DYER | If Dyer moves forward with plans to annex nearly 3,000 acres of unincorporated land, officials might wait a couple of years before putting the annexation into effect.

During last week's third and final scheduled information session about the annexation, Town Manager Joe Neeb said the Town Council is considering the delay but hasn't officially voted on it.

Neeb cited two reasons for the possible postponement. Dyer officials want to get through this first year of HB 1001, the tax cap legislation, to see its impact and interpretation. Although the town can adopt the annexation ordinance this year, it cannot actually annex the land during a census year, such as 2010. That would make annexation first possible in 2011.

Opponents say postponing the effective date of the annexation would make no difference.

"They're trying to buy time," St. John Township Property Owners Association President Richard Hucker said. "That's all they're trying to do. I don't care if they want to hold off for six months or six years. We'll still fight it."

Neeb used the informational meeting to announce the Town Council's consideration of removing a portion of the proposed annexation area after talking to Schererville and St. John officials. Dyer originally wanted to annex nearly 4,000 acres.

St. John Town Manager Steve Kil said he didn't talk to Neeb about changes to the annexation area until the day after the information session.

St. John officials have made it clear they oppose Dyer's plan, much of which overlaps into unincorporated land St. John had planned to eventually annex.

Cutting back certain portions of that overlapping land would make the plan "minimally" better to accept, Kil said.

"Our comprehensive plan calls for everything south of 101st to be serviced by St. John and eventually annexed, and that whole part is still on their plan," he said. "It still conflicts with St. John's planned growth pattern."

Dyer's annexation reduction could include the northwest quadrant of 101st Avenue and White Oak Street as well as land near Patterson Street and 81st Avenue, which abuts Schererville and St. John.

Kil said he has received copies of several different annexation proposals. The latest shows Dyer attempting to annex about 3 square miles of the same land St. John wants to annex eventually.

"St. John's desire is really clear," Kil said. "We would like the annexation attempts south of 101st and east of Calumet halted. Anything other than that would be unacceptable. It's the intention of the town to vigorously defend that area."

Annexation opponents have vowed to defend their land as well.

Along with existing signs with such slogans as "This Land Is Our Land" and "No Annexation," Hucker said new signs were printed that read, "Annexation Will Cost Dyer Taxpayers."

Hucker said some Dyer residents -- not just unincorporated residents in the cross hairs of possible annexation -- are against the annexation as well.