Louisiana’s Fastest Shrinking Communities
People move in, people move out, it's just the way life is. That's why every ten years we take a census of the population of the country. The idea is to find out where people are living and where people are leaving.
NOLA.com compiled a list of Louisiana's Top 20 Fastest Shrinking Cities. The results of their research into the topic were compiled in a story that was penned by reporter Jennifer Larino. I was actually surprised to discover that only two Acadiana towns made that list.
I assumed that because of the recent downturn in the oil and gas industry that more communities in our region would have suffered more of a population loss. My assumptions were wrong.
According to Ms. Larino's story, the city in Louisiana that is shrinking the fastest is LaPlace. That community in St. John The Baptist Parish has lost 3,473 residents since 2009
Coming in at Number 3 on the list was New Iberia. That community lost 1,877 people since 2009. Oddly enough it appears as though many of those people that left didn't move very far away. That could be explained by recent growth in communities like Lafayette, Youngsville, and Broussard.
Eunice was the other Acadiana city that made the top 20 list. It was ranked as the seventh fastest shrinking city in Louisiana. The story documents a population loss of 1,046 people since 2009.
While the overall population of the state is increasing it appears that smaller and more rural communities are seeing negative population growth. The main catalyst appears to be the economy and that means jobs. People are moving where the jobs are and that's why larger cities such as Baton Rouge, New Orleans, and Lafayette have seemed to have pulled in people from surrounding smaller communities.