Westland, Michigan

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Westland, Michigan
settlement_type = City
nickname = "An all American City".


imagesize =
image_caption =
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mapsize = 250x200px
map_caption = Location of Westland within Michigan|.


mapsize1 =
map_caption1 =
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_name1 = Michigan
subdivision_name2 = Wayne
government_type =
leader_title = Mayor
leader_name = William R. Wild
established_date =
area_magnitude =
area_total_km2 = 53.0
area_land_km2 = 53.0
area_water_km2 = 0.0
population_as_of = 2006
population_note =
population_total = 84,504
population_metro = 4,488,335 (Detroit metro)
population_density_km2 = 1635.1
timezone = EST
utc_offset = -5
timezone_DST = EDT
utc_offset_DST = -4
elevation_ft = 666
latd = 42 |latm = 19 |lats = 27 |latNS = N
longd = 83 |longm = 24 |longs = 1 |longEW = W
area_total_sq_mi = 20.5
area_land_sq_mi = 20.4
area_water_sq_mi = 0.0
elevation_m = 199
website = http://ci.westland.mi.us
postal_code_type = ZIP codes
postal_code = 48185-48186
area_code = 734
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 26-86000GR|2
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 1616212GR|3
footnotes =

Westland is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located about convert|16|mi|km|0 west of downtown Detroit. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 86,602. Westland is home to a very diverse community. Housing ranges from the small low-income area known as Norwayne (also locally referred to as "Shacktown") all the way to homes worth more than $300,000. Norwayne was built immediately after World War II to provide housing for the returning soldiers who worked in the factories nearby. Norwayne now houses a large number of low income families. Not only is this portion of the city doing better as of late, the entire City has been holding its own during the recession being felt in Michigan. Many diverse neighborhoods (both in culture and price range) exist in this community. Houses range from $90,000 to $120,000 in some areas, all the way to $280,000 to $380,000 in other sections. Houses in the Norwayne section can sell for as little as $30,000, but are often not up to local building code requirements. Westland also enjoys one of the largest enclosed malls in western Wayne county and a fine selection of restaurants.

Politics

The current mayor of Westland is William (Bill) Wild. During his first term as President of the Westland City Council, Mr. Wild was appointed as mayor after Mayor Sandra A. Cicirelli was elected as judge of the 18th District Court in November 2006. Mr. Wild took office in January 2007.

The legislative body of Westland is the City Council, which contains seven members, elected at large. The current President of the City Council is Charles Pickering.

In addition to Mr. Pickering, James Godbout and Robert Stottlemeyer are the ranking council members with the most seniority (7 years) followed by the 6 years of service by Ms. Cheryl Graunstadt and Mr Michael Kehrer.

Dewey Reeves and Bill Johnson were newly appointed in January 2007 to fill vacancies in the City Council.

History

Early history

During the 1700s, the area was inhabited by the people of a Pottawatomi Indian village. Other tribes, particularly three Algonquian tribes, used the area as hunting territory. A flour mill, which was restored by Henry Ford in 1918, was built in this same area. Once restored, the mill was used to make stencils for Ford car parts. Named Nankin Mills, this historic site is now used as a nature interpretive center and hosts community events.

Before becoming "Westland," the area had several other names. Though white settlers did not begin to settle the area until about 1824, they began to arrive at the beginning of the 19th century.

Bucklin Township was first organized in 1827 and included what is now the cities of Westland, Livonia, Garden City, Inkster, Wayne, Dearborn, Dearborn Heights and Redford Township.

By an act of the Michigan Territorial Legislature, October 20, 1829, Bucklin was divided into Lima and Richland Townships. However, due to a naming conflict under postal regulations at that time, Lima was renamed as Nankin Township, after the Chinese city Nanking, and Richland as Pekin Township, named after Peking, though Pekin became Redford Township in 1833.

In 1835, Livonia Township was split off from Nankin. Wayne incorporated as a village in 1869 and as a city in 1960. Garden City incorporated as a village in 1927 and as a city in 1933. Inkster incorporated as a village in 1926 and as a city in 1964.

Later History

By 1960, Nankin's population had increased to 70,000, giving the area the distinction of being the world's largest township. During the early 1960s, the city of Livonia wanted to annex the part of Nankin in which a large shopping mall, Westland Shopping Center, was to be built. The shopping center eventually opened in 1965, joining Northland and Eastland malls in other Detroit Metro cities. In reaction to Livonia's annexation attempts, the people of Nankin voted to change the remainder of the township as a city on May 16, 1966 to the city of Westland. At that time, it was the fourth largest city in Wayne County.

chool District

Westland and the city of Wayne formed the [http://wwcsd.net Wayne-Westland Community School District] . There are four high schools, [http://glenn.wwcsd.net/] John Glenn, Tinkham Center, and William D. Ford Career Tech Center and [http://wayne.wwcsd.net/ Wayne Memorial in Wayne. Nearly all students that live in the City of Wayne go to Wayne Memorial, along with some residents of the cities of Belleville, Inkster, Romulus and southern Westland. Students in Central Westland, and portions of Northern Westland attend John Glenn High school. The northernmost portions of Westland are in the Livonia School District. The current (as of 2007) Superintendent of the Wayne-Westland Community School District is Gregory J. Baracy, Ed. D.The teachers of the Wayne-Westland school district have been on strike since Monday October 6, and since then classes K-12 have been canceled. The main reasons for the strike are class sizes and healthcare. As of Friday, October 10, teachers will be forced to return to work.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 20.5 square miles (53.0 km²), of which, 20.5 square miles (53.0 km²) of it is land and 0.0 square miles (0.0 km²) of it is water. The total area is 0.05% water.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 86,602 people, 36,533 households, and 22,248 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,234.9 per square mile (1,635.1/km²). There were 38,077 housing units at an average density of 1,862.0/sq mi (718.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 87.21% White, 6.77% African American, 0.46% Native American, 2.81% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.67% from other races, and 2.04% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.47% of the population.

There were 36,533 households out of which 28.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.4% were married couples living together, 12.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.1% were non-families. 32.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.3% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 33.9% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 13.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 92.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $46,308, and the median income for a family was $55,323. Males had a median income of $45,111 versus $30,143 for females. The per capita income for the city was $22,615. About 4.7% of families and 6.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.6% of those under age 18 and 6.9% of those age 65 or over.

In the late 90s Westland and the surrounding cities started experiencing a large growth in the Albanian Community. As of|2008 there is an estimation of 5,000-10,000 Albanians living there. Many of which are from Albania the mainland but also parts of Kosovo and Macedonia.

City Services

Westland has a full time Police and * [http://www.westlandfirefighters.com Fire Department] . The Police Department is made up of several divisions including a detective and patrol division as well as a TRU (SWAT) Team. The Fire Department offers advanced EMS, fire protection/ prevention, and several specialized rescue teams.

Trivia

* The city motto is "The Place To Be."
* A former Livonia Public Elementary School, Nankin Mills is located near the historic mill in Westland.

Notable people

* Tony Boles: former Michigan Wolverines and Dallas Cowboys running back; born in Thomasville, Georgia but grew up in Westland
* Chris Conner: Dallas Stars forward
* Josh Gracin: Country singer
* Jim Hickey: ABC News Radio National Correspondent
* Gregory Jbara: Actor
* Mike Modano: Dallas Stars forward (An ice rink was named to honor him)
* Amy Roloff: Mother, Little People, Big World
* Irish Brett Lally: Former Junior Middleweight Boxing Contender
* Carol Fox: 1984 Olympics Ice Dancer
* 'Tiny' Tim Cook: WRIF Radio Personality

References

External links

* [http://www.ci.westland.mi.us Westland Michigan Official City Web Site]
* [http://www.geocities.com/michhist/westland.html More Westland History]