SCHERERVILLE | When Schererville staff and elected officials talk about annexation, it's usually at the request of a resident or developer and not an attempt by the town to expand.
But as neighboring Dyer and St. John make moves to stretch their borders, Schererville officials are taking a look at their own boundaries.
Schererville Town Council President Hal Slager led discussion on the matter at a study session last week.
He said that with two neighboring communities looking to annex, he wants to be sure that Schererville has a conversation before, not after, something happens.
St. John is in the process of annexing about 540 acres east of its border, an area it already serves with water and sewer utilities.
Dyer is considering annexing nearly 4,000 acres south of its border.
Schererville Town Manager Bob Volkmann said a small portion of that area already is incorporated in Schererville, so Dyer will remove that part from its annexation map.
But another section of the proposed annexation area lies in Schererville's utility district. Schererville would remonstrate against Dyer's annexation of any land in the Schererville utility district and any land that Schererville is poised to provide utilities to, Slager said.
When Schererville Councilman Perry Ferrini asked why the town hasn't tried to incorporate some of those areas, Volkmann said that previous councils decided against involuntary annexations after a failed attempt nearly 20 years ago.
Schererville tried to annex Schererville Heights and Heather Hills subdivisions, just south of town limits, but were met with much opposition, he said.
"Since that failed annexation attempt in the '80s, the unwritten policy is that the only annexations they entertain are 100 percent voluntary," Volkmann said.
St. John Town Manager Steve Kil said there's communication between Schererville and St. John, and if one of the communities wants to deviate from its annexation or utility district plans, the officials talk about what would make the most sense and work something out.
Kil, a former Schererville councilman and former Schererville town manager, said he is familiar with what Schererville contemplates as future boundaries.
Last week, he provided Schererville with documents related to St. John's annexation efforts, including the fiscal plan, an outlined map and a copy of St. John's comprehensive plan.
