Benton Harbor residents react to the city's recent ranking
BENTON HARBOR, Mich – The city of Benton Harbor has been rated as one of the worst cities to live in America, but locals say there is more to a list and their city is full of great people and rich in history.
“I think Benton Harbor’s still a great place to live, I think Benton Harbor’s still the same place that it was years ago,” Benton Harbor native and business owner Brandon Meeks said.
The list was compiled by “24/7 Wall Street” who ranked Benton Harbor the 20th worst place to live in America citing the crime rate and poverty rate among other factors.
Other Michigan cities are on the list including Detroit, Flint and Muskegon Heights.
Meeks says there are things that could and should be improved upon in Benton Harbor but this list doesn’t tell the full story of how the city fell upon hard times when factories closed, jobs vanished and many people lost hope.
“Because certain things happen doesn’t make it a bad place people need to look at the positives and the positivity of the people that work hard to make the city great,” Meeks said.
Meeks says having more business owners that are from Benton Harbor and are aware of the history and the city’s problems are the key to solving some of the difficult issues.