Flint

Understand

Sometimes considered a suburb of Detroit, Flint is more accurately described as a "satellite" city. Like Saginaw, Pontiac, and other factory towns in Michigan, Flint's identity is often influenced and predicted by the Motor City and the peaks and valleys of the American auto industry. Because these cities and Flint have become symbols of urban blight and economic ruin, it is tempting to write them off at the worst as ghost-towns, or at the best as smaller clones of Detroit. In fact, each city is regionally distinct, both in terms of the local institutions they have raised in times of prosperity and crisis, and in the emphasis of civic response. In Flint's case, for example, the imprint of Charles Stewart Mott, General Motor's most famous philanthropist, often overshadows that of Billy Durant, who actually founded the corporation. Streets, parks, estates, neighborhoods, colleges, and lakes have been named after Mott and his family, and the Mott Foundation funds and supports many cultural events here. But this reverence toward a more glorious past is just as often tempered by frustration with its side-effects and outcome. The bulk of Sloan Museum (see below), for example, is a measured analysis of the opportunities and hazards of rapid industrialization. Much of the literature to come out of Flint, such as Rhonda Sanders' Bronze Pillars (1995), focuses on the vitality of the African-American community, and its struggle against housing compacts and discrimination in the factories. It is true that many other communities have struggled with these very issues, but the height from which Flint has fallen -- from Michigan's "second city" and acknowledged birthplace of the world's largest corporation to an international symbol of crime and poverty -- has left deep scars on Flintites (or Flintstones; another heady debate in these parts). Understanding Flint requires understanding that its situation is more complex than that presented by the media, whether this is the General M

Getting there

Flint is a major transportation hub, and in fact this is one of the ways in which its automotive history continues to serve the city well. Flint can be accessed by plane, train, car, and bus.

By plane 1 Bishop International Airport (FNT IATA), G-3425 W Bristol Rd, ☏ +1 810 235-6560. Located within city limits, Bishop is the second busiest airport in the state. Carriers include American Airlines (service from Chicago-O'Hare), United (service from Chicago-O'Hare), Delta (service from Minneapolis/St. Paul and Atlanta), and Southwest (service from Baltimore, Las Vegas, Orlando, and Tampa). Upon arrival, access to Flint and surrounding areas is best obtained by renting or using a car. Rental car providers include Avis, Budget, Enterprise, Hertz, National, and Alamo. See renting a car for more suggestions. If using a car is not an option, however, Flint's Mass Transportation Authority (MTA) (see below) provides access to their Downtown depot along Route 11 for $1.25. As a primary route, service is consistent once-per-hour throughout the day. In addition, Uber operates in Flint and provides service to Bishop. Detroit Metro Airport (DTW IATA), Romulus, MI, ☏ +1 734 AIRPORT (2477678). Travelers basing their trip in Detroit may also fly into Detroit Metro, Michigan's busiest airport, approximately one hour from Flint via I-96 West and US-23 North.

By train

2 Flint station, 1407 S Dort Hwy. The main train depot is in Flint's East Side. The depot itself is well-maintained and comfortable, but since Flint is best navigated by car, transportation can be inconvenient from the station. One can take Flint MTA Route #9 to the Downtown depot, and transfer to the #11 to Bishop Airport where numerous car rental options are available. MTA buses run approximately twice-per-hour throughout the day, and fare is $1.25 (a transfer is a dime). Alternately, one could hire a cab for around $10 for transport to the airport. (updated Oct 2023) Amtrak, ☏ +1 215-856-7924, toll-free: +1

Getting around

By public transportation As the last section might suggest, Flint is easy to get to, but can be difficult to get around without a car. MTA, the public transit agency, is a reasonably priced (if time-consuming) way to reach your destination, and if you expect to stay within the Downtown area, walking is certainly an option.

Mass Transportation Authority, ☏ +1 810 767-0100. Flint's MTA serves the city and inner suburbs through 14 routes that collectively cover most of Flint's 31 square miles. Buses once run twice per hour and all routes are local. Additional lines run at peak hours, and limited service to the suburbs is also available through Your Ride, a van service, for $2.50. MTA's Regional Services provide daily or weekly access to Genesee, Livingston, and Oakland Counties, including many of the Detroit suburbs. $1.50 per ride, $0.25 per transfer.

By car While it might be possible in theory to explore Flint without a car, very few people would want to do so. Even after one considers the time and effort saved here, there is something singularly appropriate about traveling the boulevards and parkways, the industrial zones and factory strips, in the vehicle this city helped popularize. Of course, it also helps that Flint is a delight to drive, with a coherent network of roads and expressways linking the city to the suburbs, and abundant parking and a lack of congestion (ironically due to Flint's decline in population from the 1970s to the 2010s). Among the city's much-touted $400-million redevelopment efforts are miles of infrastructural repaving and repair, and it is generally possible to get between any two points of the city in ten or fifteen minutes, or to access the remotest suburbs in well under an hour. The streetscape of Flint is based on two grids, one which conforms to the river for several square miles in proximity to Downtown, and another which is cardinally oriented. While Flint by-and-large conforms to its grids, there is enough topographica

See

Downtown Flint Downtown Flint covers approximately one square mile near the center of the city, bounded roughly by Fifth Avenue to the north, I-69 to the south, I-475 to the east, and Thread Creek to the west, with most commercial activity focused along Saginaw Street and the University of Michigan-Flint Campus.

The Walking Tour of Downtown Flint is an effort sponsored by the Flint Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (see above) is intended to tout the local economy and encourage investment. This simple self-guided walking tour includes a map of the downtown district with an emphasis on local architecture. Flint's skyline features a surprisingly diverse and well-preserved collection of significant Art Deco construction, as well as their (generally less well-loved) successors.

Flint Farmers' Market, 300 E. First St., ☏ +1 810 232-1399, [email protected]. Tu Th Sa 8AM - 5PM. Based in a renovated former newspaper printing facility, the Flint Farmer's Market reopened in its