Brighton Township, Michigan
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| Brighton Township, Michigan | |
  Brighton Township, Michigan
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | Michigan |
| County | Livingston |
| Area | |
| - Total | 34.6 sq mi (89.5 km²) |
| - Land | 33.1 sq mi (85.8 km²) |
| - Water | 1.4 sq mi (3.7 km²) |
| Elevation | 945 ft (288 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| - Total | 17,673 |
| - Density | 533.7/sq mi (206.1/km²) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP codes | 48114, 48116 |
| Area code(s) | 810 |
| FIPS code | 26-10640[1] |
| GNIS feature ID | 1625982[2] |
Brighton Township is a charter township of Livingston County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 17,673. The city of Brighton is located adjacent to the township, but is administratively autonomous.
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[edit] Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 34.6 square miles (89.5 km²).33.1 square miles (85.8 km²) of which is land and 1.5 square miles (3.8 km²) of which (4.20%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 17,673 people, 5,950 households, and 5,015 families residing in the township. The population density was 533.7 per square mile (206.1/km²). There were 6,177 housing units at an average density of 186.5/sq mi (72.0/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 97.29% White, 0.43% African American, 0.29% Native American, 0.83% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.31% from other races, and 0.81% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.22% of the population. More than 70% of the residents claim Polish, Irish, English or German ancestry. Another 15% claim a Portuguese ancestry.
There were 5,950 households out of which 42.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 76.0% were married couples living together, 5.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 15.7% were non-families. 12.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.96 and the average family size was 3.25. The median Brighton Township home was worth $222,900 and over 57% of the homes valued between $200,000 to $500,000. About 12% of the population have no mortgage nor rent payment.
In the township, the population distribution was spaced with 30.0% under the age of 18, 6.0% from 18 to 24, 29.6% from 25 to 44, 27.7% from 45 to 64, and 6.7% who were 65 years of age or older with the median age at 38 years. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.2 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $83,940, and the median income for a family was $89,006. More than 40% of the families in Brighton Township have annual incomes of more than $100,000. Males had a median income of $64,775 versus $33,328 for females. The per capita income for the township was $33,070. About 1.8% of families and 2.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.9% of those under age 18 and 2.8% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Education
Most students in Brighton Township attend the Brighton Area Schools. The district's elementary Schools are Hilton Elementary and Spencer Elementary, and students are separated between the two based on proximity to these schools.. Spencer Elementary students move on to attend Scranton Middle School, while Hilton students are split up and attend either Maltby Middle School or Scranton Middle School. All of these students reunite to attend Brighton High School. Also, due to the high numbers of Catholics in Brighton Township, many students attend St. Patrick's Catholic school. "St. Pat's" is a traditional Catholic school that maintains religious elements in the curriculum. There is also [[Cornerstone Christian School[1] and Land of the Lakes, which are general Christian based schools. The collection of Brighton Area Schools is consistently rated amongst the best in the state. Brighton Area Schools used to be tier one public schools in the nation, however, due to lack of funding from the state, they have been forced to lay off skilled teachers, a detrimental effect for the district.
In Brighton Township, 93% of the residents 25 and older have at least a high school diploma or equivalent. 38% of that population also have a bachelor's degree, while 15% have professional degrees.
Brighton High School is home to a Washtenaw Commumity College satellite school and there are also satellite schools of Livingston Community College and Eastern Michigan University
[edit] Business
Due to unique location of Brighton Township, and its size, it has no real business of its own. The businesses located there are generally local and small commercial office aside from gas stations. Some businesses include Michigan Land and Homes Realty, Professional Concepts Insurance Agency and Morrison. The Brighton Area, the Township especially, has residents that are well connected to the automotive industry. This is also helped by the additions of the Brighton Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep Dealership, Superior Cadillac-GMC, Brighton Honda, Brighton Ford-Mercury, Consumers Suzuki and Champion Chevrolet Brighton-Howell. These serve not only Brighton, but also the surrounding municiplaties as well. Most of the residents in Brighton Township, however, travel to Novi, Bloomfield or other larger areas for jobs and conveniences.
[edit] Community
The Brighton area, especially the Township, has a reputation for demanding peace, serenity and above all, greenspace.[citation needed] A majority of the residents pride themselves in picturesque landscaping and a general "clean" and kept look for the area.[citation needed] This produces the image of the Classy Suburbia look that Brighton hopes to maintain.[citation needed] There is a lot to offer in this area in terms of outdoor quality time.[citation needed] Most residents of Brighton Township head to the actual city where there is the Imagination Station, a giant outdoor play structure for kids of all ages, in conjunction with The Mill Pond, a little lake where artistic pieces surround the southern border, it also holds family oriented concerts in the summer that are frequently a huge success. The area is also, as with the rest of Michigan, abound with lakes and beaches. There is Kensington Metropark, Island Lake Recreation Area, Brighton Lake Recreation area and Huron Meadows Metropark. Additionally, there is the Oak Pointe Country Club that offers a plethora of ammenites to the leisure class, subdivision residents and its members.
Brighton and its three main sections, Brighton Township, Genoa Township and Green Oak Township, all came about with the economic boom that made Michigan much more affluent and prosperous during the nineties. Due to the ideal location of Lansing, Flint, Detroit, Bloomfield metropolitan area and Ann Arbor, Brighton flourished as it saw a massive influx of money that helped rid its image of its squalled past. As the adage states, easy come, easy go. With Michigan in the economic restructuring that it is currently going through, money is starting to leave Brighton, as well as other major affluent districts in Michigan, for greener pastures elsewhere. As of January 2007, there were 52 home foreclosures in Livingston County, comprising of less than .005 percent of the homes , but still landing it the spot of 19th most foreclosures per county in the state of Michigan.
[edit] References
- ^ a b American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ USGS GNIS: Brighton Township, Michigan
[edit] External links
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