Flint, Michigan

Flint, Michigan is a city in Genesee County along the Flint River about 60 miles northwest of Detroit. Its population in 1998 was 131,000 people, and it is the fourth largest city in Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city had a population of 124,943. It is the county seat of Genesee County6. Flint Charter Township is adjacent to the city on the west, but is politically independent.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 88.2 km² (34.1 mi²). 87.1 km² (33.6 mi²) of it is land and 1.1 km² (0.4 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 1.26% water.

Related Topics:
United States Census Bureau - Km² - Mi²

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Flint lies just to the northeast of the Flint hills. The terrain is low and rolling along the south and east sides, and flatter to the northwest.

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For a city of its size, Flint has many neighborhoods, group in the center of the city of one of the four cardinal "sides."

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The downtown business district is centered on Saginaw Street south of the Flint River. Just west, and on opposite sides of the river are Carriage Town (north) and the Grand Traverse Street District (south). These neighborhoods were the center of manufacturing for and profits from the nation's carriage industry until the 1920s, and to this day are the site of many well-preserved Victorian homes, as well as the setting of Atwood Stadium. Just north of downtown is River Village, a successful example of mixed-income public housing, and to the east is Central Park, a small neighborhood defined by cul-de-sacs.

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The North Side and Near South Side are predominantly African American, with such historic districts as Buick City and Civic Park on the North, and Sugar Hill, Floral Park, and Kent and Elm Parks on the south. Many of these neighborhoods were original centers of early Michigan blues. The South Side in particular was also a center for multiracial migration from Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, and deep south since World War II. These neighborhoods are most often lower income, but have maintained some level of economic stratification. The East Side is the site of the Mott Estate and Community College, the Cultural Center, and East Village, one of Flint's more prosperous areas. Just north of here is Eastside Proper, also known as the "State Streets," which is a low-income rental area that is rapidly diversifying. Eastside has also had trouble with prostitution, particularly in districts centered on Dort Highway and Olive Avenue. The West Side includes the main site of the 1937 sitdown strike and the historic Woodcroft neighborhood, home in the past to influential engineers and automotive executives and Mott Park, site of Kettering University.

Related Topics:
Michigan - Blues

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Facilities associated with General Motors in the past and present are also scattered throughout the city, today including GM Truck and Bus, the Flint Metal Center, Powertrain North, Delphi East and West, among others. The largest plant, Buick City and adjacent facilities, has been demolished.

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Half of Flint's fourteen tallest buildings were built during the 1920s. The city's tallest building, the 19-story Genesee Towers, was completed in 1968.{{note|skyscrapers}}

Related Topics:
1920s - Genesee Towers - 1968

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