Family member moving to Michigan and was wondering if I could get some living/area info from SF members in that area. Son is moving there and Dad just needs some comfort and advice he'll be OK And yes, I know he will be COLD!

Update: I originally listed Flint as a reference point since it seemed to be the biggest town in the area(s) he will be in. Thanks for the info and keep it coming.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: urbanwarrior238,

Don't drink the water???

Flint is a shithole and is what Detroit will look like in 10 years. Where will he specifically he be working? There are perfectly acceptable places 30 to 60 minutes away (e.g. Midland).

The good news is that side of the state doesn't get much snow. The first two counties off Lake Michigan get lake effect snow, but central Michigan doesn't get much (I have some family up there and they all sold their snowmobiles due to years of lack of snow). To be fair, it's a lot of snow by SoCal standards, but I've lived in Alaska and Alberta, Canada.

BTW, Frankenmuth is nearby and they have a delicious brewery called Frankenmuth Brewery.

Flint is a big no, but draw a circle 20-30 minutes in any direction and you are in nice rural communities.

If you can put up with the kind of place Flint has become you can live VERY cheaply. Not sure I'd buy a home, but still. It's become a poor-youth revival similar to Detroit in several aspects. The Kettering campus is in there as well.

That said when I was seeing a girl who lived in Flint I carried a gun on me 100% of the time. Never needed it, but I later learned the gas station I favored was robbed at gun point a few times in the same year. Breaking a window to steal out of cars is the only crime I've heard of from first hand accounts of (all now former) residents.

What's in Flint that's got your son going?

Some of the other comments have it right. Flint is a down-on-its-luck urban city, with all that implies. I imagine that, like any other such city, there are good, safe places to live, but there are also many not-so-good.

Sorry: Cannot be more definite than that, as I've little time "on the ground" in the city, proper.

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:

The good news is that side of the state doesn't get much snow. The first two counties off Lake Michigan get lake effect snow, but central Michigan doesn't get much

Yeah right. I go to Waterford, which is about 30 minutes south, 12 times a year, and Flint once or twice a year. The winter months are the worst there, because it’s always either snowing, or some combination of freezing rain and sleet. They may not have a ton of accumulation that sticks around, but the weather in that part of the country just plain sucks in the winter time. Aside from Moscow, and a few places I have to go in the Alps during the winter, Waterford is high on my list of places I hate flying to.

UPDATE: Well I gave the 'area' of Flint just as a point of reference in the state. Specifically it is the Grand Blanc to Sanford area. Thanks for all the info.

http://www.mlive.com/news/flin...ash_response_ti.html

As in any place, situational awareness.

Events in downtown like Back To The Bricks, a massive car show in downtown that is on the same weekend as the Woodward Dream Cruise are ok during the day but as evening falls the mood changes. A few years back there was a gang incident that was played down. I was there working in the vendor area that evening. We had shut our display down and left just before the SHTF, we heard about it the next morning at setup.

It's not just Flint proper, a few weeks ago five teens from Clio about fifteen miles north on I-75 were arrested and charged with Second Degree Murder for throwing rocks off the Dodge Road overpass resulting in the death of a motorist and damaging several other vehicles.

All being said, I probably would not go to downtown Flint for a night on the town or drink the water either.

Grand Blanc is ok but remember that as Willie Sutton said in response to the question "why do you rob banks?" "Because that's where the money is" was his reply.

Flint does have a lot of history though and the Flint Cultural Center is a jewel:http://flintcultural.org/

But as a plus, he is near Davison, home of Williams Gun Sight and Fenton, home of Guns Galore. Both interesting places to go. Also, the village of Holly, full of antique shops and restaurants including the Holly Hotel, the site of a visit by the one and only Carrie Nation in 1908 and purported to be also haunted.

If they are rail buffs, Holly has this:http://www.dmrrc.org/ a large "O" scale railroad. If they gravitate to the real thing, in Owosso,to the west 33 miles to the Steam Railroading Institute. That is the home of the Pere Marquette 1225, the locomotive portrayed in the movie "The Polar Express" or 18 miles west to Durand:http://www.durandstation.

Sanford isn't terribly close to Flint. Which of these places is it? Nearest city to Sanford is Midland, which is a fairly safe albeit smallish city.

Sanford! NOT Flint. Tells you I know little about Michigan.

Sanford is near Midland (home of Dow Chemical). Small town. It is Northwest of Flint. He should be fine, it’s not Flint. Lots of fishing, deer hunting, snowmobiling. He’ll need to scoot up the road to Clare and have a doughnut or three at “Cops & Doughnuts” (they call their sister locations “precincts”!)

https://copsdoughnuts.com

quote:

Originally posted by JJexp:

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:
The good news is that side of the state doesn't get much snow. The first two counties off Lake Michigan get lake effect snow, but central Michigan doesn't get much

Yeah right. I go to Waterford, which is about 30 minutes south, 12 times a year, and Flint once or twice a year. The winter months are the worst there, because it’s always either snowing, or some combination of freezing rain and sleet.

Good Lord

I live in the area under discussion and have my entire life. (Save a three year hitch in the U.S. Army.)

You're both wrong.

"Doesn't get much snow" is both relative and "depending." Extremes: Last year I only had to legitimately get the "big" snow blower out once, and the small one a couple times. The rest was easily hand-shovelled. That's when it even snowed at all. Conversely: Several winters in recent history we've had snow out in the yard up to my knees and the big commercial lots were beginning to have it trucked away.

"It's either snowing or some combination of freezing rain and sleet." Hardly. We generally only get freezing rain and sleet in the late fall/early winter or late winter/early spring, when the temps are just >< right. Snow addressed above.

We are predicted to have above-average precipitation this season. The type will depend upon temperatures--both aloft and near ground level. Personally: I'm hoping for a lot of snow. It's a PITA to deal with, and the verkakte salt ruins cars, but it's really good for our economy. A lot of people come here to ski, snowboard and snowmobile. Or just enjoy being out in the snow. Plus it's good for the flora and fauna.

Plus we bought snow shoes on clearance last fall and haven't really been able to even test them out well

Stay out of Saginaw, a.k.a. Sagnasty and Buena Vista Township.

Sanford is 83 miles from Flint. Yes, midland is OK, as well. It is part of the Tri cities area-Saginaw, Bay City, Midland. It should be ok.

Sanford is a 100 miles or so North of me and about that far to the EAST. I can't comment first hand, but I know that some years when I was living in Detroit, it seemed like we got mountains of snow. A four wheel drive vehicle is very nice to have, if not a necessity.

Looking at Sanford on the map, I would say it's a safe distance from Flint. I have heard about crime in Bay City / Saginaw but again, no first hand experience. I would think there are some really great rural places to live, especially for someone interested in hunting and fishing. If I had a job there I would have no qualms about relocating.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: John Steed,

Sanford is a far cry from Flint!

Midland, Mt Pleasant, Clare, Houghton Lake, Roscommon, lots of nice towns around with different things to offer.

I have several friends in Midland, no complaints to be had (other than the drive to get out there). Most moved to Saginaw for work and relocated to Midland for better living and less crime.

The Dow campus in Midland is HUGE. Look at the Google satellite view, the entire white industrial blotch on the SE side of Midland is Dow, pretty much. That gives Midland a few airports, a power plant, shopping, golf courses, and a ton of attractions a town of its size wouldn't normally have.

quote:

Originally posted by ensigmatic:

quote:

Originally posted by JJexp:

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:
The good news is that side of the state doesn't get much snow. The first two counties off Lake Michigan get lake effect snow, but central Michigan doesn't get much

Yeah right. I go to Waterford, which is about 30 minutes south, 12 times a year, and Flint once or twice a year. The winter months are the worst there, because it’s always either snowing, or some combination of freezing rain and sleet.

Good Lord

I live in the area under discussion and have my entire life. (Save a three year hitch in the U.S. Army.)

You're both wrong.

"Doesn't get much snow" is both relative and "depending." Extremes: Last year I only had to legitimately get the "big" snow blower out once, and the small one a couple times. The rest was easily hand-shovelled. That's when it even snowed at all. Conversely: Several winters in recent history we've had snow out in the yard up to my knees and the big commercial lots were beginning to have it trucked away.

Good lord, you should read my original post not just excerpt that flyboy quoted. I bet he might actually leave the comfort of his G550/650 for 20 minutes total during his visits to Michigan.

Grand Rapids, MI, is approx the same latitude as Flint, but gets 2.5 more feet of snow. My family that lives in central eastern Michigan has zero comprehension that when you head towards Lake Michigan that you can go from a perfectly clear day to a white out due to the lake effect snow. However, they certainly bitch more about snow than my family in West Michigan that gets lake effect snow.

BTW, I'm in awe of the snow up to your knees after living in Alaska for 5 years and Alberta for 2 years.

I lived in Grand Blanc.. It's a great area.

Yes you are so far away from Flint in Sanford it's not even a concern.