The Community of Plymouth Township

July 2009 - Money Magazine Names Plymouth Township #28 on their Top 100 Best Places to Live

Plymouth Township named one of Relocate-Americas Top 100 in 2009
See Relocate America article in Plymouth Observer from April 26, 2009

Plymouth Township named 37th Best Place to Live by Money magazine 2007. 

See related article in September 2007 issue of Michigan Township News.

Plymouth Chamber of Commerce website

To get the most recent demographic information for Plymouth Township, follow the link to the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments (SEMCOG): http://www.semcog.org/Data/Apps/comprof/people.cfm?cpid=1145

Plymouth Township is blessed with many advantages: Location, access to major freeways, world-class industrial parks and high quality housing development. Plymouth Township has experienced steady growth since 1993. In order to maintain the high quality of developments, the Township has been very selective about the types of development being encouraged.

For a detailed map of Plymouth or for driving directions, click here to view the Yahoo! Map in the Maps page of the website.

Many people may not be aware that the City of Plymouth and Plymouth Township are two individual communities with their own governments and so they think of the Plymouth Community as having both the "nice quaint downtown" and the "world class industrial parks". Plymouth Township is 16.6 square miles in the western part of Wayne County. In 2010, the Township had a population of 27,524. The City occupies 2.27 square miles in the middle of the Township. Established in 1827, in 2012 Plymouth Township celebrated its 185th year anniversary.

Plymouth Township is a well-planned community that has developed around the "golden corridor" of Western Wayne County, along the M-14 freeway. Much of the new commercial development is concentrated in industrial parks in this area. The DeMattia Corporation has built several high-tech industrial parks along the M-14 corridor between Ridge and Sheldon Roads. The Metro West Industrial Parks house over eighty businesses, including Freudenberg NOK, a major supplier to the auto industry, as well as TRAM, Valassis and SKF operations.

Although much of the high tech businesses are locating in the new industrial parks, there is considerable industrial development in other parts of Plymouth Township. There is also considerable residential development in Plymouth Township. People are attracted to Plymouth Township because of the upscale housing in attractive subdivisions, and proximity to freeways and employment opportunities. Plymouth Township also has one of the lowest tax rates in Wayne County.

The Township Board recognizes the importance of open space and providing recreational infrastructure. The Plymouth Township Park at Ann Arbor Trail and McClumpha consists of eighty acres and includes a playscape, four premier Little League baseball diamonds with new fences, a very popular meandering walking path with trails up to one mile long, a pond for fishing and sledding hills for both children and adults.   A "Sprayscape" feature opened in June 2003.  The park is adjacent to an 18-hole golf course, owned by the Township. The Township has also built a dock to enable handicapped access to the pond.

Although the Township Park is the largest park, the Township is developing parks in other areas. The Township recently developed a three and a half acre neighborhood park on Ann Arbor Trail, east of Haggerty. Miller Family Park was dedicated on July 2, 2002. The Township recently constructed a premier soccer park on Haggerty Road north of Schoolcraft, called Lake Pointe Soccer Park.  This Park has two irrigated soccer fields and a play area. 
 

The Compuware Company developed a first class ice arena on Beck Road which is home to the Plymouth Whalers Hockey Team. This facility is also open to the general public for ice skating and other activities, such as concerts. It also houses an excellent restaurant, CJ's Brewing Company Taproom.

The St. Johns Seminary and Golf Course on Five Mile Road is another example of a private/public partnership. The Seminary property is owned by the Archdiocese of Detroit and had not been used for some time. Mr. Pulte of the Pulte Corporation personally developed a master plan for the property as a retreat, convention center, golf course and golf school. As a result, the property has been modernized, keeping the original architecture and is once again being used to its full potential.  The Inn at St. John’s, a 118-room luxury hotel, opened in 2006 and is host to the Concours d’Elegance of America at St. John’s.

The Township is also looking at expanding senior programs at the "Friendship Station", a facility for the senior population. Renovations on the building, including new restroom facilities and new windows, were completed in 2003.  Current organized activities include monthly dinners, line dancing, fitness classes and card playing.

Plymouth Township has a particularly close relationship with the City of Plymouth. The two communities are working on many projects together that will benefit both of them. One of the most important is the Ann Arbor Road Corridor Ordinance that was adopted by both the City and Township several years ago. This creates a seamless transition between the two communities and makes the area more attractive. The two communities are also looking at making other improvements to Ann Arbor Road, which is an important entry point for both the City and Township.  A second phase of Ann Arbor Road corridor streetscape improvements, between Sheldon Road and General Drive is in the planning stages and will be proposed to the Downtown Development Authority. Improvements include the ornamental fence, stamped concrete verge, landscaping and street trees similar to that previously completed along Ann Arbor Road
                                         between Eckles and Haggerty.

Plymouth Township is a growing community, but the growth is being carefully monitored so that it enhances the developments of the past. The Township Board believes in providing the infrastructure to encourage new development and encouraging other groups to take a role so that taxes can be kept down. As a result, the Township is working with neighboring communities and the private sector in partnerships for development. The Board of Trustees feels that by being fiscally responsible, Plymouth Township will continue to be as successful in the future as it has been in the past.