Muskegon County, Michigan

Muskegon County is a in the  of. As of the, the population was 170,200, with the census estimate putting the county at a population of 175,231. The is. The county is the sole county in the Muskegon-Norton Shores, which is part of the larger Grand Rapids-Muskegon-Holland.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 3,780 (1,459 ). 1,319 km² (509 sq mi) of it is land and 2,461 km² (950 sq mi) of it (65.11%) is water.

Adjacent counties

 * - north
 * - northeast
 * - east
 * - south

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 170,200 people, 63,330 households, and 44,267 families residing in the county. The was 129/km² (334/sq mi). There were 68,556 housing units at an average density of 52/km² (135/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 81.25%, 14.20% or , 0.82% , 0.42% , 0.01% , 1.28% from , and 2.01% from two or more races. 3.53% of the population were or  of any race. 95.9% spoke and 2.6%  as their first language.

There were 63,330 households out of which 34.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.60% were living together, 13.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.10% were non-families. 25.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.40% 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 3.10.

In the county the population was spread out with 27.50% under the age of 18, 8.70% from 18 to 24, 29.00% from 25 to 44, 21.90% from 45 to 64, and 12.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 98.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $38,008, and the median income for a family was $45,710. Males had a median income of $35,952 versus $25,430 for females. The for the county was $17,967. About 8.80% of families and 11.40% of the population were below the, including 16.00% of those under age 18 and 8.20% of those age 65 or over.

Government
The county government operates the, maintains rural roads, operates the major local courts, keeps files of deeds and mortgages, maintains, administers regulations, and participates with the state in the provision of welfare and other social services. The controls the budget but has only limited authority to make laws or ordinances. In Michigan, most local government functions &mdash; police and fire, building and zoning, tax assessment, street maintenance, etc. &mdash; are the responsibility of individual cities and townships.

Muskegon County elected officials

 * : Tony Tague
 * : George Jurkas
 * : Karen D. Buie
 * : Tony Moulatsiotis
 * : Mark F. Fairchild
 * : Martin L. Hulka
 * : Stephen Vallier

(information as of September 2005)

Cities, villages, and townships

 * , village
 * , village
 * , city
 * , city
 * , city
 * , city
 * , city
 * , village
 * , city
 * , city
 * , village
 * , city
 * , city
 * , city
 * , city
 * , city
 * , village
 * , city
 * , city
 * , city
 * , village
 * , city
 * , city
 * , city
 * , city
 * , city
 * , city
 * , city
 * , city