Livonia, Michigan

Livonia is a city 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 (most of which were built in the 1950s and 1960s) connected to the metropolitan area by freeways. The population was 96,942 at the 2010 census, making it Michigan's 9th largest municipality. The municipality is a part of Metro Detroit, and located approximately 13 mi northwest from downtown Detroit, and less than 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 settlers brought with them the name "Livonia", a name that had already been given to Livonia, New York, Livonia, Pennsylvania and a region of the Baltic Sea named Livonia in present day Estonia and Latvia, from which many early settlers came.

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, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush.

Economy
In addition to its schools, colleges, churches, parks, recreation center, libraries, and St. Mary Mercy Hospital, Livonia also has commercial and industrial sectors, restaurants, and shopping. Laurel Park Place, an upscale fashion mall with 74 stores, is located at 6 Mile Road and Newburgh Road. Parisian and Von Maur department stores serve as anchors. Livonia has a number of shopping centers, including two Wal-Mart Supercenters, two Target stores, one Meijer store, two Costco stores, and many other smaller stores. Wonderland Village features a Wal-Mart Supercenter, a Target store, and three islands of retail buildings along Plymouth Road and Middlebelt Road. Sears and Walmart anchor the Livonia Marketplace.

Livonia is home to the Livonia Hockey Association, the largest amateur hockey association in Michigan, Home of two time state champions the Livonia Kings, and the city also boasts one of the largest soccer progams (Livonia City Soccer Club) in the state, with 1,300 participants.

Major employers



 * Awrey Bakeries
 * Comerica Bank
 * Ford Motor Company
 * General Motors
 * The Harvard Drug Group
 * Livonia Public Schools


 * Madonna University
 * McKesson Pharmaceuticals
 * NYX, Inc.
 * Roush Industries
 * Schoolcraft College
 * Sears, Roebuck & Co.


 * St. Mary Mercy Hospital
 * Technicolor Video Services
 * Tower International
 * TRW Automotive
 * United Parcel Service
 * Valassis
 * Walmart

Colleges and universities
Livonia is home to various private/public colleges & universities, including Madonna University and Schoolcraft College, a small University of Phoenix campus, and a Continuing Education Center of Eastern Michigan University. The most recent university to open in Livonia is a Davenport University campus, which opened on September 26, 2008.


 * Madonna University
 * Schoolcraft Community College
 * University of Phoenix

Primary and secondary schools
Most of the City of Livonia is served by the Livonia Public Schools District, consisting of two Early Childhood Centers, 13 elementary schools, four Upper Elementary Schools, three middle schools, three high schools, and one Career Center. Since the 1960s, the district has consistently been ranked in the top 5 school districts statewide. The district also serves students in portions of Westland. There is, however, a portion of northeast Livonia that is served by the Clarenceville School District.

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). 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. Webster has classess for disabled children as well. The school, however, was burned down by an arsonist, and Webster was moved to a closed-down school, Taylor Elementary.


 * Clarenceville School District
 * Livonia Public Schools  (LPS also serves parts of Westland.)
 * Academy of Westland Charter Schools (In Westland, but serving Livonia)
 * Warren Dale Charter Academy (In Detroit, but serving Livonia)
 * CAPA, a performance art program at Churchill high school
 * MSC (Math, Science, Computers) a program for the academically gifted housed at Churchill High School

There are a number of parochial grade schools attached to Catholic and Lutheran churches around Livonia, including:
 * Ladywood High School
 * St. Edith, St. Genevieve and St. Michael Catholic grade schools

Public libraries
The Livonia Public Library includes the Civic Center Library, the Alfred Noble Library, the Carl Sandburg Library, and the Vest Pocket Library.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 36.0 square miles (92.8 km²), of which, 35.8 square miles (92.5 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.3 km²) of it (0.33%) is water.

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. Walsh (Republican), who is in his first term.

Demographics
As of the census 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 per square mile (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.

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.

In the city the population was spread out with 23.8% 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 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the city was $70,844, and the median income for a family was $83,452. 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.

Notable people

 * Shaffee Abraham, Morning Show Host for WKLS Atlanta and Announcer for Atlanta Thrashers
 * Chuck Behler (Musician) Drummer for Megadeth 1987-1989
 * Patrick Carden, lead guitarist for Big Mess rock band.
 * Mike Carden, Hot Dog King of Livonia
 * Warren Defever, Musician and Producer
 * Mike Donnelly, Retired NHL Player
 * Judy Greer, Actress
 * Charlie Haeger, Professional Baseball Player for the Los Angeles Dodgers
 * Brian M.Hatfield, Music Director and Afternoon Personality for WKSF in Asheville, NC
 * Jay Hudson, 89X CIMX-FM Radio Personality Music Director
 * Patrick Tullio, 106.7 The Beat WDTW-FM Radio Personality
 * Ryan Kesler, Professional Hockey Player for the Vancouver Canucks
 * Mike Modano, Professional Hockey Player for the Detroit Red Wings
 * David Moss, Professional Hockey Player for the Calgary Flames
 * Aaron Palushaj, Professional Hockey Player for the Montreal Canadiens
 * Dana Schutz, Painter
 * Chris Tancill, Retired NHL Player
 * Sheila Taormina, 1996 Summer Olympics, Atlanta, GA. Gold Medal winner swimming in the 4 x 200 meter freestyle relay. Four time Olympic athlete 1996, 2000, 2004, and 2008 Summer Olympics), and first woman to qualify in three different Olympic sports events (freestyle swimming, triathlon and modern pentathlon.)
 * Dani Woodward, Adult Film Actress
 * Jonathan B. Wright, Stage and film actor
 * Derek Grant, Drummer for Alkaline Trio, and previously The Suicide Machines, Telegraph, and Face To Face, all notable punk rock bands