West Point

West Point is a city in Troup and Harris counties in the U.S. state of Georgia. It is located approximately halfway between Montgomery, Alabama and Atlanta along Interstate 85. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 3,474, and in 2015 the estimated population was 3,728. The city's present name comes from its being near the westernmost point of the Chattahoochee River, where the river turns from its southwesterly flow from the Appalachian Mountains to due south. The large nearby reservoir, West Point Lake, was created by the Army Corps of Engineers by the building of the West Point Dam, for water storage and hydroelectric power generation. In the mid-19th century, the Atlanta & LaGrange Railroad was established and soon renamed the Atlanta and West Point Railroad, using the name of West Point. The rail line linked metropolitan Atlanta with the lower reaches of the Chattanooga River, with Columbus, and with Montgomery, Alabama, via the Montgomery & West Point railroad. West Point was the scene of the Battle of West point (April 16, 1865, seven days after Lee's surrender at Appomattox). The city is bordered to the west by the Chattahooochee river, across which are the cities of Lanett and Valley, Alabama. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.3 square miles (29.2 km²), of which 11.2 square miles. (28.9 km²) are land and 0.1 square miles, or 1.3 km², are water.

History

West Point is near the westernmost point of the Chattahoochee River, where the river turns from its southwesterly flow from the Appalachian Mountains to due south. The large nearby reservoir, West Point Lake, was created by the Army Corps of Engineers by the building of the West Point Dam, for water storage and hydroelectric power generation. The reservoir stores water which can be released during dry seasons, in order to maintain the water level of the navigable inland waterway from Columbus, Georgia, south to the Gulf of Mexico. The city endured a flood much more severe than any other in the time since the dam had been built. In the mid-19th century, the Atlanta & LaGrange Railroad was established and soon renamed the Atlanta and West Point Railroad, using the name of West Point. The rail line linked metropolitan Atlanta with the lower reaches of the Chattanooga River, with Columbus, and with Montgomery, Alabama, via the Montgomery & West Point railroad. The Montgomery-to-West Point rail line was completed in 1851, three years before the West point-to the Atlanta segment. Passenger service between Atlanta and Montgomery continued, on the "West Point Route", until approximately the beginning of the Amtrak era, or more than 100 years (circa 1855circa 1970). The city was the scene of the Battle of West point (April 16, 1865, seven days after Lee's surrender at Appomattox) during the Civil War (186165).

Geography

West Point is located primarily in the southwest corner of Troup County, with a portion extending south into the northwest corner of Harris County. The city is bordered to the west by the Chattahoochee River, across which are the cities of Lanett and Valley, Alabama. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.3 square miles (29.2 km²), of which 11.2square miles (28.9 km²) is land and 0.1square miles ("0.3 km²") is water.Interstate 85 runs northeast to southwest through the city, leading northeast 81 miles (130 km) to Atlanta and southwest 81 miles to Montgomery, Alabama, among other highways. Other highways that run through theCity include U.S. Route 29, Georgia State Route 18, and Georgia State route 103. The City of West Point was founded in 1883. It was named after West Point, Georgia, which is located in the state's southern portion. It is located on the banks of the Chadron River, which runs through the center of the city. West Point is a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia and is located near the city of LaGrange, Georgia. It has a population of 2,000, making it one of the largest cities in Georgia, along with Atlanta and Macon. It also is the largest city in Georgia outside of the state capital, Atlanta, with 3,000 residents.

Demographics

As of the 2020 U.S. census, there were 3,719 people, 1,579 households, and 970 families residing in the city. The city's population density was 764.3 inhabitants per square mile (295.1/km²) The racial makeup of the city was 40.60% White, 57.84% African American, 0.03% Native American,0.89% Asian, and 0.15% from other races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.62% of the population. There were 1,354 households, out of which 28.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.07. The median income for a household in theCity was $31,886, and the median family income was $37,797. About 16.4% of families and 19.9%. of the residents were below the poverty line, including 25.1% of those under age 18 and 13.0% ofThose age 65 or over. The per capita income for the city is $16,735. For every 100 females, there are 82.0 males. For each 100 females aged 18 and over, There are 75.9 males. There are 1,515 housing units at an average density of 342.4 per squaremile (132.2/km 2) The city has a population of 3,382.

Economy

Kia Motors opened an automobile factory in West Point in 2009. West Point now also makes component parts for manufacturers in a wide range of industries. Batson-Cook Construction was founded in West point in 1913 and continues to be headquartered in the U.S. military base. Kia Telluride, Kia Sorento, and Kia K5 are among the models produced at the West Point auto factory. The factory is located on the former site of the Westpoint Iron Works, which was founded three years after the Civil War ended in 1865. The West Point Iron Works is now part of West Point Industries, which is based in the military base and employs more than 1,000 people. The company is also home to the Kia Motors factory, which has been open since 2009 and produces models of Kia's Tellurides and Soresntos. The Kia factory also makes parts for other manufacturers, such as the Mercedes-Benz G-Class and the Audi A3, as well as the BMW i3, the Mini and the BMW X3. It is the only auto factory in the United States to produce cars for both the German and U.K. markets. It has also been producing parts for the European market since the 1990s, when it opened a factory in Germany. The German market for the car industry is one of the largest in the world, with more than 100,000 vehicles sold every year. The U.N. World Economic Forum has estimated that more than half of the world's population lives in the Middle East and North Africa.

Education

Troup County High School and Long Cane Middle School, located in LaGrange, serve the children of West Point and the surrounding area. Point University, formerly Atlanta Christian College, a private Christian university in East Point, moved their campus to West Point in 2012. The West Point High School football team won the district championship in 2010 and 2011. The football team also won the state championship in 2009 and 2010. The school's football team finished the season with a record of 31 wins and two losses. The team's last loss was in 2010, when they lost the district title to the South Point School District. The South Point team won a state title in 2011, and the district won the national championship in 2012, when the team won its first national title in the history of the United States. The U.S. Military Academy at West Point is located in West Point, Georgia, and has an enrollment of 1,500 students. It is the nation's second-largest military school, with 1,400 students in its freshman class. It also has one of the highest graduation rates in the nation, with more than 80% in its senior class. The high school football team, the West Point Trojans, won the team championship in 2011 and 2012. It was the team's first win in the state of Georgia since the opening of the school in 2008. The district has a record-breaking winning streak in the 2010-11 school year, with a total of nine wins and one loss.

2019 Kia Super Bowl advertisement

In 2019, automobile manufacturer Kia recorded a mini-documentary about West Point. Kia also ran an ad about the town during the 2019 Super Bowl, titled "Give It Everything" Kia has pledged the money that would have been spent endorsing a celebrity to pay for local students in need to attend college or a tech school. The ad received generally negative reviews from critics, claiming it is "generic" and "preachy" "It sounds like this poor young man was asked to read a script saying the car is made of, for, and by hopeless people," said Oxford Road. "For once, just once, could an auto manufacturer please stop just talking in generic platitudes and substantiate one claim?", said one critic of Kia's Super Bowl ad. "The ad sounds like it was written by a young man," said another, "who was told to say that the car was made by, and for, hopeless people". "It's like he's been given a script and told to read it," said a third, "It just sounds like a script. It doesn't make any sense. There's no point in it. It's not going to do any good". "The car is not made for hopeless people", said a fourth, "it's made for people who want to be happy and have a good life". "There's no need to be preachy or preachy. It just makes no sense." said a fifth. "It doesn't have to be so preachy and preachy to make a point.".

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in West Point, Troup County, Georgia = 84. 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 59. 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 99. 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 West Point = 3.8 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 3,719 individuals with a median age of 35.4 age the population dropped by -0.09% in West Point, Troup County, Georgia population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 318.00 residents per square mile of area (122.78/km²). There are average 2.45 people per household in the 1,376 households with an average household income of $35,810 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 12.60% of the available work force and has dropped -4.98% 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 17.44%. The number of physicians in West Point per 100,000 population = 163.6.

Weather

The annual rainfall in West Point = 51.8 inches and the annual snowfall = 0.2 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 102. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 216. 91 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 33.5 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 33, 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 West Point, Troup County, Georgia which are owned by the occupant = 51.70%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 42 years with median home cost = $95,440 and home appreciation of -4.16%. 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 $7.73 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 $4,759 per student. There are 15.2 students for each teacher in the school, 336 students for each Librarian and 413 students for each Counselor. 4.60% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 15.64% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 8.96% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).