FRANKLIN COUNTY, Wash. - The battle over Franklin County's Doughnut Hole isn't over yet. The City of Pasco is moving forward with plans to annex a portion of the Doughnut Hole. However, that hasn't stopped the plans to create a new city inside the Doughnut Hole.
Franklin County Commissioners held a public hearing this morning, and granted the citizens of the Doughnut Hole an extension until January 23rd to tally up the residents left in the hole after annexation takes place in January.
If there are at least 3,000 residents still left in Doughnut Hole, then the remaining residents can hold a vote on whether they want to create the City of Riverview.
Roger Lenk, a Doughnut Hole resident and one of the leaders in the push against annexation said they have about five 5,000 residents living in the donut hole, and annexation will only remove about 1,500 people.
He said he's hoping they will still have enough to put the city of Riverview up for a vote.
"In the next 60 days we'll be meeting with the auditor and the assessor from the county. We'll be taking a look at the remaining boundaries of the unincorporated area of the City of Riverview and determining if there are still three thousand residents within that area," he said.
Part of the extension also depends on a pending law suit filed by citizens for lifestyle preservation against the City of Pasco.
A decision on whether Pasco acted properly when they annexed area two of the Doughnut Hole is still pending.
If a judge sides with the group, and stops the annexation, then Riverview should have enough residents to put the vote on the ballot
