What are your thoughts on Livonia? 🤔

I lived in Livonia for 25 years. Raised my kids there. It was great for kids.

What is not mentioned is the two ice arenas, the soccer and baseball/softball fields, the three low cost golf courses owned by the city. Also, unlike the cities you mentioned around it, Livonia created an industrial “band” by the freeway which means you don’t have to look at industries right next to your house. That is not the case in Plymouth, Canton, Farmington, etc. Livonia has MANY 5 lane roads (unlike Novi, Plymouth and Canton for instance) so I don’t experience traffic issues. The streets also are laid out like a grid which also helps to avoid gridlock. I love that I can go to 4 hardware shops within two miles of my house and then get Szechuan, Middle Eastern, Italian, Indian food within 2 miles of my house also - and these are independent restaurants. Of course, you can get any of the chain restaurants also. 2 Costco locations…how many cities have that? In all, I love Livonia and and I like the surrounding cities, but when I compare the advantages of Livonia, it far surpasses the neighboring cities.

First of all- Livonia Central is not in Livonia Michigan. We do however have excellent schools and educational programs, and they are a huge factor why many people want to live here. I would even argue that is the reason for the housing price increase rather than “central location.” The traffic in Livonia is far from “gridlocked” during the Spree and the streets aren’t “shut down.” There is a lot of traffic on the Sunday night for the fireworks but the rest of the week is fine. Laurel Park is mostly dead now. Hardly anybody shops there and traffic is never a problem “due to the mall.” Traffic is a problem on the main roads running North/South when there is construction on 96 or 275 but even then it’s not as busy as say Canton on a normal day. Livonia isn’t “neglected” in the least. The areas that may seem like it are commercial properties that are having difficulties finding tenants, but who can blame anyone in this economy? As others have mentioned, it may not have a “downtown” but Livonia is close to so many other places and things to do. I also could get on board with downtown type areas minus including housing. That is what is going to create a traffic problem. Also, LPS consolidated schools which is understandable, but then they are selling those former school properties and the city is cramming in condos and housing developments to encourage families to move here. Seems like a problem in the making for crowded schooling. Livonia may not have a rip-roaring night life but it is a great place to live, especially for families, with a strong sense of community and fantastic neighbors (for the most part, lol). There is a reason why many of us who grew up here return to raise our own kids.

I would agree with all but the cleanliness. It’s clean and upkeep here. I have seen so much improvement to roads, sidewalks and parking lots. The schools are amazing. Two kids in the system and could not be happier with them.

I'm not sure why this video even reached me, but it was interesting. Livonia's Plus is pretty much its location for commuters. That, and that it's not Redford... But it's also not Plymouth or Northville.... Traffic is absolutely horrendous. Livonia, where you can live in a town that doesn't really have anything but you're close enough to other stuff..... 🤣

Well one glaring thing thats noted in my community about Livonia-I am a person of color. Its not a place to drive through if your lights are out. In my experience the police have been known be a bit harsh. The Rec center you mentioned "is so on point" its absolutely amazing. great spot! Again tho, In college I remember folks avoiding the city. Was it right ? I'm sure some had their reasons . i'm sure a little cultural diversity wouldn't hurt. I do wanna add I have never lived there and I am sure its not everyone's experience. Thumbs up to those who love the place.😃. No shade. Great discussion from the Realter Guy.

As someone working at Ford Dearborn Livonia is a great place for commute. Great place with a diverse community. I am indian and I have found good restaurants and proximity to Farmington very desirable. Of course lastly the school system the best in michigan and surely one of top reasons young families want to move here

Andrew does a great job. Livonia is a great place, safe and clean trumps mostly other concerns and allows for other items to grow and flourish.

IMHO Livonia is now split in like three parts 1. The Great - anything north of 6mile and west of Middlebelt 2. The good - South of 6 mile west of Inkster 3. the OK - north of 7 mile east of Middlebelt. in the 90's Livonia was in the top 5 safest Cities in the US. there are parts of it now that are getting a little Haggard, probably due to its surrounding cities, especially Redford and Westland.

Our neighborhood is like a country sub, with lots of tall trees, and believe it or not, a lot of deer. And we even have a red fox we see from time to time. And we're less than a mile away from the Middlebelt Rd shopping corridor which has everything you need along a four mile stretch. There's a number of dentists and doctors, a Henry Ford Medical Center and St. Mary's hospital, and a modern recreational center. Branch chipper service, and they plow the streets when it snows. They even pickup your piled up leaves at the street twice each fall. Property taxes are a bit high, but not as high as Canton. All in all, I think its worth it, and one of the best suburbs in Metro Detroit.

Livonia is a good place to Live we have Rotary Park with the somewhat recently redone playground and the walking tails that I always get lost in for a hour or two. I live in a convenient location near the Livonia market place which includes Walmart, Kohl's, hair cut place, Petco, Doller tree, Game Play, a bank, Sonic, Tropical smoothie cafe, nail salon, across the street from this is a stip mall with a Planet Fitness, Pet supply's Plus, furniture store (near by), Boston Market, LA fitness and much more surrounding. There are loads of parks t go to, Wonderful schools, lots of places to eat and everyone sems to love the new Bad Brads BBQ restaurant that recently opened. Not to mention the easy to remember layout because everything is a box. I could go on for a while but I don't have that time right now.

Hearing someone excited about Laurel park and the spree is so interesting because the mall is just Von Maur at this point and the spree is just not it.

moved here three years ago, ridiculous taxes that go up yearly. taxed to death here in Livonia.

It’s fine just stay on the west side of inkster rd 😉

Grew up in Livonia, live in Farmington Hills, but I still consider Livonia home ❤️

Just another non-descript suburban "town" in the ocean they call the Detroit metro area.

What date is your video?

the minute you pull a permit and improve your home in any way your taxes will increase.

When i think of livionia i think 1950s lol

Great job! Yeah the homes are getting more expensive over there…Would love to hear the pros and cons on living in Taylor, MI! 😃

I've lived in Livonia for about 8 years its not too bad but there's definitely better

Livonia is an ideal location. It's just not pretty. I go to Greenmead, the antiques shops on Plymouth Rd, Costco, Menards, and Superior Pasties

Im 51 was born in garden city mich, moved to livonia in early 70s moved in 1990. Living there in the 80s was awesome. If i went back i probably wouldn't recognize it.

Ay really quick shout out to the best restaurant ever lidas coney island its on 5 mile and middlebelt right next to riw hobby shops and the fish store

Michigan is a great place to leave and as fast as you can .

Kin folk said Jed move away from there 🤠

PRO......Bates Hamburgers! 🤣

I have lived in Livonia my entire life. and went through the school system so i have lived here sine the mid 70s so i have watched it be what it was, and grow etc.. So one thing (and i am glad you made this number 1) location. I used to joke about this too. Do you or anyone else remember those commercials for where to stay in Florida ?Kissimmee St. Cloud? they would talk about ho it is right in between disney, seas world, epcot et al. but said there was really nothing IN Kissimmee St. Cloud. prior to this commercial i would always tell people how Livonia, while not really the night life type place. was within 30-35 minutes drive or less from all the coolest places in all of SE Michgian . Ann Arbor, Dearborn, Royal Oak, Ferndale, Detroit, and closer Farmington, Northville, novi, Plymouth, etc.. so i would say Livonia is the Kissimmee St. Cloud of Metro Detroit (not tons to do here per se, but location is our biggest attraction) Also, i would say that the traffic congestion thing is a myth by whomever said this. in all 36 squre miles of this city. The ONLY place that ever really gets congested at rush hour is Haggerty Road between 6 and 7 mile roads. maybe to some extent, haggerty between 7-8. other than that i would not say i ever have seen much congestion. only when they totally shut down a freeway north and south. but Haggerty is a border between Livonia and Plymouth/Northville anyway. Also, I love the grid system of roads Livonia has. every mile is a main road in both N/S and E/W directions. and the city was super well planned out. in terms of where and how they have put in residential, commercial and industrial. so all six miles of livonia inbetween Plymouth and Schoolcraft rd (which is the service drive for I-96) is called the Industrial Mile. all close to the freeway, and Plymouth Road being a very commercial corridor on the South side. so that all the industrial parks within livonia are all in that section. kind of sperating it from the rest of the city in a way but is also good for the city. There is a 1/2 of a square mile parcel of land running from I-96 to 5 mile from Neburgh to Levan. that is and has been owned by the Felician sisters(nuns) that has a univesity in Madonna (used to for the longest time have ladywood Highschool which was an all girls catholic school), a montesori school, and Angela hospice still run by nuns and the best by far Hospice care in the entir estate of Michigan. as for the congestion during the Spree. honestly only on that Sunday night for a few hours during the fireworks is the only time that really happens. and most people come to watch them anyway. but if you are within 1/2 mile in any direction you are fine. Livonia Public Schools have (at least when I was growing up and i believe they are still right up there) are one of the best school systems out there. Plus Chuchil has 2 programs for specialities like Drams/music and also math and sicence programs that are both a half day of school where kids from Franklin and Stevenson go . one is Called CAPA (creative and Performin Arts) an dthe math and science program. As well as a school acorss the street from Churchil that is ( i forget the name right now) but specializes in kids that want to learn trades and get a lot of hands on there. BTW, not having a downtown. most people for the longest time never really seemed to mind. LIvonia is a place people want to live to be relatively quiet while also having amenities. as for prices. like you showed, it is increasing alot probably due to inflation anyway. and in general the prices of homes typically go higher the further north and further west you go within the ciy. and less the further east and south you go. so the NW corner of Livonia is by far the most expensive. and the SE corner is the cheapest (generally) as for box stores? i don't really see tha tmany. we have tons and tons of mom/pop shops. many great ones too. for example. Joe's produce on 7 mile and Farmington, is a produce store that in the 1940s starteed out as a fruit stand that grew to a small store and was closed for 6 weeks in the winter as it had no real true full walls, then closed off and expanded and is a multi generation family business with only the best produce , yes it is expensive, but they really do a great job getting fresh stuff every day and hand pick everything PIzza, you got primios on 7 mile and farmington as well, family owned multigeneration since 1968 and the 4th genertation is even being trained by the same family. People tend to stay in livonia for a long time. people really don't move much. and people who grew up here often come back. we have always had very good police/fire and emergency protection and trash pick up and when you consider the taxes we pay, it really is a good cost for the quality we get. People have always been very neighboly around here my entire life too. Businesswise, the LIvonia Chamber of Commerce is one of the best city chambers out there hands down. we have a lot of nice parks. like Bicentenial park, Rotary park and others. So many places for kids to play sports. Livoina is also a bit of a soccer friendly town. lots of state soccer champs have come out of our shcools. Besides LPS there is a tiny section called Clearanceville thatis much smaller but is the oldest school district in the entire state. we also have a buddy's piozza on plymouth Road, best detroit style pizza there is right in our own backyard. the Handy dip dairy barn on 5 mile is right across from the Rec Center and city hall. same familiy since the last 60s. tastes better than DQ (not that DQ is anything to balk at), but it has that heart and soul in it. We also have Greenmead on newburgh between 7-8 mile. sort of like Livonia's own mini Greenfield Village. We have a few good libraries in town. But beyond the businesses i mentioned, because there s way too many to name. we honestly have so so many great small business all over town.

There are certain areas of Livonia that are much worse than others, ie anything that is bordering Redford. I mean if you go from 6 & newburgh and spawn to 7 & inkster you would think you are living in two different cities one middle class the other being ghetto. Livonia also has another school that's not part of LPS called Clarenceville (ghetto side of town) it's a livonia school but not within the district, very strange.

Livonia is the only city I’ve been racially profiled in by the police in metro detroit!!! Yayyy!!!! He pulled me over for absolutely no reason then told me my back light was out once he saw the car was mine and I had no issues in my name he lied and said my tail light was out 😅 it never was out

Those who criticize Livonia are just hipsters that are upset they can afford Ann Arbor anymore? If your a young family the Livonia area is grand. Pick up trucks and hard work are the culture there.

Wayne county is arguably the worst county in Michigan. Not a great long term purchase.

The pro of Livonia Michigan - Indoors, you don't have to encounter other people. The con - outside, you do and everyone is an asshole.

LOL, it’s not Jackie Kirksey, it’s JACK Kirksey.

Black people if you are in Livonia stay away from stark road 😅

Happiest day of my life was finally escaping Michigan in 2006. I felt like a rat leaving a sinking ship. Grew up around Joy and Merriman, graduated from Franklin HS, Schoolcraft College and Madonna U. Hate the weather. Schoolcraft College and Madonna are (were) good schools. But I found my experience going through Livonia Public Schools to be terrible. LOTS OF BULLYING. I was shocked teaching in the inner city in Detroit Public Schools and seeing less cruel bullying in the hood. Cops are fascist and will give you a ticket for going 1mph over. Roads suck. And the economy being tied to the auto industry, I found the economy to be sketchy. I will say though that the area is better than LA county. Lived there too and it sucks. Regarding culture/downtown...it is one of the most culturally devoid white-bread area I have ever been. So much happier living in the Western Pacific island of Saipan. Geographicall the island is the same rough size as Livonia, but there is a very cool diversity here, very international. Year round summer, beautiful landscape (Tropical island) and water. No pollution. I remember one of the Livonia Schools was built on an old PCB dump. Cost of Living is better here too. Much of Michigan's draw backs are because of climate and geography. The sun going down before 5 PM in the winter and sunset almost at 9 PM in summer was also far from ideal. Here closer to the equator we have 12 hours of daylight year round. On the whole, I never liked Michigan. It is boring. Cold and just uninspiring. Especially on the culture front.