Ocean Springs

Ocean Springs is a city in Jackson County, Mississippi, United States, approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) east of Biloxi and west of Gautier. It is part of the Pascagoula, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the city of Ocean Springs had a population of 17,442. The town was voted as a top 10 Happiest Seaside Town by Coastal Living in 2015. It was the home town of the late Walter Inglis Anderson, a nationally renowned painter and muralist who died in 1965 from lung cancer. The name Ocean Springs was coined by Dr. William Glover Austin in 1854. It became a prosperous resort town and after several years reinvented itself as a historically-oriented residential community. The city is classified as having a subtropical water water climate. This has a hot, humid, monsoon season, beginning in early spring and ending in late afternoon and evening with frequent torrential downpours. The settlement of Fort Maurepas, in colonial French Louisiana (New France), began in April 1699 at present-day Ocean Springs, under the authority of King Louis XIV, as FortMaurepas by Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville. The site was established as a foothold to prevent Spanish encroachment on France's colonial claims. In the late nineteenth century, the development of ice plant industries along the coast increased seafood sales. Locals can still purchase freshly harvested shrimp, fish, crabs, and oysters to this day because of this thriving industry.

History

Fort Maurepas was the first permanent French outpost in French Louisiana. The name Ocean Springs was coined by Dr. William Glover Austin in 1854. The Biloxi Bay Bridge was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005. A new six-lane bridge replaced the aging War Memorial Bridge which opened in 1930. The new bridge is 95' in height at its main span, and supports six lanes of traffic. Two lanes of the six- lane bridge opened November 1, 2007. The history of the town is celebrated annually in re enactments depicting Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville's landing near a replica of FortMaurepas. The abundance of seafood allowed French and French-Canadian explorers and settlers to thrive within the Fort Maurespas area. Locals and tourists can still purchase freshly harvested shrimp, fish, crabs, and oysters to this day because of this thriving industry. The majority of the bridge's remains have been removed via cranes based on barges located next to the bridge debris. The bridge ruins, capturing the breathtaking results of the force of Hurricane Katrina, had become a popular spot of photographers both professional and amateur. The landing points for each side of U.S. Route 90 correspond with the previous bridge. The previous bridge was completed in 1962, and damaged in 1969 by Hurricane Camille. It was a widely broadcast visual testament to the hurricane's impact. As of 2007, the main body of theBridge was moved outside of thePrevious bridge's debris area.

Geography and climate

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 15.2 square miles (39 km²) The city is classified as having a subtropical climate. This has a hot, humid monsoon season, beginning in late spring and ending in early autumn, with frequent afternoon and evening thunderstorms with torrential downpours. The area is also prone to tropical weather such as tropical depressions, tropical storms, and hurricanes. Autumns and springs are usually cool to warm. Winters typically are warm with cool spells. Cool spells are accompanied with strong, Northerly dry winds which are unexpectedly chilly but do not typically last more than just a couple of days. High temperatures are consistently hot and humid both day and night with high temperatures usually in the low nineties and low temperatures oftentimes just barely below 80 degrees. The city has an area of 11.6 square miles of land and 3.6square miles of water, of which 23.57% is water. It is located in the Pacific Ocean and has an elevation of 603 meters (1,856 feet) above sea level. It has a population of 2,827, according to the Census Bureau. It was the site of the World War II Battle of the Bulge, which took place in World War I and is the only city in the United States to have suffered a direct hit from the Great Depression. It also suffered from the Second World War, which ended in 1945.

Demographics

As of the 2010 census, there were 17,442 people, 6,393 households, and 4,717 families residing within the city. The median income for a household in Ocean Springs was $59,516, and the per capita income was $33,107. In the city, the population was spread out, with 5.6% under the age of 5, 6.7% from 10 to 14, and 11.1% from 60 to 69. The ethnic makeup of the city was 85.4% White, 7.4%, African American, 0.40% Native American, 3.1%. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.2% of the population. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.01, according to the 2010 U.S. census. The city has a population of 18,429, with 7,814 housing units at an average density of 678.3 per square mile, and a median age of 42.1 years. The population of Ocean Springs is expected to grow to 18,500 by the 2020 census, with 6,639 households and 6,423 families living in the city in that year's U.N. population estimate. The current population is 17,400, with a population density of 1,513.5 people per square square mile. It has a median income of $59.516 and a per capita population of $33.107. About 9.7%. of the town's population was below the poverty line.

Education

Ocean Springs is served by the Ocean Springs School District. The 3-D School, Gulf Coast Campus- A special-purpose school for children with dyslexia. The Ocean Springs High School is the only high school in the district. The district also has a middle school, high school, and an alternative school. It is located on the Gulf Coast, near the mouth of the Mississippi River. The town has a population of about 2,000 people. The school district has a total enrollment of about 3,000 students. It also has an elementary, middle, and high school. The high school has a enrollment of around 1,500 students. The middle school has about 1,200 students, and the high schools have about 1.5,000. The elementary school has around 100 students. There are no middle schools or high schools in the school district. It has a number of alternative schools, including the H.E. Keys Alternative School, which is a special- Purpose School for Children with Dyslexia (3-D). The middle and high schools also have a variety of other schools, such as Ocean Springs Middle School, Ocean Springs Upper Elementary, and Ocean Springs Elementary School. The Middle School has about 100 students and the High School has around 200. The Elementary School has more than 100 students, with the Middle School having around 100. The High School had about 1 students. The School District has about 300 students in the middle school and about 200 in the upper school. There is no middle school or high school at this time.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Ocean Springs, Jackson County, Mississippi = 58.6. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 50. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 10. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Ocean Springs = 5.8 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 18,429 individuals with a median age of 40.8 age the population grows by 3.15% in Ocean Springs, Jackson County, Mississippi population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 1,595.58 residents per square mile of area (616.04/km²). There are average 2.52 people per household in the 6,968 households with an average household income of $50,562 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 8.70% of the available work force and has dropped -6.75% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 17.80%. The number of physicians in Ocean Springs per 100,000 population = 189.2.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Ocean Springs = 61.6 inches and the annual snowfall = 0 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 84. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 216. 90 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 43.5 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 29, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Ocean Springs, Jackson County, Mississippi which are owned by the occupant = 66.86%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 32 years with median home cost = $132,860 and home appreciation of 0.09%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $8.37 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $4,364 per student. There are 16.1 students for each teacher in the school, 393 students for each Librarian and 517 students for each Counselor. 10.04% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 19.34% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 11.80% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).