Cedar Springs, Michigan

Cedar Springs, Michigan
—  City  —
Location of Cedar Springs, Michigan
Coordinates: 43°13′20″N 85°33′7″W
Country	United States
State	Michigan
County	Kent
Area
• Total	1.8 sq mi (4.8 km2)
• Land	1.8 sq mi (4.7 km2)
• Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	856 ft (261 m)
Population (2000)
• Total	3,112
• Density	1,701.9/sq mi (657.1/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	49319
Area code(s)	616
FIPS code	26-14200
GNIS feature ID	0622953

Cedar Springs is a city in Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan, 20 minutes north of Grand Rapids. Known as "Red Flannel Town", the city is home to an annual Red Flannel Festival. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 3,112.

The city's official mission statement is "The City of Cedar Springs strives to be a great place to live, work and play."

History

Established as a lumber town in 1856, Cedar Springs boasted numerous lumber and shingle mills. The town was the northern terminus of the Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad for two years and also was the crossing point for the east to west running Toledo, Saginaw and Muskegon Railway, which became the Grand Trunk Western Railroad, which was built through the town in 1888. The community was named for the fine springs bordered by a cedar grove.

POPULATION
Census Year	Community	County
1960	1,768	363,197
1970	1,807	411,044
1980	2,615	444,506
1990	2,600	500,631
2000	3,112	574,335

Red Flannel Festival

Cedar Springs has developed a reputation for its production of red flannels. Its popularity peaked in 1936, when the Associated Press featured an article about the town. Due to high demand, red flannel sales rose dramatically and established the town's status as the "Red Flannel Town."

Despite the closure of the Red Flannel factory in 1994, the town still holds an annual Red Flannel Festival the first weekend of October. This festival includes a marching band competition, arts and crafts fair, an entertainment tent, and several food booths. The festival closes every year with a parade featuring local high school marching bands, and floats sponsored by local businesses and organizations.

Featured in the parade is the "Red Flannel Festival Queen," a privileged high school junior selected in a pageant beforehand. The Queen is featured with her "court," the runners-up of the pageant. Each young lady must go through a traditional pageant format, similar to that of Miss. America. With an opening dance number, a speech on community involvement, and a random question on stage. The girls chosen are the brightest of the bright and bring a lot to their community. The winners receive a very generous scholarship to help with their future endeavors.

There is no charge to attend the festival, though there is an informal requirement that all attendants wear red. A group of mock-Keystone Cops drive around town during the festival and enforce this "law" by placing offenders in a portable jail. A small fee is required to leave the jail.

Economy

Taxes in Cedar Springs have remained steady at a millage rate of $15 per $1,000. Cedar Springs has a small retail business district and a burgeoning industrial base. The community has vast possibilities for future growth. Significant industry and business have been attracted to the Cedar Springs area, including Wolverine World Wide and various precision tool and die companies.

The median income for a household in the city was $39,542, and the median income for a family was $42,250. Males had a median income of $37,708 versus $23,056 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,040. About 12.4% of families and 13.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.4% of those under age 18 and 7.5% of those age 65 or over.

The two top employers in Cedar Springs are the Cedar Springs Public Schools and Wolverine World Wide. The downtown has a variety of businesses including restaurants, hair salons, car dealerships, banks, among others.

School district

The city is home to two high schools and several primary/middle schools:

• Cedar Springs High School (Students: 950 Grades: 09 - 12)
• New Beginnings Alternative High School (Students: 86 Grades: 09 - 12)
• Red Hawk Elementary School (Students: 450 Grades: 05- 06)
• Cedar Springs Middle School (Students: 753 Grades: 07 - 08)
• Cedar Trails Elementary School (Students: 568; Grades: PK - 01)
• Cedar View Elementary School (Students: 548; Grades: 02 - 04)
• Beach Elementary School (Students: 468; Grades: 02 - 04)
• Creative Technologies Academy (Students: 300; Grades: K - 12)

The city is home to the Cedar Springs Public School District which encompasses 110 square miles (280 km²) and serves the city and portions of Kent, Montcalm and Newaygo Counties. Cedar Springs Public Schools has a current enrollment of 2,768 students located on a single 100 acre (400,000 m²) campus near downtown Cedar Springs. The school system is currently completing a $27 million building and renovation project. Cedar Springs High School has North Central Accreditation.

Total General Fund Expenditure Per Pupil (RPS): $ 5,089.03

City government

• Mayor: Charlie Howard Watson
• Mayor Pro Tem: Christine Fahl
• City Manager: Christine M. Burns

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.9 square miles (4.9 km²), of which, 1.8 square miles (4.7 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km²) of it (1.08%) is water.

Demographics

Kent County is the fastest growing county in the State of Michigan according to a recent survey, its current population being over 500,000. As of the census of 2000, there were 3,112 people, 1,115 households, and 774 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,701.9 per square mile (656.6/km²). There were 1,175 housing units at an average density of 642.6 per square mile (247.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 95.85% White, 0.29% African American, 0.74% Native American, 0.45% Asian, 1.19% from other races, and 1.48% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.82% of the population. The ancestries of the city are 24% German, 14.2% American, 13.7% Dutch, 9.8% Irish, 9.5% English, and 7.4% Polish.

There were 1,115 households out of which 40.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.3% were married couples living together, 17.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.5% were non-families. 24.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.71 and the average family size was 3.17.

In the city the population was spread out with 31.3% under the age of 18, 11.6% from 18 to 24, 31.0% from 25 to 44, 15.8% from 45 to 64, and 10.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29.6 years (below state average). For every 100 females there are 89.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.5 males.

For population 25 years and over in Cedar Springs:

• High school or higher: 79.4%
• Bachelor's degree or higher: 11.7% (below state average)
• Graduate or professional degree: 3.6%
• Unemployed: 8.3%
• Mean travel time to work: 25.0 minutes

For population 15 years and over in Cedar Springs city:

• Never married: 29.8%
• Now married: 47.2%
• Separated: 2.0%
• Widowed: 6.1%
• Divorced: 14.9%

2.4% Foreign born (2.0% Latin America, 0.4% Europe).

External links

• Cedar Springs, Michigan Official Website
• Chamber of Commerce
• Cedar Springs Public Schools
• Cedar Springs Public Library
• Official Red Flannel Festival