A small Arkansas city suffering from severe population decline and economic turmoil has become so abandoned that properties are on offer for as little as $400.
Pine Bluff, a bleak metro that saw its population drop from 49,000 to 41,250 residents from 2010 to 2020, made headlines this month after being panned in a YouTube documentary from Abandoned Atlas.
In the movie, filmmaker Michael Schwartz said witnessing the city’s decay ‘shocked’ him, saying: ‘It seems like every time I turn a corner, there is another abandoned home or building left behind.’
While a number of homes are on the market for just hundreds, they lay empty as the lack of opportunities and myriad issues – also including a high homicide rate – have driven people away.
After the documentary racked up millions of views in its first few weeks, Pine Bluff Mayor Shirley Washington responded that her office is introducing a number of initiatives to tackle the abandoned homes – as she admitted her hometown is beset by ‘serious problems.’
The city of Pine Bluff, Arkansas was once a thriving city, but the decline of its farming and manufacturing industries has turned it into a ghost town
Abandoned homes are now scattered across the city as residents fled its struggling economy, with Pine Bluff now officially ‘America’s fastest shrinking city’
Washington said the exposure of Pine Bluff’s problems ‘serves as a call to action’ – however the cause of its decline dates back decades.
Following the Second World War, Pine Bluff was among the most prosperous regions in the Midwest and Deep South, when its abundance of farmland met the growth of railways.
At one stage, farming in Pine Bluff grew to a $58 million industry, which in turn led to a population boom.
Schwartz notes that the arrival of two paper mills further drove the population to over 57,000 in the 1970s – over 25,000 more people than live there today.
But its struggles began with the mechanization of the agriculture industry, which severed the economic foundations Pine Bluff was built upon, and the subsequent outsourcing of manufacturing work.
‘The economy continued to change, kids continued to leave,’ State Representative Vivian Flowers, who represents the area, told the New York Times in 2021.
‘And so then your tax base shrinks, and your ability to deal with infrastructure and beautify the city — all of that suffered.’
When the 2020 US census was announced, Pine Bluff’s 12.5 percent population decline since the previous census in 2010 earned it the unenviable title of America’s fastest shrinking city.
In Pine Bluff’s heyday in the 1970s, over 25,000 more people lived there than today
The issues were triggered by the loss of farming and manufacturing jobs, which in turn led to a spike in crime and drugs. Pictured is a closed down cotton oil mill in downtown Pine Bluff
Schwartz’s documentary singled out a number of abandoned homes now worth just hundreds
The issues that led to the decline snowballed into where Pine Bluff is today, as lines of once-busy streets sit empty and large, squalid homes are left to rot.
Pine Bluff also owns a reputation as a crime hotspot, with one of the highest murder rates in the nation at 56.5 murders for every 100,000 people – well above the national average of 6.5.
In 2015, the small town captured headlines after 18 people were murdered, putting Pine Bluff only behind Detroit in the rankings of the most dangerous metros in America.
‘To have 18 homicides is just an outrageous number for a town this size,’ Police Chief Jeff Hubank told The Independent at the time.
‘The reality is, the little old white lady with the kitten on her lap is perfectly safe in this town. But if you are slinging dope on the east side, you are looking to pay with your life.’
Following Schwartz’s documentary revealing the dire state of the area, Mayor Washington acknowledged the situation but insisted that Pine Bluff can rebound.
‘While the documentary brings attention to a serious problem, it also serves as a call to action for our community to come together to tackle these challenges,’ she said in a statement.
‘We are dedicated to revitalizing our neighborhoods and ensuring that Pine Bluff remains a safe and thriving place to live.’
Pine Bluff also owns a reputation as a crime hotspot, with one of the highest murder rates in the nation at 56.5 murders for every 100,000 people – well above the national average of 6.5
Pine Bluff Mayor Shirley Washington admitted the city has ‘serious problems’ as she described a new focus on the area’s issues as a ‘call to action’
To address the large number of abandoned properties scattered across the city, Washington announced a slate of initiatives, including the Pine Bluff Green Sweep program to ‘educate the community on code standards to prevent future violations and highlight any blight.’
The city has also allocated funds to demolish unsafe properties, while also finding ‘innovative solutions’ to others that will remain standing.
‘The documentary has sparked a necessary conversation about the state of housing in Pine Bluff. We encourage residents, business owners, and community leaders to engage in this dialogue and contribute ideas that can lead to sustainable solutions,’ Washington said.
‘Pine Bluff is a city rich in history and culture, located in the heart of Arkansas. With a commitment to economic growth and community development, Pine Bluff is working to create a vibrant future for all its residents.’
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Publish date : 2024-08-28 04:07:00
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