[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 71 (Thursday, May 1, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E795]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       TRIBUTE TO THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CITY OF SOUTHFIELD

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. SANDER M. LEVIN

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 1, 2008

  Mr. LEVIN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the City of 
Southfield, Michigan, on the 50th anniversary of its incorporation as a 
city.
  Southfield's city leaders have coined the phrase ``center of it all'' 
to describe this diverse community situated in the center of metro-
Detroit that has grown to the 13th largest city in the State of 
Michigan.
  The residents of Southfield are what has always made this community 
strong and independent. For example, 17 days after the area was 
designated as ``Ossewa Township'' on July 12, 1830, citizens petitioned 
the State to change the name to Southfield. And in the 1950s, a group 
of Southfield Township residents formed the ``Save Our Southfield'' 
committee and lent their own money to the group's treasury. This group 
promoted the incorporation of Southfield and financed the filing for 
incorporation. Southfield became a city on April 28, 1958.
  Southfield has grown from a rural farming community to a premier 
business and residential address in Michigan. This modern city of 
beautiful homes and golden skyscrapers has become home to nearly 80,000 
residents. Their 26 million square feet of office space brings the 
city's daytime population to more than 175,000, making Southfield one 
of the leading business centers in Michigan and the Midwest Region.
  Southfield is home to leading manufacturers and other diverse 
businesses, strong educational institutions, innovative health care 
institutions, strong community organizations, and a vibrant faith 
community. It also retrains a feeling of warmth and closeness within 
its neighborhoods.
  I am pleased to have lived in Southfield during a time of 
transformation of city leadership and institutions which are an 
increasing representative of the diversity of this wonderful community. 
I have also been pleased to represent the residents of Southfield since 
I came to Congress.
  As Mayor Brenda Lawrence and other elected officials join the 
citizens of this exceptional city to celebrate their golden jubilee, I 
ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating its residents on its 
50th year. Let this be the opportunity to pay tribute to the history of 
Southfield and re-commit ourselves to a prosperous and progressive 
future.

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