Summary: "We are seeing a lot of misinformation related to annexation and the West Oak neighborhood and so it’s time for a little rumor control. [The City of Willow Park has] no plans to annex the West Oak neighborhood." Note: Willow Park Civics is about — but NOT managed by - the City of Willow Park.
Latest Update: 23 February, 2023
Select #Tags for additional articles: #DevelopmentSouth
Fact check from City about Haney Development annexation. West Oak Neighborhood not affected.
• Fact check: annexation and West Oak, City of Willow Park Website, 22 February, 2024
We are seeing a lot of misinformation related to annexation and the West Oak neighborhood and so today, it’s time for a little rumor control.
(TLDR: we haven’t annexed your neighborhood, it’s a post office thing. Read more below)
First and foremost, no one can be annexed into a city in Texas without their permission. Thanks to a law passed in 2019 by the state legislature, forced annexation is illegal in the state of Texas. You cannot be brought into the city limits unless you ask the city to do so.
[• Texas Municipal League > Municipal Annexation In Texas
On May 24, 2019, municipal annexation as it existed for over a century was over. On that date, House Bill 347 became effective. The bill requires landowner or voter ... 1998 and was a massive rewrite of Texas annexation laws.]
Some residents in the West Oak neighborhood are seeing the city name of “Willow Park” on their mail where they used to see “Aledo.” This is due to the post office working on some changes but will not affect anything other than the way your mail looks. Zip codes and city limits are two different things: the 76008 Aledo zip code, for example, encompasses a far larger area than just the City of Aledo. Your zip code reflects your local post office location, not your city location.
If you live in the area near Fortified Fitness and Bankhead Highway, you may have gotten a letter about a [City of Willow Park] public hearing. This is related to the property where Fortified Fitness sits and some land behind it. The property owners have requested to be annexed and there are required public hearings where the neighbors are notified. Again, we [City of Willow Park] have no plans to annex the West Oak neighborhood.
We’re hearing that a lot of bad information is making the rounds on social media related to this matter. Please share this factual information with your neighbors! Reliable sources include the city website, our newsletters, our social media channels, and the staff at city hall. Please do not rely on unreliable sources.
If you have questions, we have a communications director who is here for this very reason: to be a resource for the public.
You can email rhoffman@willowpark.org for any concerns you may have.
• Willow Park Research:
[The land being annexed belongs to the Haney Complex Development. Details in this Willow Park Civics Blog > Haney Development Index ]