Opinion ID: 1918966
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Whether the Chancellor Erred in Granting the City of Ridgeland the Majority of the Area it Sought to Annex.

Text: ¶ 6. This Court has established a list of twelve non-exclusive factorsindicia of reasonablenessto guide chancellors in determining the reasonableness of a city's annexation request. In re Extension of Boundaries of City of Hattiesburg, 840 So.2d 69, 81 (Miss.2003). The twelve indicia of reasonableness are: (1) the municipality's need for expansion; (2) whether the area sought to be annexed is reasonably within a path of growth of the city; (3) the potential health hazards from sewage and waste disposal in the annexed areas; (4) the municipality's financial ability to make the improvements and furnish municipal services promised; (5) the need for zoning and overall planning in the area; (6) the need for municipal services in the area sought to be annexed; (7) whether there are natural barriers between the city and the proposed annexation area; (8) the past performance and time element involved in the city's provision of services to its present residents; (9) the impact (economic or otherwise) of the annexation upon those who live in or own property in the area proposed for annexation; (10) the impact of the annexation upon the voting strength of protected minority groups; (11) whether the property owners and other inhabitants of the areas sought to be annexed have in the past, and in the foreseeable future unless annexed will, because of their reasonable proximity to the corporate limits of the municipality, enjoy the (economic and social) benefits of proximity to the municipality without paying their fair share of taxes; and (12) any other factors that may suggest reasonableness, vel non. Id. at 82-83. This Court has held that the twelve factors `are only indicia of reasonableness, not separate and distinct tests in and of themselves.' In re Extension of the Boundaries of The City of Winona, 879 So.2d 966, 972-73 (Miss.2004) ( quoting In re Enlargement and Extension of Municipal Boundaries of City of Biloxi, 744 So.2d 270, 276 (Miss.1999)). This Court stated in Hattiesburg that fairness to all parties has always been the proper focus of our reasonableness inquiry. Thus, we hold that municipalities must demonstrate through plans and otherwise, that residents of annexed areas will receive something of value in return for their tax dollars in order to carry the burden of showing reasonableness. Hattiesburg, 840 So.2d at 82. More importantly, `[t]he chancellor must consider all [twelve] of these factors and determine whether under the totality of the circumstances the annexation is reasonable.' Id. ¶ 7. For reasons set forth below, we find that the chancellor's original opinion is correct and that the chancellor's findings in her Order and Supplemental Opinion are manifestly wrong. Therefore, Ridgeland must prevail on the proposed annexation area at issue.