STAPLETON, Ala. — Residents of rural south Alabama are campaigning for a local amendment to gain landmark district status.
Local amendments one, two and three in Baldwin County will define landmarks across Stapleton, Bon Secour and Whitehouse Fork — preserving residents’ rights to decide whether their land is incorporated into the surrounding city limits.
WEAR News visited multiple farms in Stapleton where property owners are working hard to encourage Baldwin County residents to vote yes on these amendments. Residents say they’ve fought for more than two years to add the amendment to their ballot.
A proposed constitutional amendment will prohibit the annexation of any property without property owners’ approval.
Michele White lives on several acres in Stapleton. She and others living nearby have worked for several years to prevent annexation, telling WEAR News she and her neighbors don’t want to be forced into a different lifestyle.
“It really became a mission because all of us who live in Stapleton moved out there on purpose,” said White. “We didn’t get thrown out to the country. We moved out there to lead a rural life in Baldwin County, and the area to do that is getting smaller and smaller and we want to preserve that in Stapleton.”
Along with Stapleton, Bon Secour and Whitehouse Fork are also being voted on. White says voting no on the amendment would be a disservice to property owners.
“Those are three small rural communities,” said White. “Granting landmark district status to us gives us identity to the map, but also protects us from neighboring annexing from nearby cities.”
“This landmark district status doesn’t change zoning, doesn’t change land use, taxation,” she said. “[It] doesn’t affect anything that hurts anyone else — yet gives the property owners the ability to choose whether they want to stay in the county, if a nearby city wanted to annex their property.”
Despite many landowners in the area against annexation, White says voting yes on the amendment doesn’t mean your property can’t be annexed. The amendment just secures your right to have the final say.
“It still preserves the right for those landowners from accepting an invitation to be annexed,” White said. “It prevents them from being forced into annexation.”
“We’re watching the cities get closer and closer on all sides,” she said. “I live in Stapleton and our area is bordered by Loxley, Spanish Fort and Bay Minette. And the growth is wonderful. We appreciate the municipalities and everything they do, but we’d like to see preservation of rural areas in Baldwin County.”
Stapleton residents are holding a town hall on Thursday to discuss the specifics of the amendments. It’ll be on Baldwin County residents’ ballots a week from Tuesday.
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