Decatur has been said to have a funky smell, which comes from the crops grown on farms and processed in its many agribusiness industries. This put Decatur on the map, so in a way, the city is lucky to have what you call funky smells, or is it? Those reeking smells didn’t stop residents from leaving! Who wants to live in a smelly town?
Imagine every time you have guests over you have to apologize for the smell and explain how it’s not you, it’s the crops down yonder. They won’t say anything, but they’ll be thinking, “Sure it is…” with an unconvincing smile.
Saginaw, Michigan
Saginaw may be a funny name for a city, but their population decline is no laughing matter! With a reported 4.5% fall in population over the last ten years, it's one of Michigan's largest declines. As we all know, crime can considerably diminish the quality of life in any city.
It goes without saying that crime goes hand in hand with poverty, so the best way to reduce crime is to provide more employment opportunities, with decent wages.
Elmira, New York
The vast majority of the people in Upstate NY live in smaller cities, take Elmira as an example, where even a small decline is profoundly felt. After losing a net of 4,644 residents, Elmira's population is 5% smaller now than in 2010.
There are the everyday burdens we all face, and then there are those burdens those in Elmira and to deal with. Since 2018, there were 2,424 fewer jobs in Elmira and the area's unemployment rate of 4.5% is well above the 3.9% national unemployment rate.
Weirton, West Virginia
Welcome to the land where the hillbilly was born and is still going strong. No wonder people are leaving Weirton; there is little opportunity for career growth, extremely conservative beliefs, little diversity, poor healthcare, and horrible school systems all make this terribly small town a nightmare to raise a family in.
On top of all that, Weirton has an aging population, with more than one in every five Weirton residents 65 or older. With nothing to do except go to Wal-Mart if you want anything to do after nine pm, we'd also want to scoot on out if we lived here.
Danville, Illinois
Danville is in the heart of the rust belt, and its population has been steadily declining for years. The area is full of people who simply can't afford to live anywhere else. With that being said, you can buy a house there for less than the price of a new car... But then, you'd have to live there.
More than 5,000 more people moved out of Danville alone, contributing to a 5.9% overall population decline. It seems that Danville's loss is a microcosm of a more widespread problem across Illinois, over half a million people left Illinois since 2010!