Kalamazoo’s name is so distinctive strangers around the world have been known to break into song at hearing the name. With such a recognizable moniker you’d think Kalamazoo wouldn’t need nicknames, but through the years changing names have reflected the city’s refusal to stand still. The Zoo, Celery City and the Mall City are a few. The innovative thinking that brought downtown K’zoo the nation’s first pedestrian mall in 1959 continues to work today. Innovators have developed thriving life sciences, biotechnology and pharmaceutical firms. They build on the expertise of Kalamazoo’s universities. Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo College, Kalamazoo Valley Community College and Davenport College all are centers of research, development and technology. They surround a downtown vibrating with condos, apartments and homegrown, top-notch restaurants. The universities are woven into the city’s social fabric and contribute to a cultural scene that Kalamazooans love to boast about. The Kalamazoo Symphony, Kalamazoo Institute of Art and a vibrant local theater community are a few of the offerings. Locals also love their festivals that fill the air with music and the scents of ethnic foods wafting over the Arcadia Festival grounds and the Kalamazoo River. Outdoor activities from biking on the Kal-Haven trail to disc golf and standard golf on a nationally-acclaimed course in Milham Park are the start of the city’s leisure side. Sports fans have competitive college teams, minor league baseball and hockey to follow. And it all comes with a Promise. All high school graduates who live in Kalamazoo qualify for a scholarship that pays 100 percent of their tuition at any public university or community college.
Western Michigan engineering students are getting a taste of the world outside academia as they compete in various venues. One team is headed to the Society of Automotive engineers competition […]
As thousands of runners aim for their personal best in the first Kalamazoo marathon, they serve as role models for a lifestyle that's on the move. Jane C. Parikh talks with people who are passionate about a city that's a place where it's easy for children and adults choose to move and to make better decisions about eating, too.
By some estimates, 85 percent of the residents of Kalamazoo's Northside neighborhood are African-Americans. One of the things that's been missing in the neighborhood is a coffee shop. Second Wave Editor Kathy Jennings talks to Gloria Parker about how she and her husband are working to rectify that omission.
Our Sponsors
Our Media Partners
