, this property may be within the area of acceptable response time.
• Legal and Finance: General Fund services, such as the Legal and Finance Departments should not be negatively impacted by this annexation.
• Other Departments: City/County services including Library, Planning, and Environmental Health are only slightly affected by the annexation since they will continue to serve the property whether it is in the City or the County.

The Planning Division staff supports the annexation because it is consistent with the Limits of Annexation map and the criteria of the annexation policy has been met. Further, coordination with other departments does not raise concerns that cannot be mitigated. These decisions have a cumulative affect, therefore, City Council is being provided with a recommendation of approval.

Annexation by petition does not require notification of adjoining landowners; however, it does require that the City Council conduct a public hearing, advertise the hearing, and post the property with information on the annexation petition and public hearing. Notice of the public hearing was posted on the property and was advertised in the Yellowstone County News.

The City Council may

• Approve,
• Conditionally approve or
• Deny the petition for annexation.

Denial of the petition will mean the City Council cannot consider other agenda items related to this property regarding the development agreement and ward boundary ordinance. On December 2, 2024, the annexation petition was submitted to the Planning Division by the owner's agent.  On February 24, 2025, the City Council is scheduled to take action on the petition. 

This application has no impact on the Planning Division Budget.