Livonia, Michigan

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Livonia, Michigan
nixkname =
settlement_type = City

---

imagesize = 250px
image_caption = Livonia City Hall
image_

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mapsize = 250x200px
map_caption = Location of Livonia 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 = Jack Kirksey
established_date =
area_magnitude =
area_total_km2 = 92.8
area_land_km2 = 92.5
area_water_km2 = 0.30
population_as_of = 2000
population_note =
population_total = 100,545
population_metro = 4,488,335 (Detroit metro)
population_density_km2 = 1086.8
timezone = EST
utc_offset = -5
timezone_DST = EDT
utc_offset_DST = -4
elevation_ft = 640
latd = 42 |latm = 24 |lats = 4 |latNS = N
longd = 83 |longm = 22 |longs = 16 |longEW = W
area_total_sq_mi = 35.8
area_land_sq_mi = 35.7
area_water_sq_mi = 0.1
elevation_m = 206
website = http://ci.livonia.mi.us/
postal_code_type = ZIP codes
postal_code = 48150-48154
area_code = 734, 248
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 26-49000GR|2
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 0630841GR|3
footnotes =

Livonia is a city located in the northwest part of Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Livonia is a very large suburb with an array of traditional neighborhoods connected to the metropolitan area by freeways. According to the 2006 Census estimate, the city's population is 96,736. The municipality is a part of the Detroit metropolitan area, and located approximately convert|22|mi|km|0 northwest from downtown Detroit, and two miles (3 km) from the western city limits of Detroit (Redford Township lies in between the two).

History

First settled by pioneers from New England and New York, an act by the legislature of the Territory of Michigan established the borders of Livonia Township on March 17, 1835. The city was named after the Livonia region in present day Latvia and Estonia. Livonia was incorporated into a city on May 23, 1950 by vote of the citizens of the township. A significant motivation was to gain tax revenues from the DRC (Detroit Race Course), which was Michigan's only thoroughbred horse racetrack that closed in 1998.Livonia has been visited by six U.S. presidents, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford,Ronald Reagan Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush.Fact|date=February 2007

Politics

Livonia is located in Michigan's 11th Congressional District, and is represented in Congress by Thaddeus McCotter (Republican), who was first elected to Congress in 2002. Livonia's mayor is Jack Kirksey. On November 6, 2007, Livonia's mayoral election took place between Jack Kirksey and Maureen Miller Brosnan, with Kirksey the winner.

Livonia is Michigan's 6th State Senate District, and is represented by Glenn S. Anderson (Democrat), who was elected to the State Legislature in 2006.

Livonia is Michigan's 19th State House District, and is represented by incumbent John R. Pastor (Republican), who is term-limited as of 2008. John Walsh, Executive Director of Development and Governmental Relations at Schoolcraft College, is expected to run as Representative Pastor's successor.

Infrastructure

In addition to its schools, colleges, churches, parks, recreation center, libraries, and St. Marys Mercy Hospital, Livonia also has commercial and industrial sectors, restaurants, and shopping.

Laurel Park Place, a mall with appoximately 70 stores, is located at 6 Mile Road and Newburgh Road. Livonia has a number of shopping centers, including a Wal-Mart supercenter, two Target stores, one Meijer store, and many other smaller stores.

Wonderland Mall was a former mall that opened in 1959 as an outdoor shopping mall on the site of an airport. It was eventually turned into an indoor shopping mall. Wonderland Mall was shuttered in 2003, except for three stores. The mall was demolished in 2006 and the property was redeveloped as Wonderland Village, which features a Wal-Mart Supercenter, a Target store, and three islands of retail buildings along Plymouth Road and Middlebelt Road. Another former shopping mall, Livonia Mall, opened in 1964 and was closed in May 2008 with its new owner planning to raze and redevelop the property.

Livonia is home to the Livonia Hockey Association, the largest amateur hockey association in Michigan.

Education in Livonia

Livonia is currently home to Madonna University and Schoolcraft College. There is also a Continuing Education Center of Eastern Michigan University and is now home to a branch of Davenport University, which opened on September 26, 2008.

The Livonia Public Schools District currently consists of two Early Childhood Centers, 13 Elementary Schools, four Upper Elementary Schools, three Middle Schools, four High Schools, and one Career Center. Since the 1960's, the district has consistently been ranked in the top 5 school districts statewide. In the 2005-2006 school year, due to declining student enrollment and budget cuts, the district introduced the Legacy Initiative, which closed seven elementary schools and consolidated the remaining schools into K-4, 5-6, 7-8, and 9-12 branches.

There are currently five high schools in Livonia, four of which are public: Franklin, Churchill, and Stevenson High Schools in the Livonia district. Bentley High School, the first high school built in the district, was closed in 1985. Clarenceville High School in the Clarenceville Public School District, and one private: Ladywood High School, a Catholic all-girls school run by the Felician Sisters.

Each Livonia Public Schools high school offers a different educational program. Stevenson High School is the home of the school of Global Education, an alternative education model which combines students' English and Social Studies classes with a focus on the student's role in the world. Churchill houses the MSC program, (Math, Science, and Computers) and CAPA (Creative and Performing Arts). Franklin is currently in the process of adopting an International Baccalaureate program.

Frost Middle School houses the Middle Alternative Classrooms for the Academically Talented (MACAT) program. The public K-6 Webster Elementary School is home to the Alternative Classes for the Academically Talented (ACAT) program, as well as many afterschool programs.

*Madonna University [http://ww4.madonna.edu/f_index.cfm]
*Schoolcraft Community College [http://www.schoolcraft.cc.mi.us/]

*Clarenceville School District [http://www.clarenceville.k12.mi.us/]
*Livonia Public Schools [http://www.livonia.k12.mi.us/] (LPS also serves parts of Westland.)
*Academy of Westland Charter Schools (In Westland, but serving Livonia) [http://www.greatschools.net/modperl/browse_district/85/mi/]
* Warren Dale Charter Academy (In Detroit, but serving Livonia) [http://www.heritageacademies.com/Brix?pageID=407]
* CAPA, a performance art program at Churchill high school [http://www.starringcapa.com]

There are a number of parochial grade schools attached to Catholic and Lutheran churches around Livonia, including:

* Ladywood High School
* [http://www.StEdithSchool.com/ St. Edith] , [http://StGenevieve.org/ St. Genevieve] and [http://www.LivoniaStMichael.org/ St. Michael] Catholic grade schools

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 35.8 square miles (92.8 km²), of which, 35.8 square miles (92.5 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.3 km²) of it (0.33%) is water.

Demographics

USCensusPop
1900= 1460
1910= 1365
1920= 1608
1930= 3192
1940= 8728
1950= 17634
1960= 68702
1970= 110109
1980= 104814
1990= 100850
2000= 100545
estyear=2006
estimate=96736As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 100,545 people, 38,089 households, and 28,071 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,815.0 per square mile (1,086.8/km²). There were 38,658 housing units at an average density of 1,082.3/sq mi (417.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 95.45% White, 0.95% African American, 0.22% Native American, 1.94% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.32% from other races, and 1.11% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.72% of the population. 16.3% were of Polish, 15.9% German, 11.2% Irish, 8.6% Italian and 8.5% English ancestry according to Census 2000.

By 2006 there were 96,736 people in Livonia. This represented a 3.8% decline in the city's population since 2000.

In 2000 there were 38,089 households out of which 32.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.8% were married couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.3% were non-families. 22.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.07.

23.8% of the population was under the age of 18, 6.3% was from 18 to 24, 28.7% was from 25 to 44, 24.3% was from 45 to 64, and 16.9% were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 94.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.8 males.

According to a 2006 estimate, the median income for a household in the city was $71,593, and the median income for a family was $85,361. [http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ACSSAFFFacts?_event=Search&geo_id=06000US2616313120&_geoContext=01000US%7C04000US26%7C05000US26163%7C06000US2616313120&_street=&_county=livonia&_cityTown=livonia&_state=04000US26&_zip=&_lang=en&_sse=on&ActiveGeoDiv=geoSelect&_useEV=&pctxt=fph&pgsl=060&_submenuId=factsheet_1&ds_name=ACS_2006_SAFF&_ci_nbr=null&qr_name=null&reg=null%3Anull&_keyword=&_industry=] Males had a median income of $54,137 versus $35,273 for females. The per capita income for the city was $27,923. About 2.0% of families and 3.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.0% of those under age 18 and 5.2% of those age 65 or over.

Major employers

*Ford Motor Company
*Quicken Loans
*Livonia Public Schools
*Comerica Bank
*St. Mary Mercy Hospital
*TRW Automotive
*Schoolcraft College
*Technicolor Video Services
*Valassis
*Roush Industries
*McKesson Pharmacy Systems
*Madonna University
*NYX, Inc.
*American Community Mutual Insurance
*United Parcel Service
*Awrey Bakeries
*General Motors
*Sears, Roebuck & Co.

Notable people

Broadcasting

*Sean Baligian: Sports radio host (WDFN), Detroit News Fantasy Sports Expert Stevenson High School
*Dennis Fithian: Detroit radio personality (WXYT-FM) (Franklin High School Class of 1988)
*Scott Geiger: Syndicated radio personality. Stevenson High School Class of 1989). 1077 kndd and 965 krbz
*Rob Pascoe: Sports Radio 1130 WDFN. Host of "On The Track." Detroit's only NASCAR Nextel Cup radio show.
*Art Regner: WDFN Radio in Detroit, Michigan (Franklin High School)
*Shaffee: WKLS in Atlanta, Stevenson High School graduate.
*Jim Harper: Detroit radio personality (WMGC-FM), attended Churchill High School (Livonia, Michigan)
*Mike Bradley: Detroit radio personality (WMGC-FM), Franklin High School Class of (1969)
*Mike Brandt: Radio personality "TicTak" at Wild 100.7 (WYDL) near Memphis, TN. (Livonia Stevenson Class of 1994).
*P.J. Gradowski: Athletic Media Relations Contact at University of Detroit Mercy
*Dan Martin: News Director, WAAM, Clarenceville High School
*Thayrone X: DJ & Talk Show Host, WAAM, Franklin High School
*Jay Hudson: Detroit radio personality 89X, Churchill High School
*Jim Kerr, morning show DJ at WAXQ (Q104.3), New York City (Churchill High School)

Film and Television Production

*Brett Voss [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1916276/] : Sound Supervisor, Foley Mixer, Churchill High School, Class of 1994

Acting

*Olivia Brown: Actress
*David Burtka: Actor
*Shawn Card: Actor
*Nicole Forester: Actress on Guiding Light, graduated from Stevenson High School in 1990.
*Judy Greer: popular young actress, studied in Churchill High School's renowned Creative and Performing Arts (CAPA) program
*Jonathan B. Wright : actor, studied in Churchill High School's CAPA program. Broadway's Spring Awakening and Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist
*Dennis B Martell : Actor, Singer, Entertainer. Played Sweeney Todd, King Henry, Daddy Warbuck, Salieri, John Adams, Harold Hill in many theatrical productions across the country.

ports

*Bernie Carbo: Former MLB player who played for six teams, including the Cincinnati Reds, Boston Red Sox, and St. Louis Cardinals; he hit a game-tying pinch-hit three-run home run in the eighth inning of the historic Game 6 of the 1975 World Series. (Franklin High School)
*Jeff Cassar: Former goal keeper and current assistant coach for Real Salt Lake.
*Mike Donnelly: Los Angeles Kings (Franklin High School)
*Zach Gowen: Former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Professional Wrestler and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) Wrestler. (Churchill High School)
*Barry Guerin: Professional mixed martial arts fighter (Clarenceville High School Class of 1989)
*Charlie Haeger: Major League Baseball player for the Chicago White Sox. A notable knuckleball pitcher. (Catholic Central High School Class of 2001).
*Al Iafrate: Former NHL All-Star for Toronto, Washington, Boston, and San Jose. Multiple winner of NHL's Hardest Shot Contest.
*Ryan Kesler: NHL player for the Vancouver Canucks
*Mike Kinkade: Major League Baseball player.
*David Moss: NHL player for the Calgary Flames (Catholic Central High School)
*Mike Modano: star NHL player for the Dallas Stars (Franklin High School)
*Casey Rogowski: Chicago White Sox; first base prospect.
*F.P. Santangelo: Former MLB outfielder.
*Tim Shaw: Carolina Panthers linebacker, Penn State and (Clarenceville High School).
*Sheila Taormina: 1996 Olympic gold medalist in swimming (4x200 freestyle relay), 2000 and 2004 U.S. Olympic Triathlete and 2008 Olympic Modern Pentathlete.
*Paul Terek: 2004 Olympic decathlete (Franklin High School)
*Steve Warner: 2004 U.S. Men's Olympic Rowing team, men's lightweight fours (Stevenson High School Class of 1996).

Business

*Daniel Gilbert: Billionaire founder of Quicken Loans and Fathead Wall GraphicsFact|date=June 2007
*Kevin O'Conner: co-founder of DoubleClick, an internet technology company.
*Lance Kortesoja: Owner of Dollar Tree

Politics

*Thaddeus McCotter: US Congressman for Michigan's 11th district
*John R. Pastor: State Representative for the majority of Livonia's population, excepting the South-Eastern portion, which is represented by House Speaker Andy Dillon (Redford)

Music

*Warren Defever: Founding member of the experimental band His Name Is Alive
*Ted Nugent: Guitar frontman for band of same name, (Clarenceville High School)

Writers/Authors

*Laura Michaels: Author of children's book, (Franklin High School)

Festivals

*St. Andrew's Society of Detroit Highland Games at the Greenmead Historic Village. Usually the first Saturday each August.
*Livonia Spree [http://livoniaspree.com/] is located in Ford Field at the corner of Farmington Road and Lyndon in the last week each June, and includes Spree Fireworks. The Spree is put on with the help of Pugh Shows.
*Music under the Stars. Held at various locations in Livonia throughout the summer.

Photo gallery

References

Further reading

*Cite book|author=Cantor, George|title=Detroit: An Insiders Guide to Michigan|year=2005|publisher=University of Michigan Press|id=ISBN 0472030922
*Cite book|author=Fisher, Dale|title=Building Michigan: A Tribute to Michigan's Construction Industry|year=2003|publisher=Grass Lake, MI: Eyry of the Eagle Publishing|id=ISBN 1891143247
*Cite book|author=Fisher, Dale|title=Southeast Michigan: Horizons of Growth|year=2005|publisher=Grass Lake, MI: Eyry of the Eagle Publishing|id=ISBN 1891143255

External links

* [http://www.ci.livonia.mi.us/ Official site]