A referendum on annexation could move forward as soon as next week.

The Mobile City Council had just concluded holding community meetings when they decided, in a surprise move, to add four annexation resolutions to the agenda Tuesday. The move will allow annexation to be considered by the council at its next meeting, as all items before the city council must be introduced for at least one week before they are voted on.

“This opportunity, for the growth of this city financially, for the possibility of growth both with population, for the ability to expand westward without being blocked, for other opportunities that may arise in the future for additional space, this is a very well-thought-out opportunity,” Councilmember William Carroll said during the meeting. “It gives this whole city a very essential look at the future.”

The city council will consider four resolutions, one for each area of the city to be annexed. If the council passes all four, then each area will have a referendum on whether or not residents want to come into the city of Mobile.

Each area votes independently of the others, so one area may choose to come in and another may not. The areas combine to form Annexation Study Area A, which would bring in nearly 26,000 new residents to the city, if all of the areas pass their referendum, James Barber, chief of staff to Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson, said.