Center Line celebrates independence

CENTER LINE — Family fun under sunny, sparkling skies coupled with enjoyable entertainment for all ages was the best way to describe the Center Line Independence Festival June 2-4.

“Just a lot of great activities, small-town-lifestyle-type activity,” said Center Line City Manager Dennis Champine.

The three-day event had a different theme for each day with free concerts in Memorial Park and activities corresponding with the themes Flashback Friday, Saddle-Up Saturday and Spotlight Sunday.

According to Champine, Flashback Friday was dedicated to tribute and rock bands which included Captain Fantastic, an Elton John tribute band.  There was also a classic car display along the carnival midway.

Saddle-Up Saturday had a country music theme with bands including Shiatown, a modern country band.  In the afternoon there was Cruisin’ 53, a classic car show that cruised Van Dyke Avenue starting in Center Line and continuing the parade of cars in Warren.  At night, fireworks lit up the sky.

Spotlight Sunday was a family day, according to Champine, with bands for kids and adults. The Prolifics performed, covering Motown and other R&B tunes from the ’60s and ’70s to the delight of all ages.  During the performance, toddlers ran to the dance floor and moved to the music, as did an elderly gentleman who walked assisted by a cane.  When he heard the music, he made his way to the dance floor, got rid of the cane and danced with his beloved.  This caught the attention of members of The Prolifics, who said from the stage, “He dropped his cane to dance.”

Other events were a midway filled with carnival rides, seven food vendors, and business vendors that sold toys, clothes and other items. Kids clamored to the bounce house and petting zoo with llamas, camels and smaller animals, including rabbits. Some of the larger animals donned decorative blankets that gave the animals a regal appearance. There was a cornhole tournament where proficient players tested their skills against other cornhole aficionados.

The festival attracted people from throughout the surrounding community. “We had more than 50,000 in attendance,” said Champine.

This, according to the Center Line Mayor Bob Binson, was more than came to the festival in 2022.

“We had a lot better attendance,” said Binson. “Our Friday night and Sunday were much busier than they have been in the past.”

According to the 2020 U.S. Census, Center Line has a population of 8,548. This event attracted six times its population.

Both Binson and Champine were proud of the festival’s success.

“My proudest moment of this year’s festival was the people.  Our citizens represented our city well and everybody that came talked about how nice people were and almost every vendor we had was excited about coming back next year and coming back for our Beer Fest in the fall,” said Binson. “We really represented ourselves well as a people and as a community.”

Champine described his proudest moment this way.

“The most proud moment was the hard work of all the volunteers and my staff to ensure the event went off without a hitch,” Champine said. “We didn’t have any issues.”

Police were visible throughout the event.

“Overall, for the entire weekend, we had upwards of 70 officers in place. That was full-time public safety officers, reservist officers from Center Line, Richmond and Eastpointe,” said Champine.

The first Center Line Independence Festival was held in 2016 to celebrate Center Line’s independence from the larger community, according to Champine.  There was no festival in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic.

“The city of Center Line was established in 1936, approximately 21 years before the area surrounding us now known as the city of Warren, which became a city in 1957,” said Champine.  “Prior to that there were attempts to annex (by) Warren Township the city of Center Line, or as we knew it then, the Village of Center Line.  But that never came to fruition because the Center Line residents refused to be annexed by Warren Township. They always wanted to be their own community. They always wanted to be a small town they have always been throughout the years.”

According to Champine, celebrating the independence of the city of Center Line has always been a source of pride for the city’s residents and was the impetus of the name Center Line Independence Festival. It is celebrated the first weekend in June, a month before the nation’s Independence Day of July 4.