The Texas Supreme Court on Friday declined to reconsider an appeals court’s ruling that allowed the Denton City Council to carry on with a controversial annexation north of town.

The action clears the way for the City Council to vote on the long-delayed annexation of Craver Ranch, where a retail-residential development is planned. A vote is expected during a special-called meeting Monday morning, City Attorney Ed Snyder said.

JNC Partners Denton, the firm planning the development, opposes the annexation and had asked the Supreme Court to intervene. Attorneys for the developer could not immediately be reached for comment.

Supreme Court spokesman Osler McCarthy said JNC Partners has up to 30 days to file a motion for a rehearing.

The developer sued to stop the annexation in 2005, arguing that state law required cities to create plans three years in advance of annexations. Denton wanted to use an exception to state law that allows areas with fewer than 100 homes on 100 lots to be annexed without a three-year delay.

A Fort Worth appeals court in March 2006 upheld a lower court ruling denying the firm’s requests for an injunction and an arbitrator. JNC Partners then asked the Supreme Court to hear the case.

Last month, the court voted 5-4 to uphold Texas cities’ ability to swiftly annex lightly populated land. The ruling stemmed from a Rockwall case, but its resolution appeared to bode well for Denton.

“The cases are very similar,” Snyder said. “We were expecting this result, [especially] after we heard the Rockwall decision.”

Craver Ranch, which covers almost 2,400 acres, is the last piece of a nearly 5,800-acre annexation north of Denton and south of Ray Roberts Lake. The council annexed the rest of the land December 2005, saying they wanted more control over how it developed.

LOWELL BROWN can be reached at 940-566-6882. His e-mail address is lmbrown@dentonrc.com.