Talk:Metro Detroit

WOW... that was fast, this site rules (just found it)

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Defining "Metro Detroit" as the tri-counties of Wayne, Oakland and Macomb seems time-honored by many of its residents, but the US Census views it on a much broader scale...

According to the US Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) of Detroit, Michigan, in the year 2000, included the counties of Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Lapeer, Monroe and St. Clair.

A separate MSA, centered on Ann Arbor, included the counties of Washtenaw, Lenawee and Livingston.

A third MSA, centered on Flint, consisted solely of Genessee County.

Together, the three MSAs comprised the Consolidated Metropolitan Statistical Area of Detroit-Ann Arbor-Flint. With a total population of 5,456,428 (US Census 2000), it ranked eighth in size in the nation.

In December 2003, the OMB, as is the wont of any bureaucracy, redefined everything...

Now, the Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI Metropolitan Statistical Area consists of two Metropolitan Divisions: Detroit-Livonia-Taylor, i.e. Wayne County; and Warren-Farmington Hills-Troy, comprising the counties of Lapeer, Livingston, Macomb, Oakland and St, Clair.

Ann Arbor and Flint are still separate Metropolitan Statistical Areas, each comprising its home county of Washtenaw and Genessee, respectively. Livingston County is now part of the Detroit-Warren-Livonia MSA. Lenawee and Monroe Counties are now found within the newly-formed "Micropolitan" Statistical Areas of Adrian and Monroe, MI, respectively.

Got that?

All (except for the Adrian MicroSA) are combined within the newly-defined Detroit-Ann Arbor-Flint, MI Combined Statistical Area, whose 2003 estimated population was 5,516,124.

You might consider updating the "Metro Detroit" entry to reflect this broader picture. I don't consider myself familiar enough with Wiki editing to attempt such an effort at this time. But I would be willing to help. 24.14.44.242 19:34, 24 Jul 2004 (UTC)thomrae

Thanks, will fix accordingly. Gsgeorge 20:05, 24 Jul 2004 (UTC)

Anchor cities

It was my understanding that the only anchor cities were the ones defined by the census bureau, that is: Ann Arbor, Detroit, Flint, Livonia, Monroe, and Warren. Just because a city has a large population (like Lincoln Park, Port Huron) does not necessarily mean it is an anchor city. Could we get an official word on this before we go about changing it? For the record, the census.gov website lists the Detroit CMSA as a combination of these Metropolitan areas:

Detroit-Warren-Flint, MI Combined Statistical Area

 Ann Arbor, MI Metropolitan Statistical Area
 Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI Metropolitan Statistical Area (also includes Dearborn, Farmington Hills, Troy, Southfield, Pontiac, Taylor)
 Flint, MI Metropolitan Statistical Area
 Monroe, MI Micropolitan Statistical Area

That puts the total (at most) to: Ann Arbor, Dearborn, Detroit, Farmington, Flint, Livonia, Monroe, Pontiac, Southfield, Taylor, Troy, and Warren.

If I'm the confused one, let me know. But I just want to be sure we have it right.

- Gsgeorge 15:35, 29 Aug 2004 (UTC)

I'd say you are correct, at least if we are using anchor cities as a term defined by the U.S. Census. Which makes sense, since I'm not aware of other common usage. However, I'm a little concerned that we're letting the definition of Metro Detroit be hijacked by the U.S. Census. I kind of think there should be a separate definition of Metro Detroit as it is commonly understood by most people living in the area. I mean, to include places like Manchester in southwest Washtenaw County or Fowlerville in west Livingston County within Metro Detroit just doesn't make much sense from an ordinary (non-Census) perspective. Same goes for places in outlying areas of Lapeer and St. Clair counties. Actually, I'd be kind of surprised if anyone in Lapeer County thought of themselves as living in Metro Detroit. I think it is fine to talk about the CMSA in terms of national ranking--but I think the common understanding of Metro Detroit is closer to the Detroit-Warren-Livonia MSA. User:Bkonrad/sig 17:25, 29 Aug 2004 (UTC)

I absolutely agree. I always thought the actual definition of Metro Detroit was a bit too broad. I have several friends in Lapeer and they mostly consider themselves part of a Flint metro area. Before I knew of the census definition, I always though "Metro Detroit" was essentially the Tri-County area of Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb counties--and nothing else. Perhaps we can edit this article to reflect both the ordinary (non-Census) and Census definitions. I always thought the article should delve a bit deeper into the culture of the area, rather than just numbers and statistics. Detroit is unique in that most people living in Oakland and Macomb counties consider themselves "Detroiters," and this article should show that. - Gsgeorge 20:07, 29 Aug 2004 (UTC)

I too tend to think of the tri-county area as comprising Metro Detroit. But then I grew up in Birmingham in the 1950s-70s. The reality, however, is that most of the growth taking place today in the next ring of counties--especially in St. Clair, Livingston, and Lapeer--is an extension of suburban Detroit. These new residents identify more strongly with Detroit than with Port Huron, Howell or Flint. The OMB also seems to recognize the quandary this has fomented. They now have a category intended to clarify (or further muddy, depending on your point of view) the census waters of Metro Detroit that acknowledges "local opinions."

Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area – A geographic entity defined by the Federal OMB for use by Federal statistical agencies. If an area meets the requirements to qualify as a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) and has a population of one million or more, two or more PMSAs may be defined within it if statistical criteria are met and local opinion is in favor. A PMSA consists of a large urbanized county, or a cluster of such counties (cities and towns in New England) that have substantial commuting interchange. When one or more PMSAs have been recognized, the balance of the original, larger area becomes an additional PMSA; the larger area of which they are components then is designated a consolidated metropolitan statistical area CMSA).

Detroit, Ann Arbor and Flint are all PMSAs within the larger CMSA. Here's a link to the data on the Detroit PMSA (http://www.census.gov/acs/www/Products/Profiles/Single/2003/ACS/Tabular/385/38500US216221601.htm).

What's not clear in this data, however, is just what counties the Detroit PMSA includes.

T Garth 06:09, 30 Aug 2004 (UTC)

Telegraph Road

Can anyone cite any info that the Dire Straits were talking about Telegraph Road of US 24 fame?

Found one website but I am not sure. Seems like it would be weird for an Englishman to write about Telegraph, and the lyrics itself only partially fit--for instance, there are no ore mines nearby. Here's the link: http://www.knopfler.net/telegraph_road/telegraph.html

Upon further reading, it appears that Yes Virginia, he did mean good ol' Telegraph. Kinda neat that someone wrote a famous song about a road I drive on all the time. :)

Southeast Michigan

I've created a new Southeast Michigan article. Some info here might be better suited for that article. While it's debatable whether all of the counties colored in on that map are truly part of "Metro Detroit," they can all (with the possible exception of Genesee) be safely considered part of SE Michigan. Funnyhat 05:56, 21 Jun 2005 (UTC)