New Buffalo is a city in Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,200 at the 2000 census. This city is within New Buffalo Township, but is politically autonomous.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.5 square miles (6.4 km²), of which, 2.4 square miles (6.3 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (2.02%) is water. The city is located on Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Galien River. This forms a natural harbor, which is part of the current pleasure-boat harbor drawing summer residents and boaters.
Notable Summer Residents
Demographics
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 2,200 people, 947 households, and 603 families residing in the city. The population density was 910.4 per square mile (351.0/km²). There were 1,426 housing units at an average density of 590.1/sq mi (227.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 96.64% White, 0.41% African American, 0.23% Native American, 0.50% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 1.27% from other races, and 0.91% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.86% of the population.
There were 947 households out of which 24.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.8% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.3% were non-families. 30.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.89.
In the city the population was spread out with 20.8% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 25.2% from 25 to 44, 27.0% from 45 to 64, and 18.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 98.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $41,658, and the median income for a family was $52,639. Males had a median income of $35,076 versus $22,227 for females. The per capita income for the city was $24,440. About 4.3% of families and 6.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.0% of those under age 18 and 4.3% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
New Buffalo has become a popular resort town because of its location along the Lake Michigan shoreline and its proximity to the Chicago Metropolitan Area. As a result, housing prices have dramatically increased and spurred extensive development throughout the area. The city relies on tourism dollars to drive the towns economy, and thus sponsors various festivals throughout the year. Most of these incorporate traditional celebrations with the town's marine economy, with attractions like boat parades on holidays, beach festivals, and holiday figures like Santa Claus entering and leaving on a boat.
The Four Winds Casino Resort opened on August 2, 2007 and brought more than 2,000 jobs to the New Buffalo area. The casino includes over 3,000 slot machines and 100 gaming tables. The Four Winds will be the main competition for the Blue Chip Casino in Michigan City, Indiana.
Transportation
Amtrak, the national passenger rail system, provides daily service to New Buffalo at New Buffalo (Amtrak station) with the Wolverine (Chicago—Kalamazoo—Detroit/Pontiac) and Blue Water (Chicago—Kalamazoo—Port Huron) lines. US-12 and I-94 present highway access from Detroit and Chicago. A harbor, both natural and man made, is present at the mouth of the Galien River. This harbor is used by pleasure boats and is accessible to all Lake Michigan ports and beyond, but has little to no commercial traffic other than the occasional charter sailboat.
New Buffalo Area Schools
The New Buffalo Area Schools system is composed of an elementary school, and a joined middle/high school. The New Buffalo Middle/High School, located off of Clay Street, was built in 2001. It has a performing arts center, multiple computer labs, indoor and outdoor running tracks, and is designed symmetrically for the middle and high school sections. The elementary school's gym was also recently rebuilt.
The Middle/High school also has a "Smart Lab", one of the most sophisticated student labs in the country. At the Smart Lab, students from New Buffalo and neighboring municipalities have access to EKG machines, flight simulators, video production equipment.
The New Buffalo Bison compete in the Red Arrow Conference and St. Joseph Valley Conference in sports. The 2005 Mens Baseball Team won the Class D State Title in the Mens Baseball Championships.
References
External links
Coordinates: 41°47′38″N 86°44′38″W / 41.79389°N 86.74389°W / 41.79389; -86.74389
