In 2007, Kalamazoo was named to Fast Company's 'Fast 50: Most Innovative Companies 2007',[38] in recognition of the city's Community Capitalism approach to revitalize the economy. Kalamazoo has a higher crime rate than the national average. Kalamazoo's suburban population is located primarily to the south, in the city of Portage, and to the west in Oshtemo and Texas townships. [citation needed]. NFL wide receiver Greg Jennings, former NFL running back T. J. Duckett, the world's number one prize money winning pro bass fisherman Kevin VanDam, former MLB pitcher Scott Olsen, former NHL player Adam Hall and former Chicago White Sox first baseman Mike Squires. City in Michigan. The race least likely to be in poverty in Kalamazoo is Other, with 24.28% below the poverty level. Kalamazoo was also headquarters of the Checker Motors Company, the former manufacturer of the Checker Cab, which also stamped sheet metal parts for other auto manufacturers. [7] Two of the mall's four blocks were reopened to auto traffic in 1999 after much debate. School of Medicine (WMed) is a collaboration involving Western Michigan University and Kalamazoo's two teaching hospitals, Borgess Health[73] and Bronson Healthcare. In the past, Kalamazoo was known for its production of windmills, mandolins, buggies, automobiles, cigars, stoves, paper, and paper products. WKDS is West Michigan's only high school student-run radio station. The murder rate was 12.5 per 100,000 in 2010 and 7.9 in 2014. René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, passed just southeast of the present city of Kalamazoo in late March 1680. The per capita income for the city was $16,897. Public Media Network, located in downtown Kalamazoo, hosts media outlets including Charter cable channels 187-191 where daily public access programs are produced and aired to the public. Evidence of their early residency remains in the form of a small mound in downtown's Bronson Park. [39] The city was named in NerdWallet.com's 2014 'Top 10 Best Cities for Work-Life Balance'.[40][41]. Broadcasting 100 watts on 89.1 FM, WIDR can be heard from about a 20-mile radius from campus. Die in den USA allgemein gebräuchliche Redewendung „from Timbuktu to Kalamazoo“ entspricht im Deutschen sinngemäß etwa: "von Weiß-der-Kuckuck nach Hab-ich-vergessen". For other uses, see, 49001, 49003, 49004, 49005, 49006, 49007, 49008, 49009, 49019, 49048, Living in Kalamazoo, Balls & Lassfalk, 1958, Kalamazoo and how it Grew...and Grew, Dunbar, 1959. [139], The city was also mentioned in the opera Einstein on the beach by Philip Glass and in the chorus of the song "Gotta Get Away" by The Black Keys, from their album Turn Blue ("I went from San Berdoo to Kalamazoo/Just to get away from you..."). The fertile farmlands attracted prosperous Yankee farmers who settled the surrounding area, and sent their sons to Kalamazoo to become businessmen, professionals and entrepreneurs who started numerous factories. In 2012 Kiplinger's Personal Finance ranked Kalamazoo fourth of the Ten Best Cities for Cheapskates. [80] It was founded by John Fetzer, a broadcasting magnate and former owner of the Detroit Tigers and WKZO radio and television in Kalamazoo. Kalamazoo is the hometown of former New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter, former Probably the most famous and first was (I've Got a Gal In) Kalamazoo" (1942) by the Glenn Miller band with Tex Beneke. The manager is hired by, and answers to, the City Commission. [91][92] The 2016 Kalamazoo shootings by Jason Dalton claimed 6 lives and caused 2 serious injuries in Kalamazoo County. Kalamazoo ist die größte Stadt in der südwestlichen Region des US-Bundesstaates Michigan. Much of that, but not all, later became Old US 12—the "old" designation came about when I-94 was built parallel to it—and also was called Red Arrow Highway after a World War I army division. Other notable Kalamazoo businesses include: Kalamazoo government is administered under a Commission-Manager style of government. Several small lakes are found throughout the area. Die Bahngesellschaft Amtrak verbindet Kalamazoo nonstop unter anderem mit Ann Arbor, Chicago, Detroit und Holland.[6]. The 170,000-square foot facility designs, manufactures, and services hydraulic components for both military and commercial aerospace sectors. Next to Milham Park is the Milham Park Golf Course. [82] The organization was recognized as a Best and Brightest Company to Work For[83] in 2013,[84] and has received Fast Company commendations for innovative strategies to improve the economy. Die mit Abstand größe Brauerei ist Bell's Brewery, die 1983 als "Kalamazoo Brewing Company" von Larry Bell gegründet wurde. The gender makeup of the city was 49.3% male and 50.7% female. Abgerufen am 25. Kalamazoo unterhält Städtepartnerschaften mit folgenden Städten: "American FactFinder". [110] In 2014, the library opened 'The Hub', a digital lab open to the public for digitizing photos and video, producing podcasts, preserving old vinyl records, cassettes and VHS tapes, and other services.[111]. Das heutige Stadtgebiet gehörte ursprünglich zum Heimatland der Hopewell-Kultur. [85] In 2015, two members of Southwest Michigan First were selected for Development Counsellors International's "2015 40 under 40," top 40 young economic developers in the United States.[86]. 2016 starteten ein Shuttlebus zwischen einigen Brauereien und einer Distillerie (Kalamazoo Brew Bus)[15] und ein Bierfahrrad-Service. [69][70] Most of Upjohn's original facilities remain, many have been renovated and some new buildings have been constructed. The Kalamazoo Valley Museum, established in 1881,[113] is an American Association of Museums accredited museum operated by Kalamazoo Valley Community College. [119] Kalamazoo was also the hometown of longtime Detroit Tigers owner John Fetzer, who owned the American League team from 1961 through 1984, when he sold the franchise to Domino's Pizza founder Tom Monaghan. Kalamazoo is currently declining at a rate of. However, the area around present-day Kalamazoo was reserved as the village of Potawatomi Chief Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish. [10] Legend has it that "Ki-ka-ma-sung", meaning "boiling water", referring to a footrace held each fall by local Native Americans, who had to run to the river and back before the pot boiled. "Kalamazoo" redirects here. [8], An F3 tornado struck downtown Kalamazoo on May 13, 1980, killing five and injuring 79. No pass is required on that section. The average household income in Kalamazoo is $57,600 with a poverty rate of 30.41%. The Allied Paper Corporation operated several mills and employed 1,300 people in Kalamazoo during the late 1960s. Es bestehen Direktverbindungen unter anderem in den Norden von Michigan (Grand Rapids, Petoskey, Traverse City, St. Ignace). Since then, an every-other-year schedule has been adopted. Jahrhundert aufzulösen; zu der Zeit, als die ersten europäischen Siedler in der Region eintrafen, lebten dort Pottawatomi-Indianer. The city has an Arts Council. In Kalamazoo wurde einer der heute weltgrößten Hersteller für Gitarren, die Gibson Guitar Corporation, gegründet. 20.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 27% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.9% were from 25 to 44; 18.2% were from 45 to 64; and 9.4% were 65 years of age or older. Kalamazoo hospitals include: Kalamazoo Regional Psychiatric Hospital, Bronson Methodist Hospital, and Borgess Medical Center. The KIA regularly mounts temporary exhibitions. With a 2020 population of 76,497, it is the 14th largest city in Michigan and the 471st largest city in the United States. [125] Its use as metonym for a remote place is discussed above — "although when it comes to both Timbuktu and Kalamazoo, most of that brag-worthy exotic allure is merely in their names". Kalamazoo is home to Kalamazoo Valley Community College, Davenport University, and Kalamazoo Area Mathematics and Science Center (KAMSC). Fetzer also created Kalamazoo's first cable television system, then known as Fetzer Cablevision; it is a predecessor of Kalamazoo's current cable franchise, Charter Communications. Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. The city created the mall in 1959 by closing part of Burdick Street to auto traffic, although two of the mall's four blocks have been reopened to auto traffic since 1999. This #1 popular song was written by Mack Gordon and Harry Warren. [26], On February 20, 2016, Kalamazoo became the site of a random series of shootings in which six people were killed. A second festival was held in 2003. Gegen Ende des 18. und Beginn des 19. Kalamazoo's name is a familiar reference in popular music, since its exotic sound makes it a "great word for a lyric". French-Canadian traders, missionaries, and military personnel were quite familiar with this area during the French era and thereafter. On a smaller scale, Olde Peninsula Brewpub, Bravo! The population density was 3,009.0 inhabitants per square mile (1,161.8/km2). [16] The Potawatomi culture lived in the area when the first European explorers arrived. The United States Tennis Association Boys 18 and 16 National Tennis Championships are hosted every summer by Kalamazoo College. Perhaps the best-known is Bell's Brewery, established as the Kalamazoo Brewing Company in 1985 by Larry Bell. As of the census[2] of 2010, there were 74,262 people, 29,141 households, and 13,453 families residing in the city. However, the Kalamazoo River, which passes through the modern city of Kalamazoo, was located on the route between Detroit and Fort Saint-Joseph (nowadays Niles, Michigan). The Kalamazoo College Hornets and Kalamazoo Valley Community College Cougars also have several collegiate athletic teams. Kalamazoo is served by one daily newspaper, the Kalamazoo Gazette, which now prints three editions weekly as of early 2012. Business Review Western Michigan, a business-to-business publication headquartered in Kalamazoo, covering Western Michigan news, was rolled into MLive online coverage in late 2012. [57] Two additional distilleries, Green Door Distilling, formerly Revival Distilling[58] and Kalamazoo Distilling Company, are in the licensing stage.[59]. Crime is lower in the downtown and most of the southwest area. Das Gebiet um Kalamazoo war jedoch zunächst für das Volk des Pottawatomi-Häuptlings Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish reserviert, bis es 1827 schließlich ebenfalls an die USA fiel. Following up on successful events in 2010 and 2015, Wings Event Center and the Kalamazoo Curling Club will host the 2019 U.S. National Curling Championship. Checker war Hersteller der berühmten gelben Checker Cab-Taxis (mit den schwarz-weiß-karierten Streifen), produzierte aber auch Metallteile für Autohersteller, vor allem für General Motors. [13] Another legend is that the image of "boiling water" referred to fog on the river as seen from the hills above the current downtown. This celebration is centered at Bronson Park and surrounding venues, allowing patrons to walk from venue to venue to enjoy an all ages showcase of performing arts and other activities (music, magic, comedy, exhibitions, fireworks, food). In 1829, Titus Bronson, originally from Connecticut, became the first white settler to build a cabin within the present city limits of Kalamazoo.