Located in northwest Wayne County, Livonia, Michigan, encompasses an area of 36 square miles. Livonia enjoys unmatched accessibility. The City’s strategic location offers easy east-west access via the Jeffries Expressway (I-96) and north-south transportation on the I-275 expressway. Major highways and interstates fan out in every direction providing convenient drive times. With a population of just under 100,000, Livonia is the 3rd Largest City in Wayne County, the 9th Largest City in Michigan. Livonia’s property tax rate is the lowest tax rate among cities in Wayne County. Livonia is a carefully planned community of residential, industrial, commercial and civic development. As the City’s motto proclaims, "People Come First" in Livonia. Livonia has been recognized by the FBI as the 7th Safest City in the Country. It has also been named the 2nd Best Kid Friendly Place in the Nation by Population Connection. The City of Livonia has also been rated the 2nd Least Economic Stressful by the City American City Business Journals. In 2008, Popular Science ranked Livonia as one of the top 50 Green Cities in the United States. This is a great place to live, work, learn and play! Livonia offers an array of recreational opportunities. The Livonia Parks and Recreation Department now oversees 46 developed municipal parks that encompass nearly 1,800 acres. Livonia takes pride in its 3 city owned and operated golf courses, twenty-two playgrounds, forty-two baseball diamonds, thirty-three tennis courts, and twenty-seven soccer fields. The City also owns two indoor ice arenas with three sheets of ice. Livonia's state of the art Community Recreation Center is a 130,000 square-foot facility with two pools, four gyms, gymnastics center, climbing wall, indoor soft playground and fitness center with indoor track.