Is Kankakee really that bad???? (Chicago, DeKalb: movers, high crime, home)

[xcoastie]

I am an implant here in kankakee (skankakee) county, and I would not recommend people moving here. There is not allot to do for outdoors type people. The state park has some great small mouth fishing but you have to "time" the river level just right and do some combat fishing for the good fishing holes. Some public bow hunting for deer there also.
The weather is nasty hot/humid in the summer and brutally cold in the winter with a very short spring and summer. Some years we go from using our heater to A/C in the same week. I have lived in Colorado, New Mexico, Buffalo New york, Alaska, North Carolina, Mississippi, and New Jersey and this is worst combination of weather I have seen. Usually if there is an extreme weather season summer/winter the other season is nice.
If you drive around downtown Kankakee neighborhoods there will be at least one house boarded up or condemned per block. There is allot of crime around, but you could walk/drive through most parts of Kankakee and be safe (you may not feel safe though.)
The main street going through Bradley/Bourbonnais (hy 50) looks like a ghost town, almost all of the big businesses have moved to the north side of town or went out of business. There are empty stores and parking lots every where.
There are not many jobs here either, health care, truck driving, and some factory work seem to drive the economy.
I live in Limestone which is pretty nice compared to the surrounding areas. The crime is low and I feel safe. The housing is not too expensive but the taxes are the highest I have ever seen ( I have lived in 7 states so far.) The schools are supposedly very good here (probably why we have high taxes.)
My biggest concern about raising kids here is there is nothing for them to do that will keep them out of trouble. I have never done drugs in my life but if I grew up here I am sure I would have. I can't say that I blame all of the druggies that live here.
If you have to live here stay out of Kankakee City and get a few indoor hobbies that will keep you happy.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by xcoastie

I have lived in Buffalo New york, Alaska, Mississippi, and this is worst combination of weather I have seen

You simply cannot be serious.

[b4ugo]

First you have to get past all of the corruption in the Kankakee County area. It stems from the schools, the courts, you name it. That house needs to be thoroughly cleansed. There is a buddy system, a bubba club as some call it. Get rid of the bubba's then things may get done for the betterment of the area. Until they are gone, the area in general will remain crap.

[xcoastie]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

You simply cannot be serious.

Let me explain, last week we were using our air conditioning 24/7, this week my kids can't go outside without their hoodies and long pants, and still the mosquitoes are killer. Every where else I have lived, there has been a part of the year that was not too hot or too cold. Here in Kankakee there is no fall or spring to speak of.
This site is all about personal opinion and that is mine. There are allot of people here that absolutely love the weather, I am not one, I don't hate the weather either.

[k3citizen]

I can easily this question. Yes, Kankakee is really that bad. Its pretty much summed up in a definition I ran across on the internet one day of the word "Kankakrappy".

Urban Dictionary: Kankakrappy

Overall, the town is not improving. The crime is on the rise, and the buildings and the town itself is deteriorating.

[Pimpy the Pooh]

Originally Posted by Jons99

There is absolutely nothing wrong in walking down Hobbie during the day

Not trying to be rude but that is a very absurd statement. That street is locally known to be the worst street in the tri-city area.

[StartPackin]

There is no more Yesteryear. The building still stands and is in better condition than when it was Yesteryear. It is in pristine condition - a real asset to the area. It was the first Frank Lloyd Wright Prairie-style home built. The stable house is a gift shop that is by appointment only.
Also, no, it doesn't deserve such a bad rap. There are great neighbors, good restaurants, historic theaters and more. There are many people spending a lot of time and a lot of money bringing it back to what it was in the hayday. The biggest problem is too many people remember what it was in the 80's when it was rough and don't give credit to the many positive things that have happened in the city in the last few years. There is still work to be done but much has been done. Some people that live in surrounding villages & towns and don't live in the city (and some that have never lived in the city) run it down which is very sad. The person from Beverly Hills area of Chicago had an exceptional post. It is a shame that everyone doesn't find a few outstanding things about each town and brag about it when we talk with others. We would all be better off if we worked together to make the area a better place. Kankakee Schools get a bad rap sometimes but not enough people give the Magnet and Montessori programs they have the credit they deserve. If you have children with special talents or intelligent children that need more individual attention and be challenged more, there probably isn't a better school district. And Kankakee's Montessori is free rather than most school districts that charge for their Montessori programs! We are lucky in our county, most of our school districts are good. We have a strong Historic District with it's own Bed & Breakfast District. Our police department is exceptional. A few years back we had a high per capita murder rate and so far this year we have 0 murders (I hope we can hold out a few more days til the year ends!). And crime overall is down drastically. There is a great State Park only minutes away. The city has many large parks ... on the river. There is a lot of history. We have a lot to appreciate and many people make the mistake of not appreciating what they DO have until they don't have it anymore. I'm staying!

[b4ugo]

As I said before. I have lived in many different areas and I have to honestly say that Kankakee County is the absolute worst area I have ever lived in. People are not friendly, they are rude and dishonest. The best thing that could happen to the area is the MOAB. Use it all for farm land.

[k3worker]

I'll heartily second b4ugo in saying that as someone else who has lived in many different areas, Kankakee County is also for me hands down the absolute worst place I have lived. People here are very clannish and parochial and generally know little about anything outside of Kankakee County. Those not from here are treated as outsiders, which may be a good thing since it spares you from the multitudes of local busybodies who seem to have little to do other than to stick their noses in others' business.

If you have a college degree, you are very much in a tiny minority here. Educational attainment levels here are frightfully dismal. The community is truly an intellectual and cultural backwater. There is little to speak of here in terms of arts or culture. What nightlife there is, although I hesitate to even use the term "nightlife" to describe it, consists of dilapidated dive bars that may have been fun for 19 or 20 year olds to try to get into, but that most people in other places outgrew once they turned 21.

The "bubba" or good ole boys network that others have alluded to is alive and well in Kankakee County. Many people here owe what they do have to having the right last name or knowing the right people. This is not a place where hard work and talent are necessarily recognized or rewarded. Then again, there are so few jobs for anyone with a high school education, much less a college education, here that it's little wonder that an archaic system would thrive here.

I should have known better before moving here since I grew up about an hour away and was somewhat aware of Kankakee County's peculiarities. I thought that perhaps with the passage of time that things would have changed. I was clearly wrong.

[adrock194]

I am from kankakee have lived here my entire life. the thing about the kankakee aka the killa keyez,k3,the keyez theres some good and alot bad. Last night as of dec,29,2008 at 1:30am at the shell tehre was bout to take place a 40-60 persons gang fight at the Shell on court st. I sat and watched it took almost 20minutes for cops to bother to show. jus shows u the police force teh town has. as far as in the town it self pretty much the whole town is run down dont qoute me tehre is nice areas on the outskirts by the river. but the westside which has a nice little area with very low crime rate. Pretty much the westside of kankakee i would say starting at Riverside Hospital and workin your way west is the best part in the city. as for the badside heres a list of "hoods" and gangs in kankakee.

GANGS
Folks-Gangster Desciples, Insane Gangster Satan Desciples (IK3SD's), Almighthy Harrison Ghents,
People-Conservative Vice Lords, Almighty Latin Kings, Black P Stones

Now there is influence of otehr gangs but its very small and not impacted. The biggest rivarly in the town as of now is the Harrison Ghents V. The Latin Kings its been a ongoign battle over 8 years. They are at kneck adn kneck always and usualy when someone is gettin shot or a shooting accurs i would say 60% of the time its this rivarly.

East Merchant Street.-"merchant st D's" starting at sibley ending at wildwood st. it is a Satan Desciple(IK3SD's) area its shared with the Gangster Deciples. used to be a predomately mexican Latin King area but were drove out back in 05'. very rough neighborhood alot of crack cocaine, marijuana and heroin delt out of this area.

Wildwood & River- "the woods" Conservative Vice Lords
Rosewood & Bourbonnais- "the woods" Conservative Vice Lords
both run north and south through east merchant street.

North Chicago Avenue- "the junction" called the junction because its where rt.45 and rt.50 meet. very dangerous hood to be in because its a one way in and one way out.A young man i knew of named Ryan Graefnitz from Manteno was actually jus shot 5 times i the face and killled here dec,27th,2008 RIP. this area is known notoriously for its crack.

Old K Mart- "the bricks" just off of rt.117 while coming into kankakee there is a place called "The Convention Center" and Skate WOrld it used to b a kmart. and right behind it is 4 very large section 8 housing projects. its another one way in and out deal. high crime rate and drugs. IT is a predominate Gangster Desciple area.

North Wildwood & Locust- "The Projects"- another section 8 apartment housing considered as of the now the worst spot in kankakee to live.

Locust St.-from Scuhlyer to Hobbie Av. it is the #1 crack cocaine area in Kankakee County. Locust runs east adn west. and continue for approx. 8-10 city blocks.

Here is some information i give you on the areas in kankakee. Like i said i lived here my whole life born adn raised i love it. but it is a trap the whole county is realy economically screwed. But enjoy!