Opinion ID: 2495667
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 27

Heading: Past performance and time element involved in the city's provision of services to its present residents

Text: ¶ 60. Horn Lake argues that the overwhelming weight of the evidence establishes that the City of Horn Lake has an excellent overall record of past performance in the provision of promised services and improvements to its existing citizens, including residents and property owners previously annexed, and that the chancellor committed manifest error in finding otherwise. ¶ 61. With regard to past performance of Horn Lake in providing services, the chancellor found the following: In its last annexation approved by the Mississippi Supreme Court in 2002, same was approved with the understanding and projection that the municipality's current tax rate of 24.25 mils was sufficient to service the city as well as the newly acquired annexed area. However, Horn Lake has been forced to raise its taxation rate by 17.75 mils since that time. There currently exists a total of 256 homes within the existing city which remain without central sewer service. Irrespective of this, Horn Lake plans on serving 72 homes in the proposed area of annexation. As argued by counsel for Walls, these funds could be used to completely sewer the remaining part of the existing city. Indicative of the municipality's failure to deliver services to its existing city is the Rolling Green Subdivision. Since its acquisition by the January 25, 1987 annexation by Horn Lake, this area and this subdivision remain a proverbial thorn in the side of the city. Lack of sewer facilities have resulted in standing wastewater, discharge of sewage and wastewater, and other health hazards within that community. In 2004, a grant application for repair to this subdivision was finally filed. Phase 1 of the sewering of that area has now been completed, but Phase 2 has yet to begin construction, although financial arrangements apparently have been made for same. To do so after 22 years and five subsequent annexations is unacceptable. Exhibit W-4 reflects numerous problems in the existing city indicating Horn Lake's failure to enforce planning, pet ordinances, trash pickup and other services, leaving serious doubt as to its capability of doing so in the proposed area of annexation. These include the following (1) Extensive dumping of solid waste throughout the city; (2) Dilapidated housing; (3) Old overgrowth along the right of ways; (4) Failure of street construction; (5) Erosion of drainage, particularly in platted subdivisions; (6) Ponding water from improper drainage; and (7) Lack of subdivision planning exhibited by the city's failure to require interconnection between subdivisions and dead end streets without turn arounds. The internal density of the City of Horn Lake exacerbates these problems. Although the city boasts of in excess of 12 million dollars in capital improvement projects for water and sewer since the last annexation, 7 million dollars of that was for the purchase of the certificated area served by the North Mississippi Utilities Company. The city has, however, managed to spend almost 4 million dollars on street improvements within the existing city, these, however, did not occur until two years following that annexation. Finally, the Court notes that following that annexation, the city spent 7 million dollars on Latimer Parks, to better serve its citizens. The city has managed to adequately staff its fire and police to serve the existing city including the area annexed in 2002. However, as noted, the annexed area has placed them in danger of a lower fire rating unless adjustments are made and there is no evidence that those adjustments are being made at this time. Considering all of the aforesaid in the totality of the circumstances, the Court cannot say with any degree of certainty that Horn Lake's past record of performance in providing services for its citizens encourages or favors annexation. ¶ 62. The trial court's findings were supported by substantial, credible evidence, were well within his discretion, and were not manifestly wrong.