When I was younger and thought about where I would want to live when I grew up, Michigan didn't make the list. I had seen Chicago and marveled at the skyscrapers. I had traveled to New York and felt the energy in the air. I am glad to have grown up where I did, biking up and down our state's rolling hills, swimming in its fresh bodies of water, and feeling secure in my sleepy hometown; but my priorities are different now than a decade ago. I will be 20 in August, and I want action. 

New York and Chicago are where I think I'll find it. Glamorized in movies, TV shows, and books, they're the sorts of places people dream about. When I search for future careers on Handshake (think Indeed for college students), I often filter by location to see what's available in those two cities. I'd like to see the stat for how many young people in Michigan do the same. I imagine the number would be big.  

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The features that make Michigan great—that made my childhood great—don’t appeal to Gen Zs…

The features that make Michigan great—that made my childhood great—don't appeal to Gen Zs the way they appeal to other age demographics, like new parents. Most of us don't yet have to worry about what's best for our kids, so we worry about what's best for our own entertainment. 

I'm reminded of the well-known placemaking concept, the Power of 10+. Successful places offer residents 10 things to do (drinking, shopping, going for a picnic, etc.), the specific neighborhood provides 10 places to go (the local pub, Main Street, a nearby park), and the surrounding city can boast 10 major destinations (in New York City: Fraunces Tavern, Times Square, Central Park). In theory, this allows people to mix activities and destinations into 1,000 different combinations. 

I believe that I could fill 1,000 nights somewhere, but I don't have high hopes about it being in Michigan. One of my obsessions is standup comedy. I perform at open mics and with my school group. Manhattan alone has 10 comedy clubs. Even better, they're all within easy walking distance of multiple bars and a subway station. Comedy is only one example. No matter what your interest is, you can fill dozens of nights with it in New York City without falling into a stale routine.  

In fairness to Michigan, cities like New York or Chicago benefit from something our state hasn't had in decades. They've reached a critical mass, whereby accretion alone Gen Zs will move there. Young people have gravity. Enough of them in one place will attract others, attracting even more in turn. 

This positive feedback loop is happening in metropolises across the country but is only just now beginning in Detroit. In 2023, for the first time since 1957, its population grew year over year. Mayor Mike Duggan celebrated, announcing,"I think when you drive around the city, you can feel the vibrancy." He's right. Detroit feels more alive today than in the past, and people my age, including my friends and I, are taking notice. The comeback isn't done, and the revitalization has a long way to go. But where the city may once have only had 500 things to do before, now it has 800, and that figure is rising. 

Grand Rapids is similar. From 2010 to 2020, it was one of Michigan's fastest growing cities. Its population of just under 200,000 is still relatively small, but it's a start. Whether or not young people find getting in on the ground floor of these cities desirable is a matter of taste. I have friends with no interest in waiting around for further downtown development, and I have friends who would love nothing more than to be part of Michigan's success story. 

I believe Michigan will be a success story, but it will take time. Thankfully, creative projects at the state level are hastening progress. Governor Gretchen Whitmer recently launched her MI Future Educators Fellowship, which pays thousands of dollars in college tuition for students looking to become teachers if they agree to stay in Michigan for three years—a good amount of time early in an adult's career. A happy biproduct of the program is that it binds participants here long enough for some of them to meet a partner. Polling shows that the odds of someone moving drop significantly once they get married. Young people staying in Michigan until they fall in love often leads to them staying for life. Anything that entices Gen Zs to stick around until this process can occur, whether that be financial incentives like this or alluring urban areas, is a positive. 

One of the main reasons I feel comfortable moving from this state is that no one is keeping me here. My parents are still young and don't need my help. If I lived on the East Coast for the duration of my early twenties, they would get by. On the other hand, the presence of a significant other in my life would seriously decrease my mobility. 

For the time being, I don't know what my post-graduation plans are, but leaving Michigan is still a possibility. That said, the closer Michigan gets to providing me with 1,000 nights of activity and a deeper personal life, the less likely that outcome becomes. 

Author

Jack Brady

I am a sophomore at the University of Michigan majoring in economics and political science. I am currently a senior editor for the Michigan Daily Opinion Section. In my free time, I do stand up comedy at local open mics.