Lacey Island Annexation

Annexation occurs when the City adds areas within its Urban Growth Area (UGA) into city limits. While individual property owners may initiate some annexations, whether to annex territory ultimately requires Lacey City Council approval. The statute governing annexation by the City is RCW 35A.14.

Lacey Island Annexations

On March 5 and June 4, 2024, the City Council adopted ordinances which approved the Draham Road and Cuoio Park North Annexations.  Both annexations created islands of unincorporated property.  Islands are generally defined as areas surrounded on all or most sides by existing incorporated areas.  Under RCW 35A.14.460, a code city may initiate an annexation process for unincorporated islands through an interlocal agreement as provided in RCW 39.34 between the city and the county.  The territory for annexation is required to be located within an urban growth area and at least 60 percent of the boundaries for the annexation area be contiguous to the city limits. The islands addressed within the draft interlocal agreement meet the criteria.

There are three separate islands associated with the interlocal agreement.  The first is the island created with approval of the Draham Road Annexation.  This area contains approximately 253 acres and runs north of 15th Avenue NE/Draham Road NE from the eastern boundary of the Draham Road annexation area east past Carpenter Road.  This area contains the Woodland Creek Estates subdivision and a number of larger lots that are not connected to city utilities. The other two islands were created with the Cuoio Park annexation and total approximately 19 acres. The total estimated population associated with these islands is 400 residents. 

Draft Interlocal Agreement

Annexation: Frequently Asked Questions

Next Steps:

The interlocal agreement was approved by the Lacey City Council and the Thurston County Board of Commissioners on October 1st. The next step will be to submit the Notice of Intent to Annex to the Boundary Review Board for Thurston County. The review process will take approximately 45 days. After the Boundary Review Board process, the annexation will return to the Lacey City Council for final action, anticipated for December.