Cascade Charter Township is a

charter township A charter township is a form of Local government in the United States, local government in the U.S. state of Michigan. While all townships in Michigan are organized governments, a charter township has been granted a charter, which allows it cert ...

of Kent County in the U.S. state of

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

. The population was 19,667 at the 2020 census. The township is part of the

Grand Rapids metropolitan area The Grand Rapids metropolitan area is a triangular shaped Metro Triplex, in West Michigan, which fans out westward from the primary hub city of Grand Rapids, Michigan, to the other two metro hubs of Muskegon and Holland. The metropolitan are ...

and is located just east of the city of

Grand Rapids Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...

. The township is the location of

Gerald R. Ford International Airport Grand Rapids Gerald R. Ford International Airport is a commercial airport in Cascade Township, approximately southeast of Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States. The facility is owned by the Kent County Board of Commissioners and managed by ...

Communities

* Cascade is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

within the township at the intersection of 28th Street and Cascade Road. Cascade was initially platted in 1845 by D. S. T. Weller. It had a post office from 1854 until 1910. *

Forest Hills Forest Hills or Forrest Hills may refer to: Places United States * Forest Hills (Tampa), Florida * Forest Hills, Illinois, a neighborhood in Western Springs * Forest Hills, Kentucky * Forest Hills, Boston, Massachusetts ** Forest Hills Cemetery ...

is an unincorporated community and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

that occupies the northern half of the township. The CDP consists of (51.09%) of the township's area and 12,917 township residents (75.39%) at the 2010 census. Forest Hills is organized for statistical purposes only and also contains a large area of Ada Township to the north. It is the largest CDP in the state of Michigan in both area and population.

History

The township was originally a part of Ada Township and was separately organized in 1848. The Whitney Tavern Stand is located within the township. It was built in 1853 and is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the township has a total area of , of which is land and (2.81%) is water. The township is situated in the southeastern section of Kent County, approximately southeast of

. A defining feature of the township is the

Thornapple River The Thornapple River (Ottawa dialect, Ottawa: ''Sowanquesake'', "Forked River") (Geographic Names Information System, GNIS ID #) is an U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed Ma ...

, which divides the township into east and west halves. The township is bordered to the west by the city of Kentwood, to the north by Ada Township, to the east by Lowell Charter Township, and to the south by Caledonia Charter Township.

Transportation

Airport

is a commercial airport that occupies of the southwestern portion of the township.

Major highways

* runs east–west through the center of the township. * enters at the southern portion of the township and has its eastern terminus at I-96. * enters briefly at the southwestern corner of the township.

Education

The township is served by three public school districts.

Caledonia Community Schools Caledonia Community Schools is a public school district in Kent County, Michigan in the Grand Rapids area. It serves Caledonia, part of Kentwood, and Caledonia Township and parts of Bowne, Cascade, and Gaines townships. It also serves part of ...

serves the southern portion of the township. Most of the township is served by

Forest Hills Public Schools Forest Hills Public Schools (FHPS) is a public school district in the Grand Rapids, Michigan area. It serves portions of the townships of Ada, Cascade, Cannon and Grand Rapids and portions of the cities of Grand Rapids and Kentwood in Kent C ...

, and

Lowell Area Schools Lowell Area Schools (LAS) is a school district serving Lowell, Michigan. In addition to Lowell itself, the school district serves parts of the following townships in Kent County: Ada, Bowne, Cascade, Cannon, Grattan, Lowell and Vergennes. ...

serves a small eastern portion of the township. West Michigan Aviation Academy is a charter high school located within the township.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, the township had a population of 19,667 people. The racial makeup was 87.1%

Non-Hispanic White Non-Hispanic Whites, also referred to as White Anglo Americans or Non-Latino Whites, are White Americans who are classified by the United States census as "White" and not of Hispanic or Latino origin. According to annual estimates from the Unit ...

, 2.8% Black or African American, 4.0% Asian, 0.1% Native American, and 2.8% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino people of any race were 4.2% of the population.

2000 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 15,107 people, 5,394 households, and 4,374 families residing in the township. The population density was . There were 5,638 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the township was 94.55%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 1.00%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.28% Native American, 3.06% Asian, 0.26% from other races, and 0.85% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.87% of the population. There were 5,394 households, out of which 39.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 75.1% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 4.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.9% were non-families. 16.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.16. In the township the population was spread out, with 29.4% under the age of 18, 4.7% from 18 to 24, 23.8% from 25 to 44, 30.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.8 males. The median income for a household in the township was $87,290, and the median income for a family was $98,013. Males had a median income of $71,960 versus $37,234 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the township was $39,470. About 1.5% of families and 2.3% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 2.3% of those under age 18 and 3.4% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

Justin Amash Justin A. Amash ( ; born April 18, 1980) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2011 to 2021. He was the second Palestinian American and Syrian American member of Congress. Originally a Republican, ...

, lawyer and politician, who served as the

U.S. representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

for from 2011 to 2021.

References

External links

Cascade Township official website
{{Kent County, Michigan Townships in Kent County, Michigan Charter townships in Michigan Grand Rapids metropolitan area Populated places established in 1848 1848 establishments in Michigan