Newscast: Controversial Ukiah Annexation Plan Said to Violate Long-Standing Agreements and Basic Fairness

This article was written by Elise Cox, News Director for KZYX on June 17, 2025.

The city of Ukiah will hold a town hall Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at the Civic Center to discuss a sweeping annexation proposal that would roughly triple the city’s acreage and shift property and sales tax revenues from Mendocino County to the city.

City officials say the move could bolster Ukiah tax base and improve municipal service delivery. But critics — including business owners, farmers, and county leaders — warn the annexation could violate an agreed-on sphere of influence that protected agricultural land while undercutting the county’s ability to fund essential services like road repair, fire prevention, and law enforcement.

“I have yet to hear from a single constituent who wants to be annexed,” said Supervisor Madeline Cline, who represents many of the county residents in the proposed annexation area. “That’s a big concern for me. It’s not just homeowners — it’s business owners. It’s a pretty diverse pool of people.”

Cline said many of the county’s top taxpayers operate businesses in the proposed annexation area. “The proposed boundary for the city of Ukaya's annexation includes um I believe 14 out of the top 20 sales tax producers for the entire county. So there will inevitably be a revenue impact.”

In proposing the plan, the city of Ukiah has not detailed the financial impact. A list of parcels was provided to the public in PDF format, making it difficult to immediately determine the percent of county property tax that would be transferred to Ukiah.

Ukiah currently collects more than three times the sales tax per resident as the county of Ukiah — based solely on the 1% Bradley-Burns sales taxes collected by local businesses and remitted back to local jurisdictons by the state of California and not counting additional local taxes (known as "district taxes) or "use taxes" levied on e-commerce transactions. The county's overall sales tax rate is 7.88% compared to 8.88% for city of Ukiah. Including the district rate, Ukiah collects more than six times the sales tax per resident as the county does. If managed effectively this would allow it to deliver enhanced services — without the need to transfer additional sales and property tax from the county to Ukiah.

Last year, Mendocino County businesses collected $5.9 million in annualized gross quarterly sales taxes compared to $5.2 million for businesses in Ukiah — roughly 12 percent more.

At a planning commission meeting last week, public opposition was vocal and intense. Several residents who have participated in planning discussions over the years said they were blindsided by the scope of the proposal.

A resident who owns property in the Brush Street Triangle area — and who has participated in annexation planning — said the new annexation plan includes properties that were never previously disclosed. “This whole land grab was never mentioned. It was never on even one map — not even one time.”

Steven Johnson, a farmer and an attorney, argued the plan violates a long-standing agreement. “You aren’t following the law,” he said. “Sphere of influence policies say areas of established crop production with soils of high agricultural capability should be maintained in agriculture and generally should not be included in an urban service sphere.”

Johnson said farmers want to work with the city, but they need Ukiah to respect their boundaries. “You’ve created a conflict with the agricultural community and the rural community that lives in this valley. It’s potentially going to change their way of life.”

Other critics cited the city’s current financial and operational challenges. Ken McCormick urged the planning commission to recommend withdrawal of the application.

“Ukiah is demonstrably struggling to effectively manage the land and responsibilities within its current city limits,” McCormick said. “Expanding our boundaries now is not only premature, but irresponsible.”

He cited commercial vacancies, a sluggish economy, and a city debt burden of $216 million. “Per capita debt has tripled since 2020, reaching $4,297 per resident,” he said. “This level of debt is unsustainable.”

Business owner Essence Roberson, who runs an indoor miniature golf venue in the city, said she pays $2,500 annually for public safety services but receives inadequate emergency response. “My average response time for a 911 call is about 45 minutes,” she said.

Roberson criticized city staff for showing what she described as indifference toward public input. “There’s so much attitude coming from this table, as if you’re annoyed that you have to be here,” she said. “And the people who actually voted on the annexation aren’t even in the room.”

Link to the newscast here.