Moving from East St.Louis to Charleston, Il. (Chicago, Decatur: crime rate, motels) - Illinois (IL) - City-Data Forum

woodsg · 07-03-2008, 01:57 PM

I'm attending EIU this fall and was wondering about what differences I could expect.

The two cities proper are similar in size, but East St.Louis is right next to St.Louis, meaning there is a lot more to do and see here. I'm really going to miss Imo's Pizza, but probably won't miss the incredible amounts of robbery, rape, murder, and drugs that surge through the area.

What is the crime rate like in Charleston compared to the St.Louis? Whats the best place for pizza in the area? What is the nearest "bigger city" I understand Decatur is the nearest place with more than 50,000 people, but I've been told it's the same thing as East St.Louis but with more people and less things to do.

BLS2753 · 07-03-2008, 05:22 PM

My daughter attended and graduated EIU in 05. She was raised in the Chicago 'burbs, and found the Charleston experience OK.

I myself have been all over the state, and honestly find the Charleston/Mattoon area very non-descript. The area seems less populated than the numbers indicate. Charleston has a main strip thru town with mostly fast food places, banks, and motels. The only mall is in Mattoon, about 15 miles away. It is small and obsolete.

Champaign is about a 45 minute drive, and is the closest area with anything above basic shopping needs.

I think there's more dining options, 20 minutes south in Effingham, than in Charleston. Effingham is a smaller town, but benefits from the intersection of I-57/70.

The geography is very uninspiring, compared to areas further south.

Winters will likely be a little more rugged, than what you're use to in the St. Louis area.

I would say crime rate will be a vast improvement if you're coming from East St. Louis.

histo320 · 07-03-2008, 07:26 PM

I currently live in Charleston and have for 2 years while attending EIU.

Honestly it is a somewhat boring town unless you like going clubbing. Styx is a good place along with some of the downtown bars (which are about a 15 minute walk from campus).

There is crime but nothing out of the ordinary. Crystal Meth is a problem in some of the rural areas but not so much in town.

Actually Champaign-Urbana is the closest with about 151,000 in the twin cities. Like all towns there are bad parts but I also lived there my whole life and never felt unsafe.

Pizza....in Chuck Vegas (Charleston), Monicals is the best but pricey, Villa is good, beware of Boxa and Jerrys. Chubby's is good and Chubby Stix are legendary, especially after 1am.

PenguinSix · 07-05-2008, 08:29 AM

There is a world of difference between East St. Louis and Charleston.

First for crime, take a look at the EIU crime statistics (I think by law all schools have to publish these numbers)

EIU Campus Crime Statistics (http://www.eiu.edu/directives/crime.php - broken link)

Not a lot to worry about.

Second, you're going to be in the middle of nowhere. Champaign is a long 40 miles away (it's a very dull drive). Charleston is a small midwestern town that exists like a small island in the middle of the corn. You might want to do a search of this forum for Charleston Illinois and you'll get a better idea.

But you'll be at school, which can really be an island inside the island. You'll have a lot of fun and meet some cool friends and have good times.

Have fun.

Drover · 07-06-2008, 12:09 AM

The biggest crime issue in Charleston is fistfights among drunken students. Oh, and underage drinking too, because there's not a lot else for them to do. Plus every once in a while there's a meth lab bust out in the sticks.

The best place to get pizza is Pagliai's. Monical's is a local chain found mostly in central Illinois. It can be hit-or-miss but the one in Charleston seems to be one of the better ones. Jerry's is also pretty solid. You've also got many of the standard chains like Pizza Hut, Domino's and Papa John's. Avoid Topper's like it's a virus. Don't be tempted by their cheap prices. They're cheap for a reason: because they suck.

The nearest "big city" is Indianapolis at just under 2 hours away. The nearest place most EIU students go when they need a break from Charleston's monotony for the weekend is Champaign/Urbana, about an hour away. The fact that many EIU students have friends that attend U of I make it a convenient place to visit because they have a free place to crash. It also doesn't hurt that Champaign and Urbana's bar entry age is 19. Technically you're not supposed to drink unless you're 21, but unless you're being brazen about it, it's mostly a wink-and-a-nod affair.

Having and making friends will make living in Charleston a worthwhile experience. But it's nothing at all like, say, Champaign or Madison WI where many students end up staying after they graduate. Once you graduate and leave Charleston, I promise you'll never look back.

Drover · 07-06-2008, 12:22 AM

Ah, looks like the Topper's in Charleston is gone. Good riddance. The fact that a pizza place couldn't cut it in a college town should tell you how bad they sucked.

joee · 07-07-2008, 03:26 AM

Moving from estl to the middle of a desert is an improvement

thePR · 07-07-2008, 07:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joee

Moving from estl to the middle of a desert is an improvement

A desert?

A lot of towns are based around a college but Charleston seems to only be Eastern Illinois and not much else. It was nice looking when I was there though.

SocialDem · 07-09-2008, 11:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by woodsg

I'm attending EIU this fall and was wondering about what differences I could expect.

The two cities proper are similar in size, but East St.Louis is right next to St.Louis, meaning there is a lot more to do and see here. I'm really going to miss Imo's Pizza, but probably won't miss the incredible amounts of robbery, rape, murder, and drugs that surge through the area.

What is the crime rate like in Charleston compared to the St.Louis? Whats the best place for pizza in the area? What is the nearest "bigger city" I understand Decatur is the nearest place with more than 50,000 people, but I've been told it's the same thing as East St.Louis but with more people and less things to do.

I spent a semester at EIU before transferring to Millikin in my hometown of Decatur. You'll find Charleston a very nice change of pace from East St. Louis in terms of crime; currently, if I'm not mistaken, East St. Louis has the highest crime rate in the entire country. That may have changed, but it's certainly in the top ten. Charleston's crime rate, on the other hand, is virtually nonexistent. The thing to realize is that Charleston essentially is the university; EIU is actually bigger than Charleston proper. Because of that, it can be a rather boring place. There is essentially nothing to do off campus, your whole life while there will be spent at EIU. Decatur is the nearest city of any subsantial size, though its a bit more than an hour away. As a person who was born and raised in Decatur, I have to say that you'll have little to no reason to ever take the trip up here. Decatur's a dying industrial city with a high crime rate (though still nothing to compare to East St. Louis), a massive poverty rate and absolutely nothing to do. Anyways, I hope you enjoy EIU!

jackied_5 · 08-23-2008, 09:39 PM

I live in Illinois about 20 minutes from ESL and I go to EIU. Compared to our area there is nothing to do here besides party. There's only about one or two good resturants besides fast food. There is nowhere to go shopping. Compared to ESL the crime here is nonexistent. I would never ever ever go to ESL by myself and I feel very safe here. It is a huge change from the metro east but it's not that bad.