Michigan City, Indiana

Michigan City is a city in LaPorte County, Indiana, USA. It is one of two principal cities included in the Michigan City-La Porte, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City Combined Statistical Area. It is also part of a region known to locals as Michiana. It is approximately 50 miles east of Chicago and 40 miles west of South Bend. It had a population of 31,479 at the 2010 census.

Michigan City is noted for both its proximity to the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore and for bordering Lake Michigan. Due to this, Michigan City receives a fair amount of tourism during the summer months, especially by residents of Chicago and of nearby cities in Northern Indiana. The lighthouse is a big symbol for the city.

Geography
Michigan City is located at °N, °W (41.709389, -86.886928).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 23.1 square miles (59.9 km²). 19.6 square miles (50.8 km²) of it is land and 3.5 square miles (9.1 km²) of it (15.22%) is water.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 32,900 people, 12,550 households, and 7,906 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,678.6 inhabitants per square mile (648.1/km²). There were 14,221 housing units at an average density of 725.6 per square mile (280.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 69.45% White, 26.31% African American, 0.26% Native American, 0.51% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.10% from other races, and 2.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.15% of the population.

There were 12,550 households out of which 30.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.0% were married couples living together, 18.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.0% were non-families. 30.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 3.02.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.0% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 30.8% from 25 to 44, 20.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 101.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $33,732, and the median income for a family was $39,520. Males had a median income of $32,194 versus $23,125 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,995. About 10.4% of families and 13.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.2% of those under age 18 and 9.5% of those age 65 or over.

History
Michigan City's origins date to 1830, when the land for the city was first purchased by Isaac C. Elston. Elston Middle School, formerly Elston High School, located at 317 Detroit St., is named after the founder.

The city was incorporated in 1836, by which point it had 1500 residents, along with a post office, a newspaper, a church, and a commercial district. That same year, the State Bank of Indiana opened a branch in town.



Points of interest
On clear days it is possible to see the Chicago skyline across Lake Michigan. In 1996 Mayor Sheila Brillson introduced a new logo for Michigan City, which featured the Chicago Skyline. Many residents objected to this proposal, so the official logo was changed.

Michigan City Area Schools, the city's public school system, includes one high school (Michigan City High School), three middle schools, and nine elementary schools. Michigan City also has three parochial high schools - Marquette Catholic High School (Michigan City, Indiana), La Lumiere, and Duneland Lutheran. Due to a lack of funds, Duneland Lutheran closed down at the end of the 2008/2009 school year. There are several parochial elementary schools in the city, including St. Paul Lutheran School, St. Stanislaus Kostka School, Queen Of All Saints School, and Notre Dame Catholic School. At one time Michigan City had two public high schools, M.C. Elston High School (Red Devils)(Elston is now the name of one of the middle schools located in the city and is located at the former Elston High School), and M.C. Rogers High School (Raiders). The two schools combined after the 1994-1995 school year and now constitute the present day Michigan City High School. The school is located at the former Rogers High School site.

Michigan City is the home of the Old Michigan City Light, one of Indiana's few lighthouses. Michigan City's largest shopping center, Lighthouse Place Premium Outlets, which was built in the mid-1980s, pays homage to the lighthouse. The mall, owned by Chelsea Premium Outlets, contains stores such as Polo Ralph Lauren, Puma, Banana Republic, J.Crew, Ecco, Guess, Gap, Fossil, and Corning Revere. The outlet mall is built on land previously occupied by the Pullman-Standard rail car plant. Marquette Mall, constructed in 1965, is Michigan City's sole conventional shopping mall. St. Anthony Memorial Health Center is Michigan City's sole hospital.

Michigan City has one daily newspaper, The News-Dispatch. It also has one FM radio station, WEFM, and one AM radio station, WIMS AM 1420, together with one Government-access television (GATV) station, Access LaPorte County. Michigan City is in Chicago's Area of Dominant Influence. Radio and television broadcasts from both Chicago and South Bend reach most of the population. Michigan City also houses a zoo, and art center, and also is the home of the Indiana State Prison.

Known for its many talented musicians, Michigan City also has one of the nation's oldest active municipal bands. Free concerts are performed for the public every Thursday evening at the Guy F. Foreman Amphitheatre located in Washington Park.

The eastern edge of the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore is also located in Michigan City. Features include Mount Baldy, a large wandering dune. A larger dune, Hoosier Slide, sat at the site of the current electrical generating station. This dune was mined for its sand in the late 19th century. The sand found on the beaches in and near Michigan City is nicknamed "singing sand" because of the sound it produces.



In recent years, Michigan City has added a riverboat, the Blue Chip Casino. This casino is the largest riverboat in Indiana. The Blue Chip just finished building the biggest building in all of northwest Indiana by adding a 22 story hotel to its offerings in 2009. Michigan City has also added a new skatepark at Pullman Field to its tourism offerings.

Going forward Michigan City is looking to revitalize much of its north end, which contains the oldest portions of the city. One plan that has been discussed is the Andrews Plan  The Andrews Plan also won an award for 2008 CNU Charter Award of Excellence. Most discussion centers on maintaining and expanding open and accessible park areas on Lake Michigan and along Trail Creek.

Michigan City Power Plant lies along the shore of Lake Michigan west of the downtown core. The cooling tower of the coal burning plant is visible for miles around & is often mistaken for a nuclear power plant.

Government
The mayor is Chuck Oberlie. Michigan City has a Council with nine members. Six are elected from geographic wards and three are elected as at-large members.

City Council members are:


 * Richard Murphy, First Ward
 * Marc Espar, Second Ward
 * Ron Meer, Third Ward
 * Patricia Boy, Fourth Ward
 * Faye Moore, Fifth Ward
 * Phillip Jankowski, Sixth Ward
 * Joseph Doyle, Councilman At-Large
 * Angela Nelson, Councilwoman At-Large
 * Robert McKee, Councilman At-Large

Famous people from Michigan City

 * Anne Baxter, Academy Award-winning American actress
 * Daniel D. Bruce, United States Marine who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism in Vietnam in March 1969
 * Abe Gibron, Chicago Bears American football player
 * John Huppenthal, Republican State Senator in the Arizona Legislature.
 * Anita King, American racecar driver, actress, and thoroughbred racehorse owner
 * Mike LaRocco, professional Supercross and Motocross racer
 * Don Larsen, Major League Baseball pitcher
 * David Lilienthal, Chairman of the Tennessee Valley Authority 1941-1946; Chairman, U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, 1947–1949
 * Achy Obejas, American writer and journalist{
 * Amy Spindler, fashion critic and style editor of The New York Times Magazine
 * Ted Thorne, Chicago news anchor, local radio host

Transportation
Michigan City is a major stop along the South Shore Line, one of the last interurban rail lines in the U.S. The train runs directly through on 11th Street (it has no separate right-of-way, and shares the street with automobiles and other road traffic), making two stops in Michigan City's downtown area (11th Street and Carroll Avenue). This rail line connects Michigan City with downtown Chicago westward as well as the South Bend Regional Airport to the east.

Amtrak serves the city with Wolverine trains, which run from Chicago to Detroit, and Pontiac three times a day in each direction. Under the current schedule, Wolverine fills in several gaps in South Shore Line's weekday service and augments weekend service. While Wolverine trains are faster, South Shore Lines are cheaper and run more frequently.

Michigan City operates a bus service. Officially known as Michigan City Transit, it is made up of four routes that run on Monday-Saturday. All routes originate at Michigan City Public Library and travel around the city in (largely mono-directional) loops until they return back to the library. Route 3 connects to Carroll Avenue South Shore Line station, while other routes connect to the 11th street station. In addition, Route 1 passes near the Amtrak station on the way to Washington Park. Michigan City also operates a Dial-a-Bus service.

Coach USA's Tri-State/United Limo service between Notre Dame and O'Hare airport stops at Michigan City at the Clarion Hotel (5820 Franklin St). The service makes stops at Norte Dame, South Bend, Portage, Highland, Crestwood and O'Hare and Midway airports. Buses run from 4:10 AM – 1:10 AM (US Central Time). Buses run once every hour in both direction between Michigan City and O'Hare and Midway and once every two hours between Michigan City and Notre Dame.

Michigan City Municipal Airport has a 4100-foot runway and averages 118 operations per week.

Options for commercial air service include the Gary/Chicago International Airport in Gary, and the South Bend Regional Airport in South Bend. The South Shore Line terminates at the South Bend airport, while there is a train stop serving the Gary airport.