If your dream is to live and work close to the action and economic wealth of a major metropolitan area, yet far enough away to escape bumper-to-bumper hassles, consider the Benton Harbor/St. Joseph area. Residents along our stretch of Lake Michigan shoreline enjoy that ideal every day.

The cities of St. Joseph and Benton Harbor are conveniently located along I-94, "America’s Main Street," just 90 miles from Chicago and Grand Rapids. As a matter of fact, 54% of all manufacturing in the USA occurs within a 500 mile radius of our area — not to mention 48% of the nation’s retail sales, 54% of the nation’s business payroll, and 65% of the entire gross national product of Canada. Positioning like ours, in concert with substantial highway and interstate infrastructures which make direct routes a given, afford our communities an enviable economic base of operations.

Naturally, motor vehicles are just one of the myriad of ways to reach Benton Harbor and St. Joseph. Southwest Michigan Regional Airport offers daily commercial passenger air service provided by Northwest Airlink and operated by Mesaba Air Lines. Five daily round trip flights to Detroit Metro link our community with fast connections around the globe. UPS alone ships more than 4 million pounds of cargo through SW Michigan Regional Airport.

Amtrak’s Pere Marquette passenger train operates seven days a week along the Grand Rapids-Chicago corridor. Efficient inexpensive service actually enables some people to live here and work in Chicago. You can even step aboard the many motor-coaches of Indian Trails for bus service linking Michigan’s interior to the shoreline with service to such communities as Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, Lansing, Ann Arbor, Mackinac City and Sault Ste. Marie.

With 42 miles of Lake Michigan coastline, shipping lanes thrive in our region. From Great Lakes freighters and barges to intercoastal river barges, national and international shipping opportunities abound. Waterfront access to CSX rail lines enables cargo transfer along the length of the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico and beyond.

Major Market Access

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