West Hattiesburg, Mississippi
Census-designated place
Location of West Hattiesburg, Mississippi
West Hattiesburg, Mississippi Location in the United States
Coordinates: 31°19′16″N 89°22′3″W / 31.32111°N 89.36750°W / 31.32111; -89.36750
Country	United States
State	Mississippi
County	Lamar
Area [1]
• Total	2.49 sq mi (6.45 km2)
• Land	2.41 sq mi (6.25 km2)
• Water	0.08 sq mi (0.20 km2)
Elevation	253 ft (77 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	6,006
• Density	2,489.02/sq mi (960.87/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
FIPS code	28-78890
GNIS feature ID	2403004[2]

West Hattiesburg is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in Lamar County, Mississippi, west of the city of Hattiesburg and east of the community of Oak Grove. It is part of the Hattiesburg metropolitan area. It had a decline in population from 6,305 at the 2000 census to 5,909 at the 2010 census.^[3]

Geography

West Hattiesburg is in northeastern Lamar County and is bordered to the north, east, and south by the city of Hattiesburg. The area of West Hattiesburg dropped from 7.2 square miles (19 km²) at the 2000 census to 2.49 square miles (6.45 km²) as of 2019, primarily due to annexation of land by the city of Hattiesburg. Of the CDP's area in 2019, 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²), or 0.31%, are water.^[4] Lairds Lake is the main water body in the community.

Demographics

Incorporation

A movement for incorporation has been attempted repeatedly over the years, but the courts have never ruled on the substance of it. The issues involve getting articles of incorporation which all would agree to, as well as who wants incorporation (who will profit, who will end up paying more in taxes).

Proponents say incorporation will benefit all residents, but the opposition says it will only benefit the persons who hold that property which is yet to be fully developed within the real estate market over the next few years. Another argument against incorporation is that the proposal and its budget outline didn't fully account for the additional expenditures and costs of running the new city. Proponents counter that the overall cost will be lower, because of a more distributed risk amongst homeowners, who would essentially bear about 80% of the additional taxes to support this city.

http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com has extensive archives about this issue, including opinion columns authored by the actual people engaged in the debate both pro and con. It is a good case study in local politics.

Origins of "West Hattiesburg"

West Hattiesburg was a rarely used term by residents, and was first popularized by out of towners who saw the area listed on Google Maps with that name, with the original source of the name from the U.S. Census Bureau. Residents of the area are gradually picking up the term.

West Hattiesburg should not be confused with Oak Grove, which is directly to the west but considered its own area. This can be complicated because public school students in West Hattiesburg are still enrolled in Oak Grove’s school system.

Roads

Two major highways pass near West Hattiesburg. Interstate 59 forms the eastern border of the community, and U.S. Highway 98 passes just north of the current CDP, through land annexed by the city of Hattiesburg. Due to recent population growth and migration the area (and Lamar County) the traffic has gotten worse on Highway 98, which has led to Highway 98 being widened from 4 to 6 lanes and recently 4 to 8 lanes (only near Interstate 59) in the area. Three major roads parallel U.S. Highway 98 (4th Street, Oak Grove Road, and Lincoln Road) have also been victim to large inflows of traffic due to the large amount of motorists trying to avoid major traffic on 98.

Education

The Lamar County School District serves West Hattiesburg via neighboring Oak Grove's school system. There have been calls, however, for the district to build West Hattiesburg its own schools due to overpopulation.

References