Healthy Home Assessments in Center Line

Center Line at ground level

Center Line grew from the mid-1800s crossroads settlement of Kunrod's Corner around St. Clement parish, incorporated as a village in 1925, and became a city in 1936. One local marker: An enclave city of 1.75 square miles entirely surrounded by the larger city of Warren. Counts run to 8,320 residents in 3,600 or so households. Historian Wesley Arnold traces the name to the Moravian Trail, forged by Native Americans who survived the 1782 Moravian massacre in Ohio and resettled near present-day Mount Clemens; the trail once ran where Sherwood Avenue is today.

Homes and households

By the 2023 five-year American Community Survey, 62.4% of units are detached single-family homes and 57.3% of occupied units are owner-occupied. Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher come to 18.7%. Among the local landmarks: St. Clement Catholic Church and its cemetery, both recognized by Michigan historical markers.

At 57.3% owner-occupancy many households do not control the mechanicals, so findings separate what a resident can change from what the building owner must.

Landmarks and public space in Center Line:

• Saint Clement Catholic Parish. Catholic parish founded in 1854 at Kunrod's Corner that anchored the settlement, with a Michigan historical marker erected in 1994.
• St. Clement Cemetery. Parish burying ground with an earliest known burial from March 27, 1854 and more than 800 nineteenth-century graves, with a state historical marker erected in 2006.
• Kramer Homes Co-operative. Defense worker housing built in 1941 for the Warren Tank Plant and Naval Armory, designed by Eliel Saarinen, Eero Saarinen, and Robert Swanson.
• Memorial Park. The city's largest park at Lawrence and Engleman with a ball diamond, basketball and tennis courts, three pavilions, a playground, and a walking and bike path.
• Beautification Park. City park with a gazebo and flower plantings, one of five parks maintained by the Parks and Recreation Department.

Corners of the map

Center Line takes in one smaller district, Kramer Homes. Kramer Homes: Resident-owned cooperative community formed when tenants bought the 1941 federal defense housing development on February 4, 1949. The 48015, 48090 and 48397 ZIP codes cover these addresses. The name likely originated from a literal English translation of a label on an old French map of the region's trails.