About Lansing

'''LANSING'''

(Interwiki: IPAc-en » icon|ˈ|l|æ|n|s|ɪ|ŋ) is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located mostly in Ingham County, although small portions of the city extend into Eaton County. The 2010 Census places the city's population at 114,297, making it the fifth largest city in Michigan. The population of its Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) was 464,036, while the even larger Combined Statistical Area (CSA) population, which includes Shiawassee County, was 534,684.
The Lansing Metropolitan Area, colloquially referred to as "Mid-Michigan", is an important center for educational, cultural, governmental, business, and high-tech manufacturing, including two medical schools, one veterinary school, two nursing schools, two law schools, including the nation's largest law school (Thomas M. Cooley Law School), a Big Ten Conference university (Michigan State), the Michigan State Capitol, the state Supreme Court and Court of Appeals, a federal court, the Library of Michigan and Historical Center, and headquarters of four national insurance companies.
Lansing is the only U.S. state capital (among the 44 located in counties) that is not also a county seat. The county seat of Ingham County is Mason,Interwiki: GR » 6 but the county maintains some offices in Lansing.

HISTORY

The area that is now Lansing was originally spotted by explorer Hugh Howard in 1790 while canoeing the Grand River. The land that was to become Lansing was surveyed as "Township 4 North Range 2 West" in February 1827 in what was then dense forest. It was the last of the county's townships to be surveyed, and the land not offered for sale until October 1830. There would be no roads to this area for decades to come.
In the winter of 1835 and early 1836, two brothers from New York plotted the area now known as REO Town just south of downtown Lansing and named it "Biddle City." All of this land lay in a floodplain and was underwater during the majority of the year. Regardless, the brothers went back to New York, specifically Lansing, New York, to sell plots for the town that did not exist. They told the residents of Lansing, New York that this new "city" had an area of 65 blocks, contained a church and also a public and academic square. A group of 16 men bought plots in the nonexistent city and upon reaching the area later that year found they had been scammed. Many in the group too disappointed to stay ended up settling around what is now Metropolitan Lansing. Those who stayed quickly renamed the area "Lansing Township" in honor of their home village in New York.
The sleepy settlement of fewer than 20 people would remain dormant until the winter of 1847 when the state constitution required that the capital be moved from Detroit to a more centralized and safer location in the interior of the state since many were concerned about Detroit's proximity to British-controlled Canada, which had captured Detroit in the War of 1812. The United States had recaptured the city in 1813, but these events led to the dire need to have the center of government relocated away from hostile British territory. In addition, there was also concern with Detroit's strong influence over Michigan politics, being the largest city in the state as well as the capital city.
During the multi-day session to determine a new location for the state capital, many cities, including Ann Arbor, Marshall, and Jackson, lobbied hard to win this designation. Unable to publicly reach a consensus because of constant political wrangling, the Michigan House of Representatives privately chose the Township of Lansing out of frustration. When announced, many present openly laughed that such an insignificant settlement was now the capital city of Michigan. Two months later, the governor William L. Greenly signed into law the act of the legislature officially making Lansing Township the state capital.
With the announcement that Lansing Township had been made the capital, the small village quickly transformed into the seat of state government. The legislature gave the settlement the temporary name of the "Town of Michigan". In April 1848, the legislature then gave the settlement the name of "Lansing". Within months after it became the capital city, individual settlements began to develop along three key points along the Grand River in the township:

"Lower Village/Town", where present-day Old Town stands, was the oldest of the three villages. It was home to the first house built in Lansing in 1843 by pioneer James Seymour and his family. Lower Town began to develop in 1847 with the completion of the Franklin Avenue (now Grand River Avenue) covered bridge over the Grand River.

"Upper Village/Town", where present-day REO Town stands at the confluence of the Grand River and the Red Cedar River. It began to take off in 1847 when the Main Street Bridge was constructed over the Grand River. This village's focal point was the Benton House, a 4-story hotel which opened in 1848. It was the first brick building in Lansing and was later razed in 1900.
Category: File - :LesCapitolSomethingMI.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Michigan State Capitol"Middle Village/Town", where downtown Lansing now stands, was the last of the three villages to develop in 1848 with the completion of the Michigan Avenue bridge across the Grand River and the completion of the temporary capitol building which sat where Cooley Law School stands today on Capitol Avenue in between Allegan and Washtenaw Streets, and finally the relocation of the post office to the village in 1851. This area would grow to become larger than the other two villages up and down river. For a brief time the combined villages were referred to as "Michigan" but was officially named Lansing in 1848.

In 1859, the settlement having grown to nearly 3,000 and encompassing about Interwiki: convert » 7|sqmi|km2|0 in area was incorporated as a city. The boundaries of the original city were Douglas Avenue to the north, Wood and Regent Streets to the east, Mount Hope Avenue to the south, and Jenison Avenue to the west. These boundaries would remain unchanged until 1916. Lansing began to grow steadily over the next two decades with the completion of the railroads through the city, a plank road, and the completion of the current capitol building in 1878.
Most of what is known as Lansing today is the direct result of the city becoming an industrial powerhouse which began with the founding of Olds Motor Vehicle Company in August 1897. The company went through many changes, including a buyout, between its founding to 1905 when founder Ransom E. Olds started his new company REO Motor Car Company, which would last in Lansing for another 70 years. Olds would be joined by the less successful Clarkmobile around 1903. Over the next decades, the city would see itself transformed into a major American industrial center for the manufacturing of automobiles and automobile parts among other industries. The city continued to grow in area too. By 1956, the city had grown to Interwiki: convert » 15|sqmi|km2|0, and doubled in size over the next decade to its current size of roughly Interwiki: convert » 33|sqmi|km2|0.
Today, the city's economy is now diversified among government service, healthcare, manufacturing, insurance, banking, and education.

GEOGRAPHY

Lansing is the centerpiece of a region of Michigan known as Mid-Michigan or Central Michigan.
Category: File - :North Lansing dam.jpg|thumb|325px|The North Lansing dam of the Grand River. The Lansing River Trail and Ottawa Street Power Station are visible behind.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of Interwiki: convert » 36.6|sqmi|km2, of which Interwiki: convert » 36.0|sqmi|km2 of it is land and Interwiki: convert » 0.6|sqmi|km2 (1.66%) of it is water. This figure includes two 425 Agreements with Alaiedon Township and Meridian Township, and the four 425 Agreements with Delta Township since 2000.
Under Michigan law, 425 Agreements are only temporary land sharing agreements, and do not count as official annexations. The Census Bureau, however, for statistical purposes, does count these as annexations. Not counting the temporary 425 Agreements, Lansing administers Interwiki: convert » 34.1|sqmi|km2 total.
Lansing is located in the south central part of the lower peninsula where the Grand River meets the Red Cedar River. The city occupies most of what had formerly been part of Lansing Charter Township. It has also annexed adjacent tracts of land in Delta Charter Township and Windsor Township in Eaton County to the west and Delhi Charter Township in Ingham County to the south. The city also controls three non-contiguous tracts of land through 425 Agreements (conditional land transfer agreements) with Meridian Charter Township, Delta Charter Township, and Alaiedon Township in Ingham County to the southeast.
Category: File - :7135 oss.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The Ottawa Street Power Station
Lansing elevation ranges between Interwiki: convert » 890|ft|m|0 above sea level on the far south side of Lansing along Northrup Street near the Cedar Street intersection, to Interwiki: convert » 833|ft|m|0 to Interwiki: convert » 805.5|ft|m|0 above sea level along the Grand River because of the two dams along the river.
The Grand River, the largest river in Michigan, flows through downtown Lansing; and the Red Cedar River, a tributary of the Grand River, flows through the campus at Michigan State University. There are two lakes in the area, Park Lake and Lake Lansing, both northeast of the city. Lake Lansing is approximately Interwiki: convert » 500|acre|km2 in size and is a summer favorite for swimmers, boaters, and fishermen. Michigan State University Sailing Club and the Lansing Sailing Club are located on Lake Lansing, where sailing regattas are hosted throughout the summer.
The city of Lansing operates a total of Interwiki: convert » 3.6|sqmi|km2 of parkland, of which Interwiki: convert » 2.8|sqmi|km2 is parkland, Interwiki: convert » 0.5|sqmi|km2 are golflands, and Interwiki: convert » 0.3|sqmi|km2 are cemetery lands. This figure includes the Waverly Hills Golf Course and adjacent Michigan Avenue Park, which are part of Lansing Township, but operated by the City of Lansing. The figure, however, does not include the Ingham County parklands within the borders of Lansing.

ECONOMY

The Lansing metropolitan area's major industries are government, education, insurance, healthcare, and automobile manufacturing. Being the state capital, many state government workers reside in the area.
Michigan State University, Thomas M. Cooley Law School, and Lansing Community College are significant employers in the region.
Category: File - :7121 townsend street looking south.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The former Oldsmobile Headquarters and the Otto Eckert Power Station
General Motors has offices and a hi-tech manufacturing facility in Lansing and several manufacturing facilities immediately outside the city, as well, in nearby Lansing and Delta townships. The Lansing area is headquarters to four major national insurance companies: Auto-Owners Insurance Company, Jackson National Life, the Accident Fund, and Michigan Millers Insurance Company.
The recent decline of the auto industry in the region has increased the region's awareness of the importance of a strategy to foster the high-technology sector.

Early availability of high-speed Internet in 1996, as well as the MSU, Cooley Law School, and Lansing Community College student body population, fostered an intellectual environment for information technology companies to incubate.

Lansing has a number of technology companies in the fields of information technology and biotechnology.

Emergent BioSolutions is an international biopharmaceutical company that maintains significant operations in Lansing. Emergent BioSolutions is developing an array of biodefense and commercial products and currently manufactures the only FDA approved anthrax vaccine at its Lansing operations. In March 2009 Emergent announced another $10.9 million investment in its Lansing facility and is adding 93 new employees.
"Biotech Company Invests $10.9 Million to Update Key Lansing Facility", Capital Gains, March 25, 2009
Neogen is an international food and animal safety and diagnostics company headquartered in Lansing.
Neogen Grows in Recession: Under the Radar
IBM announced in January 2009 that it was opening its first U.S. programming center in the former MSU Federal Credit Union headquarters in East Lansing for application software for governments, universities, etc.
Lansing State Journal, January 15, 2009
Liquid Web, the largest web hosting company in Michigan, moved into its new $80 million Lansing headquarters (third facility in Lansing) in November 2009 and announced that it would hire 600 new employees over the next 3–4 years.
[http://www.wilx.com/news/headlines/69788987.html Local Company's Success Boosts Economy]
Web Company Expanding
Prime Time Printing, the first pad printing personalization company to open in the state, has seen business triple since moving to their South Washington facility in February 2010.
"Lansing Print Company Goes Big", January 15, 2010
Michigan State University, the 9th largest campus in the U.S., hires an average of 11,000 employees per year.
Major Employers

DEMOGRAPHICS

Category: File - :71msc 1.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Michigan's State Capitol in Lansing
As of the censusInterwiki: GR » 2 of 2010, there were 114,297 people, 48,450 households, and 26,234 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,174.9 per square mile (1,226.3/km²). There were 54,181 housing units at an average density of 1,505.0 per square mile (581.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 61.2% White (55.5% non-Hispanic White), 23.7% African American, 0.8% Native American, 3.7% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 4.3% from other races, and 6.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 12.5% of the population. The foreign-born population sat at 8.3%.
As of 2000, the city's population rose by 32,293 (27%) to 151,421 during the day because of the influx of workers.
As of 2000, there were 49,505 households out of which 30.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.8% were married couples living together, 17.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.7% were non-families. 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 3.08.
In the city the age distribution of the population shows 26.8% under the age of 18, 11.4% from 18 to 24, 32.7% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 9.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 92.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $34,833, and the median income for a family was $41,283. Males had a median income of $32,648 versus $27,051 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,924. About 13.2% of families and 16.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.2% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.

EDUCATION

Category: File - :37. Sexton High Tower.JPG|thumb|right|200px|J.W. Sexton High School,
Westside Lansing
Category: File - :Everett High School Lansing, Michigan 2.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Everett High School,
Southside Lansing
Michigan State University, a member of the Big Ten Conference, is known as "the pioneer land grant college", located in neighboring East Lansing. MSU has the largest land campus in the United States and is home to several nationally and internationally recognized academic and research oriented programs. Michigan State offers over 200 programs of study and is home to fourteen different degree-granting schools and colleges including three medical schools, a law school, and numerous PhD programs. It is the only university in the nation with three medical schools. MSU is consistently one of the top three programs in the United States for study abroad programs. The MSU College of Education is also consistently rated as the top education program in the nation. Michigan State University is the oldest agricultural college in the United States. The MSU School of Criminal Justice is the oldest continuous degree granting criminal justice program in the nation. In 2008, the Department of Energy announced MSU won the contest for a $550 million Facility for Rare Isotope Beams that will attract top researchers from around the world to conduct experiments in nuclear science, astrophysics and applications of isotopes to other fields.
The Thomas M. Cooley Law School is the largest law school in the nation and is located in downtown Lansing. Cooley is fully accredited by the American Bar Association. A majority of Cooley students are from out-of-state.
Lansing Community College offers more than 500 areas of study to over 18,000 students at its main facilities in Lansing, and another 5,000 students at twenty-nine extension centers and a site in Otsu, Japan. LCC's new, state-of-the-art University Center enables students to take courses with the goal of eventually earning an undergraduate or graduate degree from other Michigan institutions. The University Center stands on the former site of "Old Central", Lansing's first public high school, which was established in 1875 as Lansing High School. (In the 1920s it was renamed as Central High School, and in 1957 became the first building on the LCC campus.)
Other institutions of higher education include Western Michigan University (branch campus in Delta Township), Davenport University in Downtown Lansing, Central Michigan University (branch campus), and Great Lakes Christian College (campus in Delta Township).
Category: File - :39. Eastern High.JPG|thumb|right|200px|Eastern High School,
Eastside Lansing

HEALTHCARE

Sparrow Hospital is a 740 bed hospital and is affiliated with Michigan State University and its College of Human Medicine and College of Osteopathic Medicine. In February 2009 it was announced that Sparrow and MSU formalized their partnership to increase research and faculty recruitment. Sparrow Hospital is the Regional Center for pediatrics, cancer care, including radiation therapy, trauma care, neurological care, high-risk obstetrics and neonatal intensive care. The Sparrow Tower was finished January 2008 and includes but is not limited to: a dedicated pediatric emergency room (the only one in the region), the largest adult emergency room in the region, state-of-the-art operating rooms, a rooftop helipad, oncology center, heart and vascular center and orthopedic department. In addition, 4,500 deliveries are performed at Sparrow Hospital annually, rehabilitation, and emergency treatment is more than any other hospital in mid-Michigan. The Sparrow Health System Laboratory performs over 3 million tests per year, at various laboratory sites, which include four remote testing facilities and thirteen patient service centers. Sparrow Hospital is certified as a Level I Trauma Center by the American College of Surgeons. In May 2009 Sparrow announced that it now has its own helicopter service based at its downtown Lansing hospital's new $2.5 million helipad. The addition is expected to increase helicopter patient transport to the hospital from four a month to 400 a year.
McLaren–Greater Lansing Hospital is also a university affiliated teaching hospital. Ingham enjoys a special affiliation in radiation oncology with the University of Michigan and Michigan State University; McLaren–Greater Lansing is part of the Great Lakes Cancer Institute (GLCI). McLaren received five-star ratings for: Coronary bypass surgery; Cardiac interventions; Treatment of heart attacks; Total knee replacement; Total hip replacement; Back and neck surgery; Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease care; Community-Acquired pneumonia care.

Welcome to Wowcity fellow Americans!

The American Wowcity is a web-based platform for local business search, ideas and expression, a resource of opportunities, and a network of inspirational young people and their projects.

2,805 members from United States
435 members visited United States
20 members online from United States

LANSING

WOWCITY

WowCity Lansing is your complete city guide to shopping, dining, travel, and entertainment in Lansing.

Read and write consumer reviews, submit articles, print coupons, and watch videos. There's always something new in Lansing. Become a WowBuddy!

Own a Lansing business?
Whether you have an established business in Lansing or just starting, with or without a website, we'll be glad to be part of your business marketing solution. Our unique and proven web marketing services can help your business grow and connect to your market.

Get started to claim your website, ads placement, and 100 points - advertising value worth $97 dollars. Now, yours free. Become a Wow Business today!

About Lansing
Shop Lansing Movement

Business Section

Local Information

WowCity Member Login

Other Community Sections

Do you live in Lansing?