Annexation

Annexation (ANNX) is the addition of land into the City of Bismarck’s corporate limits. Annexation of property allows the extension of municipal services, laws, voting privileges, and taxing authority to the new area. Removal of land from the corporate limits, known as exclusion, follows the same process.

Annexations may either be petitioned by a majority of property owners within the annexed area or initiated by the City through a separate process. Annexation by petition is described here.

References:

Consider before you begin:

  • Annexations must be contiguous to the existing city limits. Long ‘flagpole’ style annexation requests are discouraged and may not be approved.
  • Annexation requests can accompany plats, zoning changes and other development requests and run concurrently. Annexations that reference plats that are pending will not be recorded until the underlying plat is recorded.
  • Applications for annexation must be signed by landowners. Typically all landowners in the area participate in the petition, but state law only requires ¾ of the number or assessed value of the land to petition.
  • All annexation requests will be evaluated for conformance with the Growth Phasing Plan in the Comprehensive Plan, which prioritizes areas for annexation and discourages annexation outside of the Urban Service Area Boundary.

Process Steps:

  • Pre-Application (optional). Applicant may request an optional pre-application meeting or inquire with staff prior to applying. This is encouraged.

Planning and Zoning Commission Application Timeline

  • Submit Application. A Unified Development Application is submitted to the Planning Division, along with fee and attachments. See this year's Meeting Schedule and Application Deadlines (pdf).
  • Staff Review: City staff review the request according to the Comprehensive Plan, ordinance, and policies. All review comments are posted using TRAKiT and can be viewed and responded to.
  • Development Review Meeting. The request will be included on the next available Development Review Meeting agenda. A few days prior to the meeting, staff comments will be compiled and distributed to applicants and reviewers. Applicant’s consultants are invited to attend this virtual meeting to discuss the project and respond to comments. The group decides by consensus whether to proceed to the next step or hold a month for further revisions.
  • Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting Final Consideration. A staff report is released the week prior on the agenda center, and staff present a recommendation to the Planning and Zoning Commission, who will consider the annexation request and make a recommendation to the City Commission for final action. Conditions may be added to the recommendation.

BCC Application Timeline From PZ for ANNX-01

  • City Commission Consideration. A staff report is released the week prior on the agenda center, and the request is placed on the consent agenda at the next City Commission meeting with a recommendation to call for a public hearing.
  • Public Notification. Notice is sent to the Township Board, Burleigh County, and any petitioners who did not join in the original petition. It is published in the Bismarck Tribune.
  • City Commission Public Hearing. A staff report is released the week prior on the agenda center, and the request is placed on the regular agenda of the City Commission meeting. After hearing from the public, City Commission takes final action on the request. The Community Development Director or a designee will present this item to the Commission. The applicant or a representative may present to the Commission or answer questions from the Commission throughout the hearing. The City Commission may approve, deny, or continue the request.
  • Recording. City staff record an ordinance for the annexation upon completion of conditions, if any, such as recordation of an associated plat.
  • After Effective. Updated taxes and any special assessments that were held in abeyance will go into effect on February 1st of each year after the annexed property has been recorded. Municipal services many be extended in the area through creation of improvement districts.

Submittal Requirements

  • Unified Development application signed by each petitioner
  • Application fee. (See fee schedule (pdf))
  • Legal description of area to be annexed
  • Map exhibit of area to be annexed

Apply

Initiate an inquiry, submit a scoping request, or file an application for an annexation or any combination of project types.