Opinion ID: 1767459
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: whether the proposed annexation area is reasonably within path of growth of the city

Text: With regard to the path of growth, the chancellor stated that the city's path of growth seemed to be to the south into the previously undeveloped Forrest County land lying adjacent to the city. He indicated that the Forrest County area was readily accessible by Highways 49 and 11 and Interstate 59, whereas the proposed annexation area in Lamar County had limited accessibility. The chancellor also found that the Lamar County area adjacent to the city's western boundary may have been a path of growth at one time but now it was not because the area was now highly developed with numerous subdivisions and some commercial development. Hattiesburg asserts that the area it seeks to annex in Lamar County is in the path of growth of the city. Experts for the city testified that the historical and potential path of growth for Hattiesburg is to the north, south, and west. Future expansion to the east is constrained by the municipal boundary of Petal. Continental Consultants stated that some of the most spectacular growth had occurred to the west, north, and south of Highway 98 in such areas as Lamar Park, Westover West, and West Lake Manor. In a reference to the Tatum Development, Continental also stated that development was also occurring to the south of the city and that such development may increase rapidly. Witnesses for Oak Grove and the Lamar County Board of Supervisors countered that the Lamar County area was no longer reasonably within Hattiesburg's path of growth. Vernon Kelley testified that the area of Lamar County immediately adjacent to the western boundary may have been reasonably within Hattiesburg's path of growth at one time, but not anymore. Testimony indicated that the area west of the city in Lamar County began developing in the 1960's and since then has experienced substantial growth. Kelly testified, however, that Lamar County was not experiencing much growth at present. Growth, emphasized Kelley, follows the major transportation corridors. Kelley stated that growth in the Lamar County area west of the city along Highway 98 had come to a halt because the three accesses to the area, Highway 98, Richburg Road, and Fourth Street, had become very congested. The area just south of the city in Forrest County, Kelly concluded, was ripe for development because of the new thoroughfare just built which ties Richburg Road into Highways 11 and 49. The area in Lamar County that Hattiesburg seeks to annex is in the path of growth of the city. Yet, as the chancellor recognized, a city technically can grow in any direction as long as there are no formidable barriers in the way such as the boundary of another city. The chancellor, in considering whether or not the Lamar County area was reasonably in the city's path of growth, however, looked at all possible directions in which the city could grow and tried to determine which area would experience growth. The court decided that the area near the southern boundary of the city in Forrest County would be a reasonable path of growth for the city. The testimony about the Tatum Development to the south of the city and the testimony about the limited accessibility of the Lamar County area support the chancellor's decision. This Court cannot say that the chancellor's decision concerning the city's path of growth was manifestly in error. Bassett, 542 So.2d at 921, citing McElhaney, 501 So.2d at 403; Extension of Boundaries of City of Biloxi, 361 So.2d at 1376.