A small town in Arkansas is struggling with severe population decline and economic turmoil. The town is so deserted that homes are listed for as little as $400.
Pine Bluff, a bleak metropolis whose population fell from 49,000 to 41,250 between 2010 and 2020, made headlines this month after it was slammed in a report. YouTube Documentary of Abandoned Atlas.
In the film, filmmaker Michael Schwartz says he was “shocked” to witness the city’s decline, saying, “It seems like every time I turn a corner, there’s another abandoned house or building left behind.”
Although there are a number of houses for sale for just a few hundred euros, they are empty. The lack of buying opportunities and a variety of social problems, including a high murder rate, have kept people away.
Anyone who buys one of the “bargains” will have to spend thousands of euros more to make one of the abandoned houses habitable again.
This abandoned house in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, is for sale for just over $400. The town has many similar “bargains”—though it too suffers from numerous social problems.
After the documentary was viewed millions of times in its first few weeks, Pine Bluff Mayor Shirley Washington said responded that her office is introducing a number of initiatives to address the vacancy problem. She admitted that her hometown is facing ‘serious problems’.
Washington said the revelation about Pine Bluff’s problems is “a call to action,” but the root cause of the decline is decades old.
After World War II, Pine Bluff was among the most prosperous regions in the Midwest and Deep South, as an abundance of farmland coincided with the rise of railroads.
At one point, agriculture in Pine Bluff grew into a $58 million industry, which in turn led to a population explosion.
Another rundown Pine Bluff home for sale that costs just $555. Anyone who moves here may have a hard time finding a job and will also have to deal with the city’s high murder rate
A once beautiful home in Pine Bluff now sells for less than a thousand dollars, although the new owner will have to spend many thousands of dollars more to make it habitable
The Arkansas city of Pine Bluff was once a boomtown, but the decline of agriculture and manufacturing has turned it into a ghost town
Abandoned homes now dot the city as residents flee the struggling economy, making Pine Bluff officially “America’s fastest shrinking city”
Schwartz notes that the arrival of two paper mills caused the population to rise to over 57,000 in the 1970s, over 25,000 more people than live there now.
However, the problems began with the mechanization of the agricultural sector, which undermined the economic foundation on which Pine Bluff was built, and with the subsequent outsourcing of manufacturing operations.
“The economy kept changing, kids kept leaving,” state Rep. Vivian Flowers, who represents the area, told the New York Times for 2021.
“And so your tax base shrinks, and your ability to do infrastructure and beautify the city — all of that suffered.”
When the 2020 U.S. Census was announced, Pine Bluff had seen a 12.5 percent population decline since the previous census in 2010, earning the city the unenviable title of fastest-shrinking city in America.
During Pine Bluff’s heyday in the 1970s, it had over 25,000 more residents than it does today
The problems were caused by the loss of agricultural and industrial jobs, which in turn led to a spike in crime and drugs. Pictured is a closed cotton mill in downtown Pine Bluff.
The problems that led to its decline also affected the Pine Bluff neighborhood it now occupies: once-bustling streets are deserted and large, dilapidated homes stand neglected.
Pine Bluff is also known as a crime hotspot, with one of the highest murder rates in the country: 56.5 per 100,000 residents, nearly ten times the national average of 6.5.
In 2015, the town made headlines after 18 people were murdered, placing Pine Bluff on the list of most dangerous metropolitan areas in America, after Detroit.
“18 murders is just an outrageous number for a city of this size,” said Police Chief Jeff Hubank The Independent at that time.
“The reality is, the little old white lady with the pussy on her lap is perfectly safe in this city. But if you’re smuggling drugs on the east side, you’re going to pay for it with your life.”
After Schwartz revealed the dire state of the area in his documentary, Mayor Washington acknowledged the situation but stressed that Pine Bluff can recover.
“The documentary draws attention to a serious problem, but is also a call to action for our community to work together to address these challenges,” she said in a statement.
“We are committed to revitalizing our neighborhoods and ensuring that Pine Bluff remains a safe and thriving place to live.”
Pine Bluff also has a reputation as a crime hotspot, with one of the highest murder rates in the country: 56.5 murders per 100,000 people, well above the national average of 6.5.
Pine Bluff Mayor Shirley Washington admitted the city has “serious problems” and described the 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 series of initiatives, including the Pine Bluff Green Sweep program to “educate the community on code standards to prevent future violations and expose deterioration.”
The city has also released money to demolish unsafe buildings, while finding “innovative solutions” for other buildings that remain standing.
“The documentary has sparked a much-needed conversation about the state of housing in Pine Bluff. We encourage residents, business owners and community leaders to join this dialogue and contribute ideas that can lead to sustainable solutions,” Washington said.
“Pine Bluff is a city of rich 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 of its residents.”