I was disappointed to see an anti-annexation group take part in Burien's annual Fourth of July Parade. My disappointment turned to concern when I learned that this group was petitioning citizens along the parade route.

My concern is that the citizens who were approached by the anti-annexation individuals were misinformed about the implications of annexing all or part of the North Highline area.

It seems the take-home message that was being delivered by the petitioners is that any annexation equals higher taxes or that annexation will "forever change" the character of Burien.

Petitioners also said that crime would increase, even though Burien, at times, has had a higher crime rate than the unincorporated area.

With regards to higher taxes, the city has identified three scenarios-all of which have costs associated with them.

The three annexation options the city is considering are to annex all, part or none of the North Highline area. Of these three options, annexing none of the area is the costliest to Burien citizens.

Burien and the North Highline area share many common services, such as fire-emergency medical services, police, water and sewer.

If Burien does nothing and the city of Seattle annexes all or a large part of the North Highline area, many of the agencies that provide these services will most definitely lose a large number of their customers. This loss will result in higher costs for the remaining customers.

Also at stake is the efficient delivery of fire and emergency medical services. Currently, Fire District 2 (Burien/Normandy Park) contracts with the North Highline Fire Department to provide emergency services to the North Burien area. Additionally, each department relies on one another for back-up on major alarms (such as fires), as well as covering for each other during multiple call situations.

This well-established, coordinated effort between the two departments has been working well for years and ensures that all of the citizens in Burien are the recipients of fast, efficient emergency services.

In a Seattle-takes-all scenario, fire (and) emergency medical service and police services will be adversely affected, potentially resulting in increased response times in the North Burien neighborhoods and a decrease in depth of service.

The opponents of annexation also cite "career concerns" as a reason why fire and police personnel support annexation.

This is simply false. The employment status of firefighters and police officers will be unaffected in any of the annexation scenarios.

The concern of emergency services personnel lies with their ability to provide the citizens with the same level of services that they provide now.

Those of you who were misinformed and signed the petition, I encourage you to attend as many of the upcoming Burien City Council meetings as possible.

Get the correct information regarding annexation and then make an informed decision.

Christopher Reed

Burien