As a result of theWar of 1812 and the 1817Treaty of Fort Meigs, the area of theMichigan Territory which now makes up Sterling Heights was first surveyed by Deputy Surveyor Joseph Wampler; his survey was approved on February 20, 1818.[6] Wampler had been one of two deputy surveyors ofPerrysburg, Ohio, in 1816.
Acts which created & modified Sterling Township
Originally created as part ofShelby Township in April 1827,[7] it was broken off as Jefferson Township in March 1835.[8] In March 1838, it was renamed Sterling Township.[9]
Until the 1950s, Sterling Township was an agricultural area, largely devoted to growingrhubarb and other crops sold in Detroit.[10] Road improvements led to decreased commute times and lower costs for the delivery of goods and services to and from businesses. The population increased when suburban homes were built for the workers in metropolitan Detroit's booming automobile industry, also becoming a prime destination forwhite flight from Detroit which had begun to occur at the time. When Sterling Township wasincorporated as a city in 1968, "Heights" was added to the name to satisfy a state law that prevents incorporated municipalities from having the same name, as there was already a small village namedSterling inArenac County.[11]
Gerald Donovan became the first mayor of the city and F. James Dunlop became the first mayorpro-tempore. In the 1960s and 1970s, many residents came to live in Sterling Heights to work in automobile plants operated byChrysler andFord.Lakeside Mall opened in Sterling Heights in 1976.
The city is home to many groups of immigrants. It has received many people of eastern European origins, including ethnic Albanians, Bosnians, Croatians, Macedonians, Montenegrins, Poles, Serbians and Slovenians.[12] After the 2003U.S.-Iraqi War, millions of Iraqi citizens were displaced, particularlyAssyrians, whom the majority of which adhere to theChaldean Catholic Church. Of these, 30,000-50,000 resettled in Sterling Heights, giving parts of the city the nickname "Little Nineveh", especially around 15 Mile Road and Ryan.[13][14]
Sterling Heights is a second-ring suburb, 14 to 20 miles (23 to 32 km) north ofdowntown Detroit. The city's southern border is 6 miles (10 km) from Detroit's northern border. The shape of the city is six miles long and miles wide.[12] It is bordered to the south by the city ofWarren, at its southwest corner byMadison Heights, to the west byTroy, to the north byUtica andShelby Township, at its northeast corner byMacomb Township, to the east byClinton Township, and to the southeast byFraser.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, Sterling Heights has a total area of 36.72 square miles (95.10 km2), of which 36.45 square miles (94.41 km2) are land and 0.27 square miles (0.70 km2), or 0.74%, are water.[1] TheClinton River crosses the northeast part of the city, flowing east toLake St. Clair east ofMount Clemens.
Sterling Heights features ahumid continental climate (Köppen:Dfa). Summers are somewhat hot with temperatures exceeding 90 °F (32 °C) on average 8.6 days. Winters are cold, with temperatures not rising above freezing on 39.1 days annually, while dropping to or below 0 °F (−18 °C) on average 1.2 days a year.
Climate data for Sterling Heights (Eastpointe station)
M-53 commonly called Van Dyke Avenue or the Van Dyke Freeway (they split in the city, however, and rejoin to its north), which leads north intoThe Thumb of Michigan.
M-59, commonly called Hall Road once the freeway ends—which is the east–west connector from just north ofMount Clemens, throughUtica as a surface road, and then becomes a limited access freeway toPontiac, being the main northern connector betweenMacomb County andOakland County. In Sterling Heights, large areas are devoted to retail and commercial development (e.g.,Lakeside Mall).
Mound Road is an important north–south artery that runs continuously through the city. Overall, the road starts south inHamtramck and runs up to 32 Mile Road inRomeo. The road ends briefly at River Bends Park in Shelby Township (becoming Auburn Road), and continues just north of 22 Mile Road.
East-west travel is mainly on the "mile roads," beginning at 14 Mile Road through 20 Mile Road (M-59). 16 Mile Road, also known asMetro Parkway, is another major "mile road". SeeRoads and freeways in metropolitan Detroit.
Utica Road is an important diagonal connector that crisscrosses the city from southeast to northwest, going through the intersection of Dodge Park Road (across from the Sterling Heights city hall) via the first roundabout in Macomb County.
Dequindre Road is the border between the city of Sterling Heights and the city ofTroy. It is also the border between the counties of Macomb andOakland.
Hayes Road is the divider between Clinton Township (Between Utica Road and South of M59) and Fraser (Between Masonic and Moravian).
Sterling Heights, Michigan – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
According to the 2020 Census, a total of 13,641 individuals registered asChaldean alone or in any combination in the city, while those identifying asAssyrian accounted for a further 1,174.[19]
As of thecensus[20] of 2010, there were 129,699 people, 49,451 households, and 34,515 families living in the city. Thepopulation density was 3,552.4 inhabitants per square mile (1,371.6/km2). There were 52,190 housing units at an average density of 1,429.5 per square mile (551.9/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 85.1%White, 5.2%African American, 0.2%Native American, 6.7%Asian, 0.5% fromother races, and 2.2% from two or more races; 1.9% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race were.
There were 49,451 households, of which 31.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.0% weremarried couples living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 30.2% were non-families. 26.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.20.
The median age in the city was 40.4 years. 21.7% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.8% were from 25 to 44; 28.6% were from 45 to 64; and 15.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.5% male and 51.5% female.
As of thecensus[3] of 2000, there were 124,471 people, 46,319 households, and 33,395 families living in the city. The population density was 3,397.0 inhabitants per square mile (1,311.6/km2). There were 47,547 housing units at an average density of 1,297.6 per square mile (501.0/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 90.70%White, 1.30%African American, 0.21%Native American, 4.92%Asian, 0.04%Pacific Islander, 0.34% fromother races, and 2.50% from two or more races; 1.34% of the population wereHispanic or Latino of any race.
In 2000, there were more people in Sterling Heights born inIraq than any other foreign country. In that year there were 5,059 people in Sterling Heights born in Iraq. The next three largest nations of foreign birth wereNorth Macedonia at 1,723,Italy at 1,442 andPoland at 1,427.
There were 46,319 households, out of which 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.4% weremarried couples living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.9% were non-families. 24.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.21.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 24.1% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 30.4% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $60,494, and the median income for a family was $70,140. Males had a median income of $51,207 versus $31,489 for females. Theper capita income for the city was $24,958. About 4.0% of families and 5.2% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 6.6% of those under age 18 and 7.5% of those age 65 or over.
The city has acouncil-manager form of government. The mayor, along with six other council members, is directly elected to council by the city residents. Prior to 2021, city council and mayoral positions had two-year terms. Following the approval of a ballot proposal in the November 2020 election the positions were changed to be four-year terms starting with the 2021 election cycle.
As of January 2021, the mayor is Michael C. Taylor. Taylor served as mayorpro tempore after Richard Notte died while in office in December 2014.[21] Notte was the city's longest-serving mayor, winning in 1993 and serving through the next 11 consecutive elections. He was the city's first mayor to be elected by popular vote.[22] Following his death, the municipal building was renamed the Richard J. Notte Sterling Heights City Center.[23]
The current city manager, Mark Vanderpool, has served as the city manager since 2004. In December 2020, the City Council voted to increase Vanderpool's salary by 23%, making him the third highest-paid city administrator of similar cities in Michigan.[24] The position is appointed by the mayor and the city council.
The Sterling Heights Police Department serves as the main law enforcement agency in the city.
Sterling Height's crime rate for 2018 was 180.38 per 100,000 population, a 2.16% decrease from 2017. Sterling Heights' crime rate is lower than both the Michigan (449) and United States (381) averages.[29] Sterling Heights had the fourth lowest crime rate per 100,000 population in 2018, compared to surrounding cities.[29] Sterling Heights was beat byRochester (61.19),[30]Troy (61.74),[31] andFraser (157.25).[32]
The city of Sterling Heights has three local newspapers,The Macomb Daily with daily and Sunday delivery (owned by the Journal Register Company), theSterling Heights Sentry (C and G Newspapers), and theSterling Heights Source (owned by Advisor & Source Newspapers), the last two are delivered to city residences free of charge. The city also has two local channels. SHTV is run by the city's community relations department and usually features locally produced programming (including City Council meetings) and community announcements.[37] Another channel is used for the Sterling Heights Public Library, which usually features educational programs as well as library announcements and important outreach programs for theLGBT community in Sterling Heights. SHTV is found locally onComcast channel 5, onWide Open West channel 10 and online. The public library channel is found on Comcast channel 12 and WOW channel 20.
The city's official radio station is AM 1700.[38] The city also releases a seasonal magazine and a city calendar free of charge to each city household and business.
Sister City initiatives give opportunities for the cities' residents to come to know each other's cultures. The initiatives will facilitate the cultural, educational, municipal, business, professional and technical exchanges and projects among the sister cities. Sterling Heights' sister cities are:[39]
^"An act to divide the several counties in this Territory into Townships, and for other purposes" - Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Volume 2, Pgs. 478-479
^"An Act organizing certain townships" - Laws of the Territory of Michigan, Volume 3, pgs. 1367-1369
^"An Act to organize certain townships and for other purposes" - Acts of the Michigan Legislature adjourned session of 1837, regular session of 1838; pgs. 76-84
^abMurray, Dublin. "Teen-age strife in Detroit suburb reflects ethnic conflicts of Yugoslavia's civil war."Baltimore Sun. December 22, 1991. p.1. (Archive). Retrieved on September 28, 2014.
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