West Virginia Code 8-7-4 – Decreasing corporate limits by minor boundary adjustment
In the event a municipality desires to decrease its corporate limits by making a minor boundary adjustment, the governing body of such municipality may apply to the county court of the county wherein the municipality or the major portion of the territory thereof is located for permission to effect such decrease in the corporate limits by minor boundary adjustment.
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 8-7-4
- County court: includes any existing tribunal created in lieu of a county commission. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
- Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. Source:
- Freeholder: shall mean any person (and in the case of an individual one who is sui juris and is not under a legal disability) owning a "freehold interest in real property". See West Virginia Code 8-1-2
- Governing body: shall mean the mayor and council together, the council, the board of directors, the commission, or other board or body of any municipality, by whatever name called, as the case may be, charged with the responsibility of enacting ordinances and determining the public policy of such municipality. See West Virginia Code 8-1-2
Such application shall disclose the number of individuals residing in the territory which would be eliminated from the corporate limits by the proposed change, and shall have attached thereto an accurate map showing the metes and bounds of such territory.
If satisfied that the change sought is only a minor boundary adjustment, the county court shall order publication of a notice of the proposed decrease in the corporate limits and of the date and time set by the court for a hearing on such proposal. Publication shall be as in the case of an order calling for an election, as set forth in section two of this article. A like notice shall be prominently posted at not less than five public places within the territory which would be eliminated from the corporate limits by the proposed change.
If the freeholders of such territory who are present or are represented at the hearing are not substantially opposed to the proposed boundary change, the court may enter an order decreasing the corporate limits of the municipality as requested, which order may be reviewed by the circuit court as an order of a county court ordering an election may be reviewed under section sixteen, article five of this chapter. After the date of such order, the corporate limits of the municipality shall be as set forth therein, unless judicial review is sought under the provisions of said section sixteen. If the proposed change is substantially opposed at the hearing by any such freeholder, the court shall dismiss the application. Dismissal of any such application shall not preclude proceedings in accordance with the provisions of sections two and three of this article. The municipality shall pay the costs of all proceedings under this section.