This is a minor curiosity that I noticed at the southeast corner of East Michigan and Mifflin Avenues, in front of the Muffler Man shop (which I have learned was a General Tire location from the 1950s through at least 1989). There is a length of sidewalk leading north to a curb cut, as though to allow pedestrians to cross Michigan.

What makes this curious is that there is no corresponding curb cut on the other side. The sidewalk across the road does not extend to the street. So it appears that the south side of the street was designed to allow someone to cross, but the north side was not.

I’m not sure how many people will find this as interesting as I do. What fascinates me about it is the way it reflects some series of decisions that must have made sense when they were made, and which depended on things that did not come to pass, or reflected conditions that have since altered. Alas, such historical minutiae are most likely unrecorded.

One possible influence on the situation is the fact that the south side, with the curb cut, belongs to Lansing Township, and the north side to Lansing. This doesn’t explain anything, exactly, but the correlation may be significant. It is out of character for Lansing Township to have more sidewalk than Lansing, but Lansing Township’s sidewalks (when they exist) are very erratic and inscrutable. The sidewalk starting at this corner and continuing east for a couple of blocks until it disappears is inset much further than the blocks to the west, and this again reflects the border, which divides Lansing from Lansing Township at Mifflin on this side of Michigan. This gives the buildings here an especially large lawn extension, deep enough that the late, lamented Theio’s had its outdoor seating on it. As a result, the stretch of sidewalk that leads to the curb cut is especially long and prominent, and must have been installed for a reason.