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I spent all but the last 3+ years of my life in Michigan ... had to leave when I lost my job. My wife and I are both MI natives and are looking to leave the DC area in a few more years. We're leaning toward moving to the Pacific Northwest ... but for some reason, Grosse Ile popped into my head this morning.
Now, I doubt at this point that we'd ever move there, but Grosse Ile has always intrigued me. Can anyone tell me what the island is like? Good neighborhoods? Upscale, I assume? Is housing reasonable or astronomical? And what's it like getting on and off the island in the wintertime?
Figured I'd ask, in case either of us gets a wild hair to move back home one of these days. It's a place my wife used to live near, but neither one of us has actually ever spent any time there.
I've only been to Grosse Ile once, but my impression was that it is a more exclusive community. There are a lot of very nice large homes (very well maintained) and the fact that you know you're on an island makes it seem very private. I'm sure the homes are rather pricey, but nothing compared to the pacific northwest. I know that Seattle and Portland are certainly not cheap. The average home price is well over 300k. If that is in your budget, then you are lucky and would probably be very happy up in WA/OR. Western and Coastal Oregon is infinitely more green than Grosse Ile, but it also has mountains, lakes and a beautiful coastline to augment.
Jobs, especially tech-based/web/interactive/creative, are plentiful out there. There are tremendous opportunities for a year round outdoor lifestyle in the Pac NW. You can't trade the scenery and lifestyle for anything else anywhere else, except maybe cost of living. Watch out for earthquakes and subsequent falling home prices. Well it's tornadoes and snow in the Midwest.
My wife is sick and tired of us moving around and wants to settle down. We've actually been thinking about Western Michigan – Holland/GR/St. Josephs.
I've only been to Grosse Ile once, but my impression was that it is a more exclusive community. There are a lot of very nice large homes (very well maintained) and the fact that you know you're on an island makes it seem very private. I'm sure the homes are rather pricey, but nothing compared to the pacific northwest. I know that Seattle and Portland are certainly not cheap. The average home price is well over 300k. If that is in your budget, then you are lucky and would probably be very happy up in WA/OR. Western and Coastal Oregon is infinitely more green than Grosse Ile, but it also has mountains, lakes and a beautiful coastline to augment.
Jobs, especially tech-based/web/interactive/creative, are plentiful out there. There are tremendous opportunities for a year round outdoor lifestyle in the Pac NW. You can't trade the scenery and lifestyle for anything else anywhere else, except maybe cost of living. Watch out for earthquakes and subsequent falling home prices. Well it's tornadoes and snow in the Midwest.
I appreciate the input! We've been doing quite a bit of homework on the PacNW and are looking right now at the Portland area. I really don't know what our housing budget will be like, but I'd imagine we'd be looking at $300K at the very highest end. We're not extravagant people ... we just want to live comfortably. The idea of an island appeals to me for the privacy aspect ... and it would be a way to come "back home" for both of us. But we shall see.
Quote:
Originally Posted by virgokid1
My wife is sick and tired of us moving around and wants to settle down. We've actually been thinking about Western Michigan – Holland/GR/St. Josephs.
St. Joe is a nice community. I went to college in Kalamazoo and loved it there, and I lived in Niles (just north of the IN state line) before my wife and I moved out here to VA. It's certainly a nice part of the state. I hope you find what you're looking for out there.
I have a good friend who lives on the island. It's no more private than most other places in michigan. They are doing some work on the free bridge right now, so the pay bridge can get pretty busy during commute times. There are very high end communities on the island, and normal working class as well. My friend bought a small house for a reasonable price a few years ago, I think it was in the vicinity of one fifty. Has a two car detached garage, but the square footage is pretty low. They like it that way, so it suited them fine.
It's a nice place to live for sure, if you don't mind the toll bridge, or that you are not just down the road from most major conveniences. It's all perspective I guess. No noisy highway at least.
We lived on Grosse Ile for 16 years; raised our 4 boys there. We moved 11 years ago for a new job. I still miss it terribly.
It is a self-contained township about 1 mi. across and 8 miles long (if I remember the length correctly). Because it was a township our boys attended school K-12 right there on the Island. Great schools! When we were there over 90% of GI grads went on to higher education.
It has a Krogers, Nates Deli, several pizza shops, restaurants and 2 gas stations all on McComb St. The bridges generally are no problem unless they open to let someone's sailboat thru or a freighter. Then, you wait. But, even rush hour traffic wasn't awful.
As a previous poster noted, there are many high-end neighborhoods, but some very basic, blue collar ones also. Everyone melds together regardless of economic status because you can only fit so many people on a small island, everyone knows, or knows of, one another. I do not think, however, you will find a home in the mid-100's or even low 200's. When we moved our house was 35 years old, typical 4 bdrm/2 1/2 bath colonial, with brick and aluminum siding. We sold that 2500 sf home for $250, and I believe that 11 years ago the smaller homes that were built during WW2 for the coast guard and Air Station were selling in the 100's.
It is a wonderful place to live, accessible in minutes to anyplace in the metro area you want to go, yet removed from the traffic and hustle-bustle of across the river.
I miss driving down East River Rd. in any season and admiring the beautiful waterfront with Canada just on the other side. It was stupendous in the winter with the huge frozen chunks of ice creeping up to shore and splendid in the summer with the waterfowl and boaters competing for the best waterway.
If you move there I think that you will instantly feel at home and fall in love with the charm of the Island.
We moved from Orange county CA to Grosse Ile 2 years ago. We think it is a wonderful place. There are positives and negative like anywhere here is a list for you:
Positives:
Great Schools
open space (woods) maintained by township.
Living on an island.
Great community.
loads of wildlife.
very low crime rate.
comparatively quiet.
Boating. If you do not have a boat, you will know someone who does.
Active community.
4 country clubs.
3 yacht clubs.
small community
The township owns and maintains: a centennial farm (horseback riding, dog park and community events); a sledding hill; a soccer/baseball field; a small hobbiest airport; a country club including a marina; over 600 acres of greenspace scattered around the island;
You can find residences in every price range. Water front homes range from the $400,000 into the multiple millions. Some homes on the canals are cheaper. You can find canal homes in the low $300,000s. Homes with no water access at all range into the mid $200,000s, some small homes are cheaper. Condos run down below $100,000. the market is terrible right now. Houses are comparatively cheap.
The bridges really are not a problem. Even with the free bridge closed it is not terrible. The toll bridge gets pricey ($3 round trip). A bigger problem is the train in Trenton and Wyanodtte. You learn to find routes that go over or under the tracks. Otherwise you could be in for a very lengthy wait if you are unlucky.
Close to Detroit and Detroit Metro airport.
Wonderful houses for a small price (compared to Orange County).
The negatives:
repressed economy (all of SE. Michigan).
Small town - every knows your business.
Sometimes repressive government.
Winters that never end.
If you want to leave, you cannot sell your house.
Yellowjackets.
It's a fun place to visit, I've watched the sunrise one morning on a spur of the moment idea. I used to have family friends who lived on there and the neighbors really do get close to each other.
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The idea of an island appeals to me for the privacy aspect ... and it would be a way to come "back home" for both of us. But we shall see.
I lived on Grosse Ile for 16 years
Grosse Ile Living
