Neighboring Communities
Detroit | Harper Woods |
St. Clair Shores
Detroit, Michigan
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Renaissance Center |
Grosse Pointe’s neighbor, the City of Detroit is the
eleventh largest city in the United States. While at times
maligned, the City of Detroit remains one of the most
exciting and beautiful cities in the country. The population
of the city itself dropped to under 800,000 according to the
2010 U.S. Census. This may be attributed to a number of
factors including the recent recession, automotive companies
restructuring, management of the city’s assets including its
schools and the gradual movement of Detroiters to the
suburbs. Whatever the reasons, when Grosse Pointers vacation
away from the area, they proudly state that they are from
“Detroit”. Detroit has a gorgeous waterfront that has been
revitalized over the past few years and includes miles of
walkways along the river. Detroit was founded by Antoine
Cadillac over three hundred years ago and the French
translation of Detroit is “of the strait”. The Detroit River
connects two of the five Great Lakes, Lake Erie and Lake
Huron through Lake St. Clair and the St. Clair River. The
water has played an important part in the history and
development of Detroit. Our current leaders are looking to
create a more vibrant city by emphasizing its geography as a
waterfront city and its position as the southern neighbor to
Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Crossing the border to Canada is
still quite simple but does require either a passport, Nexus
card or enhanced driver’s license due to the restrictions
imposed since 9/11. Detroit is home to three major
professional teams: The Detroit Red Wings, Detroit Tigers
and Detroit Lions. The Detroit Pistons were just sold and
their home is in Auburn Hills, another Detroit suburb.
Detroit is a huge sport’s town and even thought the teams
may not have winning seasons, fans are still in love with
their teams! Detroit is also home to three casinos, too. The
casinos are more than just gambling facilities! There are
new hotels associated with each one and fabulous
restaurants.
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Comerica Park |
Grosse Pointe is an easy commute to downtown Detroit.
Whether you take Jefferson Avenue, I-94 to I-75 or The
Lodge, or public transportation, it is only about fifteen
minutes. That means that Grosse Pointers may take advantage
of all of the fabulous elements that are just minutes away.
The Detroit Institute of Arts, the Detroit Historical
Museum, The Detroit Science Center, The Motown Museum, The
Dossin Museum on Belle Isle, The Detroit Symphony, The
Detroit Opera House, The Fox Theater, The Renaissance
Center, Cobo Hall, Gem Theater, Masonic Temple Theater,
Fisher Theater, Bonstelle Theater Hart Plaza, and
exceptional four star restaurants are located throughout the
city. Greektown, Corktown, Mexican Town, Midtown and the New
Center neighborhoods are also vibrant areas. Detroit is also
home to several major medical facilities including Henry
Ford Hospital, Detroit Medical Center, St. John Hospital and
satellite facilities for Beaumont Hospital and University of
Michigan. Grosse Pointe has the best of all worlds! We’re
able to take advantage of all the big city amenities in our
small city environment!
Festivals are held all summer long and emphasize our
diverse heritage. They are complemented by music, food and
entertainment in a great waterfront setting. Want to get
around the city easily? Try the People Mover which loops
around the business/entertainment district and is very fun,
too! Beautiful historic churches also are scattered
throughout the city. There are also exceptional
universities, Wayne State , and colleges, College for
Creative Studies and Marygrove College, within the city
limits. So much to offer and just a few miles from downtown
Grosse Pointe, Detroit is a great venue! If you would like
additional resources and information, here are a few
websites to visit:
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Harper Woods
This small city located on the western edge of Grosse
Pointe was named Harper Woods because of its woods and its
major street, Harper. It is comprised of 2.7 miles of land
and is divided by I-94, a major expressway in southeast
Michigan. Harper Woods has 14,254 residents according to the
U.S. 2010 Census figures. Harper Woods has two schools
systems. The recently built Harper Woods High School has
incorporated twenty first century educational aspects in its
new design. A portion of Harper Woods is located in the
Grosse Pointe School District. A large mall, Eastland,
provides shopping and restaurants for the area. Unlike its
Grosse Pointe neighbor, Harper Woods does not have any
portion of its city located on Lake St. Clair. Some
additional information may be found at:
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St. Clair Shores
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Jefferson Beach |
Grosse Pointe’s neighbor to the north is St. Clair
Shores. A lovely waterfront community, St. Clair Shores
boasts 59,715 residents according to the 2010 U.S. Census.
Located along the shores of Lake St. Clair, this diverse
community provides 11.5 square miles of land area and 2.7
square miles of water just 13 miles from downtown Detroit.
One of the most salient features of the community is that it
provides approximately 14 miles of canals. St. Clair Shores
is proud of its French heritage and one of the neighboring
area’s school districts, L’anse Creuse, takes its name from
the original name of St. Clair Shores. There are three
school systems in St. Clair Shores, including Lake Shore,
Lakeview and South Lake. One of the fond memories of St.
Clair Shores was its amusement park, Jefferson Beach, which
was the home to the longest roller coaster in the United
States at the time. Destroyed by fire, Jefferson Beach
evolved into a marina and is one of many such facilities
along Lake St. Clair. The “Nautical Mile” which is just
north of Grosse Pointe between Nine and Ten Mile Roads, is
home to many fine restaurants and bars. Docking is available
at many of these restaurants. More information about St.
Clair Shores may be found at the following sites:
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Fishbone's in St Clair Shores |
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