Lansing Charter Township, Michigan

Lansing Charter Township is a charter township of Ingham County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 8,143 at the 2020 census.

History

The first white settler to purchase land in the township was Jacob F. Cooley in 1837. The township was organized in 1842 in the northwest corner of Ingham County and was named after Lansing, New York – the hometown of one of the township's original settlers. The township experienced its first loss of land in 1859 when the unincorporated settlement of Lansing officially incorporated as a city out of seven square miles near the center of the township.

On April 1, 1963, township voters voted to become a charter township, which provides for streamlined administration, expanded taxing authority, and added protection from annexation.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of , of which is land and (2.52%) is water.

Description

The cities of Lansing and East Lansing have incorporated much of the land that formerly constituted the township reducing the township from its original to its current in six disconnected land areas.

The western section of the township is the largest, and traditionally included many of the township's industrial developments, including the large General Motors Lansing Craft Center and neighboring Lansing Metal Center automobile factories, both of which were closed in early 2006 and demolished in 2008. A Superfund site, the former site of Adams Plating, is also located in this part of the township. Also in the western part are the former Waverly Golf Course and the adjacent Michigan Avenue Park. The properties were sold for commercial and residential redevelopment in 2018. The CDP (census-designated place) of Edgemont Park is also located in this section of the township north of Saginaw Street (M-43) .

The northeastern section of the township is heavily industrialized west of Wood Road. However, since 2002, the area east of Wood Road has been developed as the 'downtown' of the township with the construction of the Eastwood Towne Center, one of the largest shopping malls in Metropolitan Lansing. The township created the Lansing Township Downtown Development Authority (DDA) in May 2003 to capture local property taxes for infrastructure development of the district.

The eastern sections of the township are mostly residential neighborhoods, though commercial development lines Grand River Avenue, Michigan Avenue, Kalamazoo Street and both sides of US-127. The northern portions of these sections include parts of the Groesbeck neighborhood north of Grand River Avenue and east of Wood Road. The southern portion includes part of the Urbandale neighborhood.

The southeastern section of the township is zoned exclusively for agricultural development, and contains research farms for Michigan State University, including the Dairy Cattle Teaching and Research Center, Horse Teaching and Research Center, Entomology Field Research Lab, and Botany Field Research Lab.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the census of 2020, there were 8,143 people in the township. The population density was . There were 4,397 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the township was 68.3% White (66.7 non-hispanic White), 13.5% African American, 0.6% Native American, 2.9% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 3.5% from other races, and 11.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 12.8% of the population.

2010 census

As of the census

Education

School districts covering sections of the township include Lansing Public School District and Waverly Community Schools.

Parts of Michigan State University extend into this township. The Dairy Cattle Teaching and Research Center and the Horse Teaching and Research Center are located in this township.

References

External links

Official Website of the Charter Township of Lansing
Eastwood Downtown Development Authority