Nothing like Northville
Nothing like Northville
Northville is a unique place for quite a few reasons. It rests right between Wayne County and Oakland county, just a bit west of Detroit. Northville first became a settlement in 1825 by European Americans. Over forty years later, a village emerged from the patchwork of cabins, and things began to take off.
Northville received its name due to its relation to Plymouth, its parent city, which is slightly north. Of course, the post office was the primary place to note in early history, beginning its standing in 1827, but today there are so many wonderful- and absurd- things about this area that the post office is quite a muffled talk.
Maybury State Park
The Maybury State Park resides on Eight Mile Road in Northville, Michigan. With over 900 acres of state land, this park is a hub for wildlife and nature-focused activities for this part of Southern Michigan. Being one of the very few state parks based in the Detroit Metro Area, Maybury is adored and cared for heavily.
Between the opportunities for "bring your own gear" hobbies like fishing, trail running, and cross-country skiing and the amenities that are offered within the park, such as horseback riding, the park remains very busy. It even goes so far as to provide wheelchair-accessible options in various areas of the park that otherwise would be off-limits.
The Maybury Riding Stable offers guided and group horseback riding lessons and summer camps for the youth. The park has a significant focus on benefiting the youths' experience with the outdoors. They even offer various educational programs that are directly targeted at the younger population.
For Southern Michigan, this park is of a gold standard and one of my personal favorite places to explore with my littles in the Metro Detroit area. Simply knowing that any dime I spend within the park on its youth-orientated experiences is being used to better the opportunities for another child is enough. Still, honestly, it is even more than that. The endless wildflowers, the serene get-away it provides for the area, and the respect that the rangers wear loudly when patrolling and guiding visitors are all so warming to anyone passionate about the outdoors.
Northville Psychiatric Hospital
Demolished in 2018, the building no longer stands but the history remains.
Being one of Northville’s more infamous locations, I feel this “local location” deserves some discussion. The Northville Psychiatric Hospital opened its doors to excess patients of the mental health hospital industry in 1951. From Kalamazoo to Traverse City, this place got them all. Unfortunately, though there were strikingly valid rumors of these patients' mistreatment. Following the allegations, the facility shut down for good in 2003.
This experience should not be accounted for as some local haunting or a legend of sorts, even if that is how it seems the public has addressed it (ex; the nearby local forest is called the "Evil Woods"). Primarily out of respect, though. The building was demolished in 2018, leaving nothing but bare rubble from the ripple it made in local history, but let's note it to be that. Even after their departure, the people who lived there who may or may not have suffered deserve remembrance and respect. When discussing the Northville Psychiatric Hospital, do so with consideration. There is a reason it no longer stands, and that is the story that should be told, for both the previous patients and for the longevity of an improving mental health system.
Making Noise on Sustainability
The year 2020 has been a big deal for Northville, Michigan, regarding their sustainability efforts— something both me and Northern Nail Polish are always eager to broadcast on. The city of Northville has been open about its approach to this concept within a community, highlighting its emphasis on a healthy community that is diverse and encompassing to those within it, yet welcoming enough to those outside.
The generalized approach to a community effort on sustainability follows a three-component system:
Environmental Conservation
Social Responsibility
Economic Development
Northville is working to address all three, but at the moment, they are in the planning process. 2020 was the year that they put together the Sustainability Team and released a developed plan of action during the Fall. This included things such as the Vision Statement and the Guiding Principles. March 2021, there is a further detailed agenda that is planned to be released to the public.
We are all rooting for their progress and success in the endeavor. If you visit the town, be sure to leave suggestions and comments at the local government facility regarding this improvement. External influence and input are so valuable during a healthy transition, whether within your home or for a whole city. Michigan is well on its way to becoming a sustainable state that showcases its emphasis on the natural world. Northville is luckily going to be a leader in the shift.
Task Forces for Good
Northville, Michigan, is home to a strong group of good Samaritans. The cities volunteers take on yearly or bi-yearly "task forces" that are aimed to better the area and direct community. For 2021 the task forces grab my attention as they have some priorities that I resonate with and hope you do too.
The first of the three is the Ford Field Task Force (FFTF). This task force is in charge of crafting a plan to reconstruct the Ford Field to improve group gatherings and events. This is essential when thinking of Northvilles' recent focus on social responsibility.
The second of the three is the Farmers' Market Task Force (FMTF), which is responsible for finding and implementing an increased flow of farmers market vendors and consumers. The team is assigned to envision a more fluid farmers' market for the public and sell that vision to stakeholders and local market investors.
The third and final task force is the Rouge Restoration Task Force (RRTF). The ecological health of Northville's' waterways and the community's relationship with the local trail system, "The Riverwalk", is currently at risk. This project is aimed to plan a restoration process for both. Ideally, by increasing responsible local recreation practices and bettering the ecosystem that is entangled in the community via our relationship with the waterways, the public agenda does express a concern with the experience needing to be elongated. Tackling two significant adjustments at once is not quickly done, especially if you are doing it with caution— the way anything regarding an established ecosystem should be approached.
Worth the Visit
Northville will always be on my list of favorite places to visit in the Detroit Metro Area, whether for a relaxing horseback ride or to enjoy their niched downtown shops. The city seems to keep improving, too, every time I drive through! If you are ever a hop and a skip away from Plymouth, note that Northville is definitely worth the visit.
Northville has a unique ring to it as well; the name itself gives this feeling of mistletoe and plaid sweatshirts. Luckily if you are making your way to the area, Northern Nail Polish has the color scheme for you that won't leave you feeling at all out of place. In their Spring 2021 Collection, Northville has its very own popping shade. The mauve color is a mix between the winter months' nostalgia with the wildflowers that populate Maybury State Park as the warm weather approaches. There is satisfaction guaranteed with NNP's polishes, being chip-resistant, vegan, and toxin-free. Consider yourself safe and secure with their palettes and entirely prepared if you are by chance planning a trip to Northville, Michigan!
Article written by Kristina