Neighboring Auburn lost 5 percent. Communities heavily dependent on Maine's declining paper and logging industry took it on the chin. In Piscataquis County, where more people died than were born in the 1990s, the population declined nearly 8 percent. The northern Penobscot County communities built by the once mighty Great Northern Paper Co. saw some of the largest losses in the state. Since 1990, Millinocket lost 25 percent of its population, East Millinocket 16 percent and Medway 23 percent, as the paper company scaled back its production and sold off much of its land.
Sprawl involves the movement of populations from city centers to outlying areas.
Despite Maine's lackluster growth, sprawl is becoming an issue. All three of the state's major cities, including popular Portland, lost population in the last decade, while nearby suburbs boomed. For example, the Bangor suburbs of Glenburn and Hermon grew 24 percent and 18 percent, respectively, while Bangor itself lost 5 percent of its population, or more than 1,700 people. Similarly, in southern Maine, the Portland suburb of Falmouth is one of the fastest growing communities in the state, with a 35 percent increase in population. In addition, Cumberland and Gorham gained 23 percent and 19 percent, respectively, while Maine's largest city lost 109 people, or just 0.2 percent of its population.