County’s Population Estimated Below 7,400

RISON - Cleveland County's population continues to slowly decline according to the latest projections released by the University of Arkansas at Little Rock's Arkansas Economic Development Institute (AEDI).According to the AEDI data released last month, Cleveland County's population declined by 0.3 percent (19 residents) between July 1, 2023, and July 1, 2024. In the previous report that covered July 2022 to July 2023, the county had seen a 1.2 percent decrease (89 residents) in population.The AEDI data is based on projections from the U.S. Census Bureau's Vintage estimates, which uses administrative data, geographic boundaries, and methodology to reflect population and demographic changes.Overall, based on AEDI's projections, Cleveland County's population has declined from 7,550 residents as of the 2020 U.S. Census to an estimated 7,367 residents as of July 1, 2024. That equates to a population loss 183 residents (2.4 percent) since the last census was conducted.Both municipalities within the county, Rison and Kingsland, lost population as well.Rison's estimated population as of 2023 was 939, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In comparison, Rison had a population of 967 according to the 2020 Census. That figure was down by 28.1 percent from the 2010 census figure of 1,344.Kingsland's estimated population for 2023 was 336, according to the Census Bureau. The 2020 Census had Kingsland's population at 404, which means the city has lost an estimated 68 residents (16.8 percent) over that four-year span.Based on Census Bureau data, Cleveland County began losing population starting in 2008. The population estimate peaked in 2007 at 8,896 residents. By 2008, that number had fallen by more than 100 to 8,775. It continued a slow descent from there before eventually falling below 8,000 (7,991) in 2018.Cleveland County is not unique, however, when it comes to population loss. A map put together by the AEDI depicting ...