Despite being surrounded by sandy beaches and perpetual sunlight, Erika Brown-Binion vowed to return to mid-Michigan from Long Beach, California.
Her then-boyfriend and now-husband, Andre Binion, had little choice in the matter, either.
"It was a pre-qualifier in marrying me," says Brown-Binion, 31, who stayed true to her word after the birth of the couple's first child, Charlotte, nine months ago.
Brown-Binion, an elementary school teacher and reading specialist who now lives in East Lansing, yearned for someplace quieter, smaller and more community-oriented. And the Flint, MI, native already knew the ideal setting.
West Coast to North CoastLike many young couples who have transplanted themselves in Michigan, Brown-Binion and Binion moved to the Lansing area because they see vast opportunity without the big-city hassle and hustle.
Those who have relocated here within the past year immediately cite the cheaper cost of living, less congestion and an overall community spirit as being pleasant surprises.
Those assessments come from those who transferred from perceived hip-and-happening places like California's Bay Area, Boston and Chicago.
In Brown-Binion's case, ease on the wallet can be summed up by the fact a two-bedroom house in the Long Beach area goes for $700,000.
“That's something I would never be able to afford on a teacher's salary and my husband's job,” says Brown-Binion, whose husband works at
Troppo in Downtown Lansing, and at
UPS. (In Lansing, you can get a nice, two-bedroom house for less than a quarter of that price.)
“I'll go back [to California] and visit, but I would never be able to raise my baby there" she says. "I would never be able to have the lifestyle I would want for my child there: To have a house, a yard and a community school. It's just different."
Another Californian who transplanted to East Lansing, Sarah Reckhow, is amazed at how easy it is to meet people and maneuver around the Lansing area. She moved from Berkley, California, in the summer after her husband, Matt Grossmann, accepted a teaching job at
MSU.
One big difference between the Bay Area and Lansing is the traffic, says Reckhow, 28, a University of California-Berkley grad student who is working on her dissertation.
“Just ordinary errands would sometimes take way too long,” she says. “Even getting around the city of Berkley was difficult.”
“Here, I can't say I've experienced anything that I would consider traffic. Maybe Grand River Avenue at 5 p.m., but. . . .”
An avid runner, Reckhow has plugged into the area's running community. She took part in the
Capital City River Run, the Relay for Life half-marathon and the Super Bowl 5K in Okemos.
Despite being plucked from California's wine country, Reckhow says East Lansing’s
Goodrich's Shop Rite grocery store is a good substitute. More so, she marvels at the willingness of people to extend a vine of friendship.
“We really felt that people here have a lack of pretension and an openness about them,” she says. “We had wonderful friends in the Bay Area, but there is something very welcoming about this area.”
Hot Job HopscotchBret Hitchcock, who moved to Lansing from Chicago last summer, found an apartment for $600—less than half of what he was paying for rent in the Windy City.
The
Liquid Web sales engineer is also giddy about no longer having to pay Chicagoland's onerous 10.25-percent sales tax, or being stuck for a $12 movie ticket.
“You have sticker shock when you move here, but in a reverse way,” says Hitchcock, 27, who is a College Station, Texas native.
Hitchcock's employer is a Lansing-area Web hosting provider, which has experienced phenomenal growth since opening in 1997.
When Hitchcock arrived in May 2007, Liquid Web had 50 people on staff. That's since grown to 120 employees in less than a year, and the company is looking to add a third 100,000-square-foot data center to accommodate this year’s estimated 60 to 100 percent growth.
Such growth prompted Hitchcock to leave his Chicago-based job as an account manager for
CDW, a Fortune 500 company, to join Liquid Web.
“I thought it was a great opportunity to grow my career,” Hitchcock says.
Spousal support rather than career aspirations brought graphic designer Dottie Zimmerman to Lansing in July. Her husband, Matt Zimmerman, started medical school at
MSU last fall.
“So it wasn't by choice,” says Zimmerman, 24, who now lives near the Frandor shopping area in Lansing. “But I've been pleasantly surprised by how much Lansing has to offer.”
Zimmerman was skeptical about the graphic design opportunities that would be available in Mid-Michigan. Then she learned about
Old Town, a bustling creative hub in Lansing where small boutiques, eateries and design firms proliferate. She landed a job at
Ciesa Design in the historic Old Town district.
Arts and CultureOld Town shares similarities to
The Loop in Zimmerman’s native St. Louis—a neighborhood that hosts many after-work hotspots.
Old Town, too, has plenty of access to art and entertainment. Last summer, Zimmerman and her husband hit up Old Town's
JazzFest and
Oktoberfest, which got them excited for festivals they missed.
“I missed a lot of the summer festivals, so I'm pretty excited about those,” Zimmerman says. “
Festival of the Moon (June 20) and
Festival of the Sun (June 21) are coming up in Old Town.”
Amira Resnick echoes those sentiments, and she has the perspective of living in two areas considered hot spots for young professionals. She grew up in Madison, Wisconsin, before living in Boston's
Jamaica Plain neighborhood.
Resnick went to Boston after graduating from the
University of Michigan, but joined her boyfriend, artist Ian Conway, in his hometown last summer. Conway is from East Lansing, but the couple now lives in Lansing's
REO Town.
“It's taken some time, but the city has really grown on me,” says Resnick, 26, who works at
Telamon, which assists families of migrant farm workers. “I like that people have lived here a long time and seem to care about the community, although it has its struggles.”
Lansing’s attracting young talent and once they get here—whether by choice or circumstance—they see the advantages of big town amenities in a bustling mid-sized city.
Larry O'Connor is a freelance writer whose work appears regularly in the
Battle Creek Enquirer,
Jackson Magazine and
Michigan Hockey Magazine.
Dave Trumpie is the managing photographer for Capital Gains. He is a freelance photographer and owner of Trumpie Photography.
Photos:
Erika Brown-Binion & Andre Binion
Erika Brown-Binion & Andre Binion with daughter Charlotte
Sarah Reckhow
Bret Hitchcock
Dottie Zimmerman
All Photographs © Dave Trumpie