Interested in moving to IL, but not sure which town is right for me. (Chicago: building)

[Havasu]

My Vote is for Washinton

[qwemmie]

Morton Il is a nice 'hood' ... They offer a little bit of everything....GREAT SCHOOLs....Go Gators!!!

Sports in schools are BIG in Morton..and they are good at it too...lol

I am not sure of the Pop. but it's not too small or big. Home of the Pumpkin Chucking and Libbey's Pumpkin...which is now Nestle.

They have good resturants...NICE areas...and really no bad ones.

15mins. from Peoria and Pekin and about 30mins. from Bloominton/Normal.

GREAT central location.

[2monkeymom]

Well, I happen to LOVE Libbey's Pumpkin pie! haha. Thanks for the info, I will definately check it out!

[alymaibra]

I'm not much of an expert on Illinois, but I have lived here off and on my whole life. Most generally in the central Illinois area (Peoria and the surrounding 1 hour radius drive). Living in a military family and coming back "home" every three or four years really makes you take a good look at the area. The first thing I always noticed was you knew you hit Illinois when you start feeling the cracks in the roads! lol. There is ALWAYS road construction going on somewhere. What really kills is hitting it when you're on the I-55 North stretch to Chicago and they cut the traffic down to one lane! OMG!!!
But not to discourage you, I am currently living in Springfield. There's always something, and i mean something going on around here. The only reason we chose to move here was simply because my husband has transfered from the active army to the national guard. Being down here in Springfield, we have the options to do what he needs to do here and still travel down to Scott AFB without traveling over 4 hours to get to it to hit some nice benefits (commissary and BX).
We have lived here in Springfield for six months now and here are a few things i would make sure you keep in mind:
1. we have over 110k people
2. the ghetto happens to be a bit spread throughout the city... there's no specific area that you won't find some form of ghetto or other.
3. you can find jobs and residential dwelling at SJ-R.COM and find what you may be looking for.
4. there are jobs available out the waazoo. Just depends on your field of work would depend on how many options you have.
5. living on the northern side of the city is a little quieter and less ghetto-ish (in my own personal opinion)
6. do your research before you commit to a particular place. i.e. the landlord, Realtor, neighborhood. just drive around the area you're looking at during different times of the day to see if that is what you are going to be comfortable living with. and i strongly advise against acting on any questionable inquiries you'd have via email or telephone. you never know what you are actually getting yourself into (we've learned from experience unfortunately thinking we were being smart and arranging something before our move... boy were we wrong!)
7. the hospitals in the area seem to be pretty good. although this is a medical teaching area, between the two major hospitals and the other medical facilities, you have plenty of specialists as well as residents as well as interns. We have found it to be a godsend with our family since we have a few members that benefit greatly from the research the schools do. It would be SIU.
8. depending on where you're coming from you may consider the cost of living a bit higher then you're used to. That would be our case. It was a little different to get used to but you adjust.
9. you can hit practically every major part of the city from the interstate that circles it.
10. a lot of people will end up telling you that if you still want Springfield to be easily accessible try living in one of the surrounding smaller areas... you can check out Chatham (a nice little place that i feel will one day become a part of Springfield) or even in the opposite direction, Riverton. Gas is currently running $3/gal on average. It just depends on what your range is on residential expenses.
11. the water is city owned so its got cheaper rates. depending on where you live in springfield, you can go with CWLP (city water lights and power) which gives you the best rates on your water and electricity. If not, then you have the option of Ameren CIPS. We used to use their services and depending on you families needs, you can see a drastic difference in the two company's bills.
Washington state was another state we considered before making our move. we done a lot of research on it as well. it has just as many pros as it does cons just like Springfield. its just going to depend on if you prefer more rain (Wa.) to tornadoes (Il.). but again its also going to depend on what part of Washington state you look at as well. We had the western area in mind, from Olympia to the coast. we even considered Oregon. it just depends on what your family's needs are will give you a better path in the right direction.
much luck to you in your decision whichever it would be. and i hope this was a little helpful for you.

[Kali's Grandma]

Originally Posted by Havasu

My Vote is for Washinton

I'd vote for Washington too.
My father lives there and really likes it.
It's close enough to Peoria in one direction and Bloomington in another.
They have a wonderful town square. You'll have that small town feel.
It's a town that's spreading out but they seem to be doing it right/

[Larry46]

Hi, Galesburg, Illinois is a very progressive town of 33,000 with home prices averaging in the $70,000. A home with a price of $130,000 will put you in one of the best neighborhoods, with many ammendities that would place the price way over $200,000 in other communities that have been mentioned above. Galesburg has excellent schools, there are activies of all kinds continously in this very progressive, super freindly city! Our economy is strong, as we are a major hub for 6 railroads, including BNSF! We are connected to Chicago with great Amtrack Service - a short ride to the city from here.

[BUalumni]

I second both Washington and Morton!

Both are small towns that are very safe, clean, with very good schools. Morton has grown like crazy the last few years, but still feels like that small midwest town, 50's era, everyone knows each other, kinda stuff. IMO, it is the best small town in state, and deserves far more recognition than it deserves. Morton has some very attratctive neighborhoods, and some of nicest people that I have ever met. Plenty for a family to do, and perfect location to the interstate, and both Peoria, East Peoria, Pekin and Bloomington/Normal. What you won't find in Morton is vivid sprawl. If you look at an ariel picture of the town, you will see that the newer areas, are still following the same grid pattern that the old parts were made from. As a result, you find that people that live in the farthest part of town, still take evening strolls to the downtown area, which holds that classic downtown, antique feel shops, and even comes with an old walk up Dairy Queen. If you cannot find comfort in Morton, than you can't possibly be interested in the midwest lifestyle.

Washington, Illinois is very similar to Morton, although they are smaller and a little less expensive. Schools are still good, and once again the people are the nicest. I have found that many people in Washington tend to be professors at the local colleges and Universities, as compared to Morton which is a VERY white collar/MD type of town. The Washignton square really brings the town to life. There are festivals and local attractions year round. Washington plays host to the Gus Macker basketball tournament that draws people from all over the country. I find that Washington's growth is more sprawl looking than Morton's, but is a more idealic location with trees and ravines rather than in the middle of a cornfield. Washington also has better access to East Peoria and Illinois Central College.

Both are great towns and I have not met a person to date that hates living in either. Some other small towns to look into, that have similar aspects, would be: Metamora, Tremont, Pekin(maybe), East Peoria(maybe), Eureka!, Edwards, and Dunlap. All are good small towns, and excellent location to both Peoria and Bloomington.

[Newbigtech]

Stay away from Pekin, Peoria. Backwards... always backwards. Taxes are high, Pollution is all over the place. It's like walking into the Twilight Zone and not having Rod Searling as your guide.

[BCAT]

Most small towns around Bloomington-Normal or Springfield offer good education and excellent quality of life.

[NYrules]

Originally Posted by 2monkeymom

My family is looking to move this summer. We have two children, 5 yrs and 2 yrs. I would like a small, quaint town of approx 6,000-50,000 people (don't want TOO small, but could go bigger). Preferably, we would like something that isn't outrageously expensive, homes around $120,000-$175,000 would be preferable, so long as it's not ghetto. Looking for great schools, and some kind of activities, annual festivals, and just a "life" to it. Obviously, we don't want to move where there is a lot of crime.

I was actually looking around the Quincy area, or Springfield. I really don't know much about them. We don't want to wind up somewhere where there are no jobs, either. So any feedback would be greatly appreciated!

We are actually torn between Illinios and Washington. We really just want to make a change from Arizona and are open to those areas. Looking for change of SEASONS!! A town with personality. Charm. A great place for our kids to grow up.

Any suggestions or info would be wonderful!
Thanks!

I would have to say to look around Bloomington Normal if you don't want to end up in a stagnant IL town where jobs are at a minimum and employers consider $7 an hour a good wage. Bloomington is booming, so if you are looking for more of a quaint town I would more recommend Normal or the town directly to it's north "Towanda" which is located right off I-55 about 10 miles north of Normal's city limits. This will put you at a stones throw from tons of shopping, eatting establishments, and good paying jobs, yet without the hassels of having bumper to bumper traffic outside your front door.

In anycase the Bloomington/Normal metro area is very prosperous when it comes to a central IL town. Don't be expecting Chicago by any means, but overall the area is great. Surprisingly there is plenty to do as far as recreation, plenty of shopping in not only B/N, but also in nearby Peoria and Champaign with Northwoods Mall and Marketplace Mall respectively.

Crime in the B/N metro area is very low overall when compared with other cities similar in size and the cost of living is average to low while salaries are average to high. State Farm is the area's largest employer, but also the metro area houses Country Companies insurance's headquarters and the Illinois Farm Beurea, not to mention all the retail presence again and Mitsubishi's plant which produces Galants, Eclipses, Spiders, and Monteros located on the west side of the town.

The area has also been known for it's outstanding school system from preschool ages all the way up through adulthood.

The weather will also keep you on the edge of your seats because it changes at a moment's notice, so if you are tired of sunny weather day in and day out, then central IL will keep you pleased.

For more information on the area check out these links.
Bloomington-Normal Area Convention & Visitors Bureau

Pantagraph.com | Central Illinois News, Sports, Classifieds and More

Bloomington Normal Association of REALTORS

City of Bloomington, Illinois : Information Resources for Bloomington Residents and Visitors.

Town of Normal, Illinois

Bloomington Homes for Sale. Real Estate in Bloomington, Illinois