Roughly a dozen Cashmere residents gathered at Cashmere City Hall to testify against a proposed annexation within city limits.

On March 13, the City of Cashmere held a public hearing on the proposed annexation of Christ Center and Spears properties.

Christ Center is located at 5800 Kimber Road, with approximately 20.55 acres within Chelan County.

The 3.87-acre Spears property is owned by Marc Spears with Spears Properties LLC, located on 5800 Evergreen DR, cornering Kimber Road.

These applicants petitioned to be annexed into city limits in order to benefit from city services.

Councilmembers voted 4-1 in support of the annexation, with councilmember Chris Carlson being the only one voting against it.

Residents who spoke up against the annexation include Vicky and Tomasz Cibicki, Helen Belcher, and Gina Quinn, who all submitted written responses to the public record.

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Vicky Cebicki wrote that additional growth within the city, such as Pioneer Apartments and the new Freedom Hills subdivision, could raise property taxes.

Quinn wrote that she lived near the Christ Center and that over time, the look of her neighborhood changed and traffic flow increased.

“We have experienced a loss of peace, serenity, quiet and privacy,” wrote Quinn. “We’ve experienced a significant increase in traffic and speed of traffic on Locust Lane and Kimber Road. The proposed annexation would only add salt to the wound.”

Cashmere Mayor Jim Fletcher said development is occurring all over the region and that the city needs to prepare for these changes.

“We have two choices, we can either react after it's done and try to fix it ‘oh, God, we don't like that, why did we allow that?’” Fletcher said. “Or we can try to get ahead of it and plan for it, so that it occurs with some degree of guidance and planning and standards that help us preserve our small town.”

It is now up to the Chelan County Boundary Review Board whether to accept these annexation proposals.

You can read more about what residents wrote about the annexation here.

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