A historical update on petition signatures, proposed service changes, and the trustees’ tax explanation.
Original source: February 2026; exact posting day not recorded. The accompanying tax clarification was undated.
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Ballwin Annexation Update (Feb 2026) Annexation Committee Volunteers have started collecting signatures for the annexation petition. Due to the cold weather, only a few of our volunteers have braved the weather to collect signatures and as the weather warms up, all of our volunteers will have more opportunities to get out and collect signatures. If you have not yet been contacted by one of our volunteers, do not worry, as we will eventually visit every home in our subdivision. We have 280 days to get the required number of signatures and submit the petition, so there is ample time to make it to all the homes in our subdivision. Our target date to have all signatures collected and petition submitted is September of 2026. I realize everyone has their own schedule and we may not catch you when you are home. If that happens, we may be leaving a note on your door with contact information so that when it is convenient for you, we can arrange to meet and discuss and collect your signature. Do not worry if you have not yet been contacted. We will get to everyone. I hope that everyone who received the annual assessment notice from the City & Village Tax Office took the time to read the included letter that addressed annexation. There seems to be a lot of misinformation and hearsay floating around regarding annexation. It is our intent to present all the facts, including pros and cons, so that you can make an informed decision whether or not to sign the petition. If you have decided not to sign at this time, but change your mind later, contact me and I will make sure we get the petition to you! Additional information regarding pros and cons have been posted on both our subdivision website “shadowoaknews.com” and on our subdivision Facebook Group “Shadowoak Subdivision”. If you are not a member of the “Shadowoak Subdivision” Facebook Group, please consider joining. The Facebook Group has a lot of information and news about our subdivision and contains useful information not only regarding the annexation process but about the subdivision and our HOA. Thanks for reading! Paula Kleypas IMPACT OF PROPOSED ANNEXATION OF SHADOWOAK SUBDIVISION (Plats 1-3) |
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| Service | No Annexation | with Annexation |
| Local Governance | St Louis County | City of Ballwin |
| Real Estate (Property) Taxes | paid to St. Louis County | no change – no increase |
| Personal Property Taxes | paid to St. Louis County | no change – no increase |
| Sales Tax | paid in the Municipality where you make the purchase | Add’l 1%. Paid on purchases that need to be titled (cars, boats, etc) |
| Utility Taxes (paid on Electric, Gas and Water) |
5.3% | 7.5% |
| Schools and School Taxes | No change | |
| Household Trash and Recycling, Including Yard Waste | Service provided by Waste Connections of Missouri $87 per Quarter |
Service provided by Republic Services $77 per Quarter |
| Leaf Collection | none | Curbside pickup in the Fall no extra cost. |
| Ownership of Streets and Sidewalks | St Louis County | City of Ballwin |
| Street Maintenance | St Louis County | City of Ballwin |
| Snow Removal | St. Louis County | City of Ballwin |
| Sidewalk Maintenance | St Louis County | City of Ballwin |
| Street Tree Maintenance | St Louis County | City of Ballwin |
| Policing | St Louis County Police Dept | City of Ballwin Police Dept |
| Fire Protection | Metro West Fire Protection District | no change |
| Ambulance / EMT Services | West County EMS & Fire Protection District | no change |
| Building Codes | St Louis County | City of Ballwin |
| Code Enforcement | St Louis County | City of Ballwin |
| Sanitary and Storm Sewers | MSD | no change |
| Sewer Lateral Repair Assistance | included w/ Utility Bills | no change |
| Electricity Costs | Paid by Subdivision Ameren Increased Rates in June 2025. Avg yearly cost per home for Streetlights increased from $71 to $79 (Aprox. 12% Increase) |
City of Ballwin will pay for Streetlights Subdivision will still pay for floodlights at entrance monument and aeration system at retention pond. |
| Common Ground Ownership and Maintenance | Paid by Subdivision | no change |
| Subdivision Organization and Indentures | Shadowoak HOA and Shadowoak Indentures | no change |
| Municipal Ordinances | St Louis County | City of Ballwin |
| Municipal Courts | St Louis County | City of Ballwin |
| Recreational Facilities | St. Louis County Parks & Ballwin City Parks | St. Louis County Parks & Ballwin City Parks Plus Residential rates for Ballwin’s Golf Course, Swimming Pools and Gym |
| Who decides Annexation? | At least 75% of all registered voters in the area being annexed must sign the petitiion. Shadowoak Subdivision (Plats 1-3) has 221 homes, Hollybrook Subdivision (Plat 2) has 44 homes. St Louis County Boundary Commission must approve and City of Ballwin must approve. |
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Message from Trustees: Please share this information as not all of our neighbors are on social media. Thanks
I am one of the administrators for the Shadowoak Subdivision Facebook group and one of the trustees for our HOA. After becoming a trustee for the Shadowoak subdivision group I felt it would be informative to join the Brightfield subdivision Facebook group as they are our neighbors and in unincorporated St. Louis County and see what issues other subdivisions deal with. With our (Shadowoak) recent activity towards annexation, I have noticed quite a bit more dialog from the Brightfield Facebook group regarding annexation. After reading a lot of their comments about annexation, there still seems to be a lot of confusion floating around taxes. They have their own plans to meet with City officials and hopefully clear up some of the confusion.
As previously stated by our (Shadowoak) HOA, it is not our intention to sway our residents for or against annexation but rather to present facts and dispel any misconceptions that may
exist. We have met with the Mayor of Ballwin, the City Manager, the City Administrator and St. Louis County Police and another neighboring subdivision (Hollybrook) and have tried our best to present the facts as we know them. It is up to each of our residents to review this information and make an informed decision they feel is in their best interest and the best interest of our community.
The subject of taxes is discussed quite a bit and seems to be commonly misunderstood. Specifically Real Estate (Property Tax), Personal Property Tax, Local Sales Tax, and Utility Taxes.
The following is an explanation for each of the taxes and the impact that annexation will have on each. It is not intended to be a list of all the pros and cons of annexation but rather an attempt to clarify how our taxes will be impacted by annexation.
- Real Estate Tax: The City of Ballwin does NOT levy a Real Estate Tax (Property Tax). St. Louis County levies the tax and a portion of the tax that is collected by St. Louis County is apportioned to each municipality in St. Louis County based on the number of homes in that municipality. Therefore, if Ballwin were to annex our subdivision (221 homes), they would receive a larger amount of the apportionment from St. Louis County. Being annexed by the City of Ballwin will NOT increase your Real Estate Taxes as this is determined by St. Louis County, not Ballwin.
- Personal Property Tax. Ballwin does NOT levy an additional personal property tax.
- Local Sales Tax. Ballwin, like many other municipalities in St. Louis County levies an additional local sales tax. If you purchase taxable goods in the City of Ballwin, you will pay 1 percentage point (1%) more on top of the State of Missouri and St. Louis County. Chances are that whatever your daily shopping habits are, you probably won’t change them and have already been paying the extra 1% when you make purchases in the City of Ballwin. One important change that will affect you at some point will be in the case of purchasing a new automobile. If our subdivision is annexed, we will have to pay the Local Sales Tax for the City of Ballwin instead of St. Louis County. That means you can add an extra percentage point (1%) to the cost of a new vehicle. For example, if you were to purchase a vehicle valued at $45,000, you will pay an extra percentage point, which equates to an additional $450. How often you purchase a new vehicle should be considered as you review the pros and cons of annexation.
- Utility Tax. When you pay your utility bills, water, natural gas and electricity, there is a St. Louis County Municipal Tax added at 5.3%. If we are annexed into Ballwin, this tax will increase from 5.3% to 7.5%. It is important to note that instead of St. Louis County, the City of Ballwin will receive the proceeds from the tax. To be clear, Ballwin does not receive the increment (7.5%-5.3%=2.2%) but the entire 7.5%. This important clarification was confirmed through discussion with Ballwin representatives. I personally looked at my utility costs for a 12-month period for water, gas and electricity and calculated the net increase at $58 per year. The impact on your taxes will depend on the size of your home and your utility usage so the amount could vary above or below the $58 figure.
As has been previously mentioned, if we are annexed, the City of Ballwin will take over payment for the streetlights. Streetlights are a major portion of our monthly bill from Ameren for electricity. For the entire year 2025, the cost of electricity for Streetlights was $16,160. If annexed, Ballwin (not Shadowoak) will pay this. Also, in 2025, the electricity cost for the 2 floodlights at our entrance monument and the air compressor that is part of the aeration system at our retention pond was $593. We would still be responsible for paying these costs.
I hope this has shed some light on the impact that annexation could have on the taxes we pay.
Chuck Kleypas
HOA Trustee – Treasurer