How East Lansing Has Grown

The beginning of something wonderful came to the "Collegeville" area on May 8, 1907.

With its incorporation, the City of East Lansing became a place of unstoppable growth in both its resident and student population. Families began to call East Lansing home, and soon the City was a growing and flourishing college community.

In the 100 years that the City of East Lansing has grown and thrived, education has been at the heart of the community. The school district grew rapidly after East Lansing, and in 1926 East Lansing High School was built to help ease the overcrowding in other schools.

The 1920s gave rise to many other new buildings in East Lansing as well. The East Lansing State Bank moved to a new building in 1927 and the State Theater was built in 1928. The East Lansing Post Office was moved off campus to Grand River Avenue in 1923, and by the 1930s it was hard to deny that East Lansing was changing from a small town to a City of prosperity.

As the East Lansing population grew, so did its need for a larger place of worship. The Peoples Church congregation began in 1907. The original Peoples Church, a $17,000 project, was completed in 1911. The building was quickly outgrown, and by May 1926, a new People's Church was built on Grand River Avenue across from the beautiful Michigan State University campus.

In 1944 the City made another historic step towards becoming the City it is today. The City Charter was revised, changing East Lansing from a Fourth Class City to a Home Rule City. Five Councilmembers were elected rather than four, and of those members one would be appointed Mayor. In addition, Council would also appoint a City Manager and City Attorney to look after the best interests of the community.

The City's population again rose rapidly after World War II. The influx of World War II veterans was one of the most important factors that helped to transform East Lansing from the town it was into the town it is today. The WWII veterans were able to attend Michigan State College through G.I. Bill funding, and most G.I.s stayed in East Lansing after their schooling was finished. The return of the G.I.s from WWII put enormous strains on housing, for there was virtually no significant off-campus housing available for the returning soldiers (an estimated 3,600 soldiers made their home in East Lansing by the spring of 1946). MSC President John Hannah embarked on a massive temporary housing construction project that saw trailers, Quonset Huts, barracks and other housing constructed on the area where the Breslin Student Events Center and Munn Ice Arena are now located.

The population was not the only thing in East Lansing that was growing though; East Lansing's acreage was too. In 1958 and 1959 the neighborhoods that are now known as Pinecrest, Whitehills, Marble, East Bailey and the Red Cedar were annexed into the City. Several additional areas were annexed into the City in the 1960s through 1980s, and following those annexations the next large scale growth occurred in the 1990s when an additional 1,130 acres were annexed. Since 2000, the annexation of 1,400 acres has also added to the City's growing land area.

Another significant event in East Lansing's history occurred in 1969 when East Lansing voters approved the sale of liquor by the glass in hopes of attracting a major hotel to the City. With the sale of alcohol came many new restaurant/bars, and in 1988 the much anticipated hotel arrived. The 180-room Holiday Inn opened for business in October 1988. New businesses and hotels brought with them a much more active and social night life for East Lansing residents.

City Center I, a complex which replaced the old Knapps Department Store at M.A.C. Avenue and Albert Avenue, was completed in 2001. It included almost 40,000 square feet of retail, along with 39 owner-occupied condominium units on the top three floors. Along with this, a new 692-space parking facility replaced the former parking structure that was built in 1968 as part of the former Jacobson's Department store.

In 2001, the East Lansing Aquatic Center was constructed on Abbott Road, north of Lake Lansing Road, as part of a $3.5 million bond issue passed by voters. By this time the former East Lansing High School had been converted into a community center. As part of the new recreational facilities, a seven-field soccer complex was developed across from Chandler Road to the west. A softball complex was also completed at this time next to the Aquatic Center.

In 2002, Hawk Nest, a 453-unit, single-family home development began construction in the area just south of State Road (west of the old Davis Airport which closed in 2000). Eagle Eye, an upscale condominium development, began construction just north of Hawk Nest in 2003.

Since 2000, the City has grown by 2.23 square miles, to a total of 13.49 square miles. This was accomplished through various Act 425 Agreements and annexations.

Chandler Office Park along Coolidge Road is currently under construction and its major tenants include MSU Federal Credit Union and Mercantile Bank headquarters.

Finally, East Village, the area bounded by E. Grand River Ave., Hagadorn Road, Red Cedar River and Bogue St. was rezoned for mixed use development. The development will consist of condominiums, apartments and retail. East Village will be developed under a new innovative zoning concept called Form Based Code.