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GREENSBORO — City leaders plotted and planned. County residents protested. But the city took them in anyway.

You agree with a one-year moratorium? Join the discussion at the Debatables blog.

This summer, thousands of people will be annexed into Greensboro — unless the legislature calls a time-out.

An N.C. House committee has proposed a one-year moratorium on city-initiated and satellite annexations to give the legislature time to re-evaluate annexation laws. Legislators say some cities are taking advantage of the laws to cherry-pick areas with high home values and do not always provide new residents with services quickly.

Committee members expect to present the bill this month after the legislative session begins May 13.

Legislators are not optimistic they can get a moratorium passed by June 30, which would prevent the city from annexing thousands of residents in the Cardinal area northwest of Greensboro.

But city leaders aren't taking any chances. They expect to petition legislators to allow Greensboro to move forward with the planned annexations.

"We are hoping that it won't happen so it won't be an issue for us, but we have to be careful," said deputy city attorney Becky Jo Peterson-Buie.

Even if a moratorium does not affect Greensboro's current plans, revisions to state law could change the way it annexes land in the future.

"We have outcry statewide," said Rep. Earl Jones , a member of the House annexation committee. "We are responding to the citizens."

Greensboro leaders plan to annex roughly eight square miles and about 10,000 new residents this year. Most of those areas will be brought into Greensboro through city-initiated annexations.

Cities annex surrounding territories to protect and expand their tax base and allow the city to grow. Annexation historically has been used to expand municipal services, such as water and sewer, to rural areas.

Proponents of annexation argue that residents immediately outside of cities often reap the benefits of urban life — the arts, better roads, medical services, parks — without paying the taxes that fund some of those things.

"Annexation is one way that everyone who benefits indirectly and directly for the city pays for the overall costs," said Margot Christensen, from the N.C. League of Municipalities.

Annexation opponents complain that there is no state oversight of the annexation process and residents who live in city-initiated annexation areas have no say in whether they will be annexed.

And some people moved to their homes specifically to avoid paying city taxes.

Both circumstances have led to abuse in some cities, observers said.

"When a city sends a group of property owners a letter saying we've decided that you are going to become part of the city, it's not a negotiation. It's not a matter of choice. People are outraged," said Cathy Heath, who lives in a Wake County subdivision that Cary tapped for annexation. She has helped fight annexations across the state.

People don't always see the benefits of annexation immediately. State Rep. Bruce Goforth, an Asheville Democrat and co-chairman of the House annexation committee, said some cities have been slow to get them services.

Greensboro has, in most cases, extended benefits such as sewer and water to the areas it plans to annex. Those areas were chosen for annexation, in part, because amenities such as parks were nearby.

The city has already mapped out plans for providing other services, such as street maintenance and trash pickup.

Still, the availability of some city services has been a sticking point.

Some residents east of Greensboro argued against an annexation this spring because it would be an economic hardship for Greensboro to add firefighters and police officers to their area.

"We felt they could not provide adequate response. The police department is short-staffed. That was a great concern," said Ron Powell, who lives in the Laurel Park subdivision east of Greensboro.

Goforth would like to see rules that require cities to provide services within a defined time after annexation — and prorate residents' taxes in the meantime.

Goforth also would like some state control over the process. A moratorium would give the legislature time to consider all options, he said.

"We've got the most liberal annexation laws in the United States," Goforth said. "We want to tighten them up."

Contact Amanda Lehmert at 373-7075 or amanda.lehmert@news-record.com