DYER | The Town Council upped the ante Wednesday night by adding an additional 600-plus acres to its annexation proposal.

The new acreage is south of Ind. 231, adjacent to property in Dyer's original proposal. It is mostly undeveloped, Town Manager Joe Neeb said at the special meeting. The annexation proposal now stands at roughly 4,000 acres. It would nearly double the size of the town and add 4,283 new residents, Neeb said.

The council also approved a fiscal plan for the annexation at the meeting. The first informal public meeting on the issue is set for 6 p.m., May 21, prior to the regular Town Council meeting.

Town officials believe the annexation would pay for itself due to additional income from fees and property taxes. It would cost Dyer $2,149,345 annually to provide services to that area, Neeb said. But the town would collect $2,605,967 in taxes, utility fees and other miscellaneous revenue.

The council adopted a first reading of the original annexation proposal on April 16. Officials from nearby St. John attended that meeting and subsequently promised a very public fight.

The town will hold three informal public meetings on annexation within the next four months. It will hold a public hearing sometime in November and vote on whether to adopt the ordinance the following month.

Rich Solga, one of three residents in attendance, wondered how the town could afford to extend water and sewer service to that area.

Neeb assured him that they could, and that capital improvements would result in revenue for the town.

"You could (annex) all the way to Lowell, (but only) as long as the money is there," Solga said.