Quiet country living close to Lake Huron and Thumbcoast cities
Kimball Township’s 9,600 residents are spread across small communities like Wadhams, Smiths Creek and West Tappan. The western Michigan township is about 10 miles from Lake Huron and the Canadian border village of Point Edward. Homeowners enjoy a quiet country lifestyle near the riverside cities on Michigan’s Thumbcoast, including Port Huron and Marysville , where many students attend school. “Kimball Township is mostly rural, but we have nice residential areas,” says Kimball Township clerk Becky Wrubel. “It’s a beautiful place to live.”
A blend of housing styles on quiet wooded streets
Most homes in Kimball Township are spaced widely apart in a quiet landscape filled with fields and forests. Property sizes are generous, many measuring half an acre to 4 acres, some measuring up to 20 acres. Long gravel driveways provide ample parking, and attached and detached garages help protect vehicles against damage from winter ice storms. Some manufactured homes sell in the $30,000 to $100,000 range, but most ranch-style homes built in the late 20th century cost $100,000 to $200,000. Cottages and National builds from the early 1900s and larger or updated ranch-style houses sell for $200,000 to $325,000, and New Traditional homes built in the last 25 years cost $330,000 to $530,000. Large estates with sizable acreage can fetch $620,000 to $735,000. The township has a CAP Index Crime Score of 2 out of 10, below the national average of 4.
Students have access to school choice and private Christian schools
Most Kimball Township students attend schools in the Port Huron Area School District, rated B-minus by Niche, or Marysville Public Schools, rated B-plus. Students at Marysville High School can improve their technology and communication skills through Marysville Viking Television, a fine arts elective. Michigan’s Schools of Choice program allows students to enroll in public schools outside their residential district. The area also has several private schools, including Landmark Academy and New Life Christian Academy, both rated C-plus, and the unrated Blue Water Christian Academy.
Parks and a multiuse trail cater to a variety of interests
Hikers, joggers, cyclists, rollerbladers and horseback riders can follow 12 miles of historic rail line on the Wadhams to Avoca Trail. The trail’s highlight is the Mill Creek Trestle, a 640-foot bridge built in the late 1800s. Sutherland Park is centered on a pond with fishing piers, swimming areas, and an adjacent playground and picnic shelter. The pond is also popular with kayakers. The township’s Little League team faces opponents at the nearby baseball field, and golfers can tee off at Solitude Links Golf Course, which is open to the public. Sawmill City offers miniature golf, go-karting and bumper boats near the Port Huron KOA Resort.
Grocery stores and restaurants around I-69 in Wadhams
Most restaurants and stores can be found in Wadhams near Interstate 69. Wadhams Country Kitchen serves homestyle fare for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and Cafe Nola is right down the road for espresso, bubble tea and other pick-me-ups. Vinckier Foods grocery store and Ace Hardware anchor a shopping plaza surrounded by fast-food chains and gas stations.
Travelers have access to two interstates and the Blue Water Bridge
“We’re between interstates 94 and 69, so we have easy access to both,” Wrubel says. I-94 offers the fastest route to Detroit , about 60 miles away, and Detroit Metro Airport, about 70 miles away. Travelers can catch a lift to the airport through Ruby’s Port Huron Shuttle Services. Medical care is available about 9 miles away at McLaren Port Huron. It’s also about 9 miles to the Blue Water Bridge, which connects Port Huron to Point Edward on the Canadian side of the border.
