Coldwater, MI

Although I've only been here once, I find Coldwater, MI, a pretty interesting town compared to others like it throughout the state. At a first glance, it may seem like your average rural small to mid-sized city. But there's a couple factors that make it stand out in my opinion.

First, the population trends. I can't exactly figure out why, but the city of Coldwater has experienced some massive population growth in recent years. In 2010, the city's population was 10,945. It then grew to 13,822 in 2020, and now 14,439 in 2023. This is peculiar, considering that most other rural cities in MI are experiencing population decline. It seems that there has been a boom in the construction of new homes and apartments over the last 10 years or so.

I've read that about 20% of Coldwater's population is Muslim, most of which are of Yemeni descent. It seems that Coldwater is the only city outside of Metro Detroit in Michigan with a large Muslim population. I'm wondering how this came to be, for a rural community that's quite far from any metro area? I know that near downtown Coldwater, construction has recently broke ground for one of the largest mosques in the state.

The town itself seems to be in nice shape and feels wealthier than most other communities like it. While the downtown is nothing too remarkable (though there are a few hidden gem restaurants sprinkled in), I did notice a lot of luxury/high end cars in this town, much more than I've seen in any other rural town in MI. In the northwestern portion of town there seems to be some "old money" style sprawling, old homes. Coldwater Lake, although not technically part of the city of Coldwater but just a mile away, is downright wealthy, with many multi-million dollar homes on the lakefront. I even saw a brand new Ferrari pull out of the development entering Coldwater Lake. Where is this wealth coming from? Even the smaller homes near the downtown seem to be pretty well kept and there doesn't seem to be any signs of blight or any serious poverty here.

I also find it interesting that the electric car company LUCID chose Coldwater as a location for its headquarters. I'm sure this is also contributing to the area's growth.

So I ask those who live/are from Coldwater or Branch County. What is it like living here? Am I missing anything? Is this area poised for even more growth in the future?