An annexation study by the N.C. Division of Community Services recommended the four areas.

Mayor Don Rains said some of the areas under review should have been brought into town a long time ago. “Our town has not looked at annexation for 30-something years,” he said. “There are businesses and homes adjacent to Princeton that are basically using a lot of the town’s resources but are not in town.”

The big resource is protection, Rains said. “The police cars are already patrolling, and in one area, they have to ride through,” he said. “To get to Eagle’s Crest, they have to go through Northside.” Annexation is seldom popular, Rains said. But people in some areas might prefer town water and sewer over wells or county utilities, he said.

Princeton commissioners will meet May 20 to look at the annexation study and possibly set public hearings if they decide to move forward. Sept. 15 is the earliest any annexation would take place.

The area most likely to be annexed first includes Dr. Donnie Jones Boulevard, Old Rock Quarry Road and Northside Subdivision, which is between the town limits and Eagle’s Crest Subdivision. Eagle’s Crest became a part of Princeton through satellite annexation.

Mike Rose, a Northside resident, said he’d long heard rumors the town was eyeing his neighborhood, where his family has lived for 13 years.

“I don’t think there’s anybody who wants to be annexed,” Rose said. “Whenever we’ve asked about the cost versus the benefit, I can’t see any benefit at all.”

Rose said he’s happy with his well and septic tank, and isn’t interested in paying the tap fees for town water.

Area B includes parts of Old Cornwallis Road and Edwards Road, Area C includes parts of Holt’s Pond Road, and Area D includes parts of Gurley’s Mill Road.