Looking for a suburb of Detroit - good place to raise kids, semi-upscale but not snobby (Sterling Heights: big house, neighborhood)

[NOLA101]

Originally Posted by MS313

I think Oak Park, Farmington Hills, Redford, Harper Woods, and Eastpointe are now quickly gaining black populations and is slowly becoming the Southfield of the 2000's.

No, the new Southfields are Farmington Hills and West Bloomfield.

Redford, Harper Woods, etc. are poorer and basically just extension of Detroit. Southfield was (and is to some extent) much more professional in nature with higher incomes and education levels.

[ckhthankgod]

Another list: Michigan Median Household Income City Rank Based on ACS 2010-2014 data

By school district: Michigan Median Household Income School District Rank Based on ACS 2010-2014 data

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by Geo-Aggie

Exactly. Calling Southfield or Oak Park "diverse" is not accurate. They are regions of white flight. Likewise calling West Bloomfield diverse is not very accurate either. The place is 83% white with 8% Asian and 5% black population. It's about as diverse as Sterling Heights . Realistically, Metro Detroit has no communities with significant diversity. Towns like Warren and Farmington Hills are trending toward diverse and could be considered this by the next census, as long as white flight doesn't take hold of these towns as well, but towns which are 70% black (Southfield, Oak Park) or 80% white (West Bloomfield, Sterling Heights) are not diverse - they're just slightly less homogeneous than Virginia Park or Clawson.

Demographics within the West Bloomfield district limits: West Bloomfield School District Population and Races - USA.comâ„¢

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by NOLA101

It depends. West Bloomfield has majority-minority schools, and even a majority-black school. The district will probably be majority black within 15 years or so.

So, yeah, WB overall isn't super-diverse, but that's because there are tons of older white people. The school-age population is ultra diverse.

Also "white" in the Census includes Jews, Chaldeans and Lebanese. WB has HUGE populations of all three. Probably the majority of whites in WB are either Jewish or Middle Eastern.

And Sterling Heights is pretty diverse too. A HUGE proportion of the whites in Sterling Heights are Iraqi refugees. There's also a huge Chaldean population, as well as folks from all over the Middle East.

West Bloomfield school demographics, which include schools in the Walled Lake and Bloomfield Hills school districts, as well as private schools in that area: Search For Schools and Colleges

Sterling Heights school demographics(Warren and Utica SD's): Search For Schools and Colleges

[usroute10]

Originally Posted by ckhthankgod

West Bloomfield school demographics, which include schools in the Walled Lake and Bloomfield Hills school districts, as well as private schools in that area: Search For Schools and Colleges

Sterling Heights school demographics(Warren and Utica SD's): Search For Schools and Colleges

Thanks for the helpful links, ckhthankgod!

Originally Posted by NOLA101

No, the new Southfields are Farmington Hills and West Bloomfield.

Redford, Harper Woods, etc. are poorer and basically just extension of Detroit. Southfield was (and is to some extent) much more professional in nature with higher incomes and education levels.

Why don't you consider Southfield, Farmington Hills, and West Bloomfield "extensions" of Detroit's good neighborhoods? Why do you only consider the declining and unremarkable Redford, Harper Woods, etc as extensions of Detroit?

And because you seem to know the minutiae of every Metro Detroit community, I was wondering if you give me the "411" on the following metro Detroit communities:

Riverview
Frasier
Center Line
Keego Harbor
Garden City

Thanks, I look forward to your helpful answer.

[MS313]

Originally Posted by usroute10

Thanks for the helpful links, ckhthankgod!




Why don't you consider Southfield, Farmington Hills, and West Bloomfield "extensions" of Detroit's good neighborhoods? Why do you only consider the declining and unremarkable Redford, Harper Woods, etc as extensions of Detroit?

And because you seem to know the minutiae of every Metro Detroit community, I was wondering if you give me the "411" on the following metro Detroit communities:

Riverview
Frasier
Center Line
Keego Harbor
Garden City

Thanks, I look forward to your helpful answer.

Southfield is more of an extension of Detroit than almost any other suburb right now for sure. Like I said earlier, it's like a mega Rosedale Park or Palmer Woods. Most people in Southfield are fairly successful blacks (most from Detroit city). In fact alot of the black business owners and white collar blacks in Detroit reside in Southfield. Even in west Michigan Southfield has a good reputation for blacks.

[DTWflyer]

People who judge based solely on race are misguided, people nowadays are more concerned about socioeconomic status. Whatever people's race is doesn't matter.

I live in Royal Oak on a street that is 100% Caucasian and >50% of them act like they are one step up from the trailer park.....

[NOLA101]

Originally Posted by usroute10

Why don't you consider Southfield, Farmington Hills, and West Bloomfield "extensions" of Detroit's good neighborhoods? Why do you only consider the declining and unremarkable Redford, Harper Woods, etc as extensions of Detroit?

Yeah, you can do that, if you want. It doesn't make much sense, as 95% of Detroit isn't like that, but if you want to think of the places with professional blacks to be extension of a few Detroit neighborhoods with similar demographic, then go right ahead.

It would be like saying that Pontiac is an extension of Bloomfield Township, because there is a small crappy area of Bloomfield right next to Pontiac. If that's how you want to view things, then no one's stopping you.

Originally Posted by usroute10

And because you seem to know the minutiae of every Metro Detroit community, I was wondering if you give me the "411" on the following metro Detroit communities:

Riverview
Frasier
Center Line
Keego Harbor
Garden City

Thanks, I look forward to your helpful answer.

I seriously doubt you're considering these areas and are probably trolling, but sure.

Riverview is an unremarkable downriver suburb middle to lower middle class. Frasier is basically the same in Macomb County. Center Line is a somewhat crappy working class suburb that is basically an extension of South Warren. Keego Harbor is an Oakland County lake suburb with both crappy areas and nicer lakefront areas (and WB schools), Garden City is a working class Wayne County suburb probably slightly less desirable than Riverview or Frasier, but slightly more desirable than Center Line.

[Geo-Aggie]

Originally Posted by usroute10

Thanks, I look forward to your helpful answer.

Lol, "helpful answer..."

Originally Posted by NOLA101

...I seriously doubt you're considering these areas and are probably trolling, but sure...

I think the point was that you often come across as a troll so... no, no, I'm just feeding, you know what? Nevermind. Thanks for your input. I'm sure some people find it helpful, I just hope they all read the mountain of posts here that tend to conflict with yours. You been to Center Line lately? Or... just decided it's a "crappy suburb" based on your personal interpretation of some half-decade old census numbers and that mountain of preconceived notions you hold strongly to?

[NOLA101]

Originally Posted by Geo-Aggie

You been to Center Line lately?

No, I haven't. Why would that be helpful?

Are you saying I should ignore actual data and "visit", as if going to a Center Line Applebees will suddenly avail me of the "secret" Census data hidden under the nachos?

Originally Posted by Geo-Aggie

Or... just decided it's a "crappy suburb" based on your personal interpretation of some half-decade old census numbers and that mountain of preconceived notions you hold strongly to?

Actually, yeah. That's exactly how I decided.

How do you suggest I judge a town, if not by using data and inference?