My main question would be whether it's one of those PvE servers where assholes have blocked off most of the good land with walls or pillar-spam.
The area down south is pretty empty on the server. I didn't find any sign of building. But a lot harder to survive. I chose the central jungle (which is most populated), and there is quite a bit more construction along the water. Most of it can be demolished. But still not much at all, its a pretty small (but active) server. So, lots of room I find to build in. Some stuff was blocked off by an abandoned tribe, but I just demolished most of it and built in their land. Then I moved further inland, and found tons of abandoned stuff. The cave I found had some stuff in it, but I was still able to block off the main entrances and build in it. Which I found easily 8 or 10 dinos in the cave that I was able to claim lol, plus the t-rex as well.
I find everywhere I've gone, for most part, has stuff I can demolish because the activity timer ran out. In the central area, its a little bit more active but still a lot of abandoned stuff.
The server isn't dead, its pretty active at peak (yesterday I believe 10 or so people were on). Which is an optimal population for me personally, since I greatly dislike large servers. I like small, tight-knit (and friendly) communities. And if anyone joins it, you are likely to find free dinos and abandoned stuff lol.
Oh, and the server doesn't wipe (which is why there is so much abandoned dinos/settlements), so its recommended to demolish most old stuff anyway, since it helps server performance. Or just ignore it and leave it. But, either way the server has been up for a while (according to one long-term player) with no wipes. Wipes are pretty annoying anyway, especially if they happen every 1-3 weeks.