A sheriff in Branson, Missouri has warned social media users to stay away from an abandoned development or risk a ticket for trespassing following a viral video on TikTok.
Social media user Carrie Jernigan, who is also an attorney, posted a video on TikTok on March 27 showing what she described as "abandoned mansions" in what was originally meant to be a $1.6 billion resort community.
The video had been viewed 15.3 million times at the time of writing. The video's popularity led the Stone County Sheriff's Office to post a warning on its Facebook page on Monday.
"A recent Tik-Tok video went viral about the Indian Ridge development that went bankrupt. This has caused this location off of 76 Highway to become a tourist attraction," the sheriff's office wrote, according to KTVI.
"THIS IS PRIVATE PROPERTY AND YOU CAN BE CITED FOR TRESPASSING!
"Our Deputies are very busy handling calls for service and really do not want to write people tickets for trespassing. Please do not enter the property," the post went on.
"Please do not trespass on the property. It has been a constant flow of people walking down in the development all weekend. Please go visit our many other tourist attractions in Stone County including Table Rock lake! Thank you!"
The post was signed by Sheriff Doug Rader, according to KTVI's report, but it could not be found at the link provided when Newsweek tried to access it on Tuesday morning. However, a screenshot of the post can be viewed at KTTS.
The Indian Ridge development near Branson was started in 2006 and the plans included a water park, shopping areas, a 390-room hotel resort, a golf course, a marina and a museum of Native American history, according to KY3.
The project would also have included townhouses or condominiums but the 2008 banking crisis put an end to the development and saw the site abandoned. Three people were later convicted in a real estate fraud scheme relating to townhouses that would have been part of the Indian Ridge development.
The abandoned project, which has been described as a "ghost town", has recently won renewed attention thanks to Jernigan's TikTok video. Though long considered a eyesore by local residents, a new developer purchases the properties in 2018 and there are plans to develop the area.
"Ideally, we'd like to see some hotel sites. We've had some discussion with some people that have wanted some senior living, assisted living," said Dennis Dougherty, partner with M D & D Investors LLC., in 2018.
"We've talked to some people about a medical complex. There's some entertainment people that would like.. you know with Silver Dollar City here, it's a natural fit," he told Ozarks First.
Newsweek has asked the Stone County Sheriff's Office for comment on this article.
