Census designation revision may affect Prescott

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Last week, Prescott was one of about 50 Arkansas cities and towns that had their designations changed from “urban” to “rural” areas as a result of a criteria revision by the U.S. Census Bureau for the 2020 census.

Previously, an urbanized area needed to have at least 50,000 residents. An urban cluster was defined as having at least 2,500 people, a threshold that had been around since 1910.

The 2020 revision sets the minimum population required for an area to be considered urban doubled to 5,000 people or a minimum housing unit threshold of 2,000.

The change could matter as rural and urban areas often qualify for different types of federal funding for transportation, housing, health care, education and agriculture. The federal government doesn’t have a standard definition of urban or rural, but the Census Bureau’s definition often provides a baseline.

Lanny Richmond, senior legal council for the Arkansas Municipal League told the Arkansas Democrat Gazette, “I would say we’re optimistic that the rural change will end up being pretty neutral for the cities impacted. What we think will end up happening is those cities that are no longer urban will certainly lose certain federal funding or grant opportunities. But there’s new opportunities for rural areas.”

The 2020 Census shows Prescott with a population of 3,101.