Ocean Springs is growing by 50%. Here’s what that means for current & new residents
A 67-page court filing on the annexation case in Ocean Springs is chock full of information as the city prepares to annex land to the north and south, including glowing reports on the city’s finances and ability to provide services to new residents and businesses.
“This is an annexation that will more than pay for itself and have a net positive financial impact on the city,” Special Chancerlor H. David Clark II wrote in his findings. “. . . Ocean Springs is in very strong financial condition and convinced the court it will be able to pay for the additional services and infrastructure promised.”
The annexation has really been in the works since 1993, when Ocean Springs, Gauiter and Jackson County agreed in writing that Mississippi 57 to the north side of Interstate 10 would be the dividing line between the two cities.
In the end, there were no objections to the annexation from the other localities or the Jackson County Utility Authority, which serves a portion of the annexed area. The city will be growing to the north and south along its eastern boundaries.
Ocean Springs annexation by the numbers
Here are some interesting facts gleaned from the judge’s filing in the case, with much of the information provided by city contractor Slaughter & Associates, urban planning consultants in Oxford:
Annexation will increase the estimated population by 6.4%, with another 1,175 people becoming Ocean Springs residents. The city’s land area will increase 50%, from 11.6 square miles to 17.4 square miles.
Ocean Springs has 2.28 sworn police officers for every 1,000 residents, compared to .80 in Jackson County. The national average is 1.82. The city plans to add three officers and patrol cars in the annexed areas.
The annexed areas include 59 existing businesses that will bring in $130,000 a year in annual sales tax. General fund revenues from annexation are expected to exceed expenses by $446,379 in the first five years after annexation.
The annexed areas almost match the Ocean Springs School District boundaries, creating communities of interest. Ocean Springs High School, just named the top high school in Mississippi, and the Ocean Springs Sports Complex will now sit within the city limits.
A traffic survey by the Ocean Springs Police Department showed that 65-92% of vehicles speed in the annexed areas, where, unlike cities, county law enforcement officers are unable to use radar.
Without annexation, Ocean Springs has the lowest percentage of undeveloped land that Slaughter & Associates has seen in Mississippi, with only 11% available and scattered in small parcels throughout the city.
The annexation includes the Sunplex Light Industrial Park, where more than 30 companies are located and Mississippi State University’s planned Northern Gulf Aquatic Food Research Center should be under construction before year’s end. The MSU facility will give Ocean Springs two university research centers. The city is already home to the University of Southern Mississippi’s Gulf Coast Research Lab.
