MEMPHIS, Tenn — South Memphis residents say the loss of businesses and basic services has turned the area into a “resource desert.”
"Those that are in charge of this city can do better than what they are doing with this area," long-time resident Diane White said. "We are simply a ghost town."
White has lived in South Memphis almost 30 years and said the neighborhood she sees now is not the place she remembers.
“It's like we've been forgotten about,” she says. “The grocery store is gone. Walgreens is gone. There are no resources.”
Empty buildings and vacant lots are spread throughout the area.
“It’s basically due to the criminal element,” said Gladys McGowan, head of the neighborhood watch. “I’ve been in stores and witnessed — first-hand — people stealing.”
The nearest grocery stores to White’s neighborhood are all roughly two miles away, creating an extra challenge for elderly residents or those without transportation.
“It's a stress on us as citizens to have to go out so far to get what we need,” White says. “It should already be here.”
Small businesses like South Memphis Farmers Market work to help bridge the gap.
“Farmers markets are seasonal,” store manager Devin Marzette said. “They’re like a temporary Band-Aid, but people need to eat all year. That’s why we placed this small store here in the middle of South Memphis.”
Still, White says they need city leadership to see their needs first-hand.
“Come out! Find out what’s going on in a particular community,” she said.
With the mayoral election Thursday, White said South Memphis residents have a chance to make their voices heard.
In the meantime, South Memphis Farmers Market grocer does deliver groceries in the area.