Nice family town in southern IL? Not too small? (Chicago: sales, houses)

[waldo]

I have a Wife and two middle school aged kids now living in Charlotte, NC. I am getting a new job with a sales territory of just south of Springfiled to the border with KY. I can live anywhere in that area but we are used to the suburban life (neighborhoods) with things to do in a middle/large-sized city. I do not want my Wife and kids to be bored if we live too far away from cultural and youth sports stuff. Schools are of primary importance though. We can afford a house around $350K. Are there any towns that are very family oriented but on the larger size with the things I described? Or, should I just live close to Springfield and drive to/from the southern areas of the state...which I don't mind doing if necessary?

[Drover]

You might look into St. Louis suburbs. O'Fallon and Belleville seem to be the most commonly suggested ones on the IL side of the river. In fact my sister and brother-in-law live in O'Fallon and they're very picky about the communities they live in.

[Switch625]

If you want something more centrally located, Carbondale would be your best bet.

[waldo]

We've checked out some little towns (via web resources and some calls to the towns) outside of Springfiled on the southern side (Auburn, Chatham) that look nice with easy access to a mall and other cultural stuff. When I look further south, such as Carbondale, it looks to be too rural from what we're used to. I haven't heard any good things about East Metro either. I'm sure there are nice towns there but you're right next to East St. Louis. I know I need to get there and see but I'm just trying to do some preliminary research first so any opinions are welcomed.

[Switch625]

Truthfully, There isn't much south of Springfield other than the E. St. Louis metro area. Effingham is the only other city of any size. In the deep south of Illinois, it's all little towns and rural areas. You could look at Vandalia, but again it is a town not a city.

[joee]

your best bet is carbondale/marion, real down to earth people in that area, lots of outdoor things to do, all around great place, you'll get a lot more house for the money there also.

[AnimalLover]

I live in rural Glenarm, which is between Chatham and Auburn. We are just a little over an hour from St Louis, 3 hours from Chicago. Chatham is rapidly growing (40% in the last 10 years), expected to double again in the next 20. The Chatham school system is highly rated. There are 2 grades schools K-3, an intermediate school for grades 4 & 5, jr high and a six year old high school. You can check out the various school & district websites from www.ChathamIlNeighbors.com. Yes, that's me at the bottom of the page and I'd be glad to show you around. My daughter attends SIU in Edwardsville, I've heard their schools are also very good. If I can help, email me directly.

[AnimalLover]

I should have also mentioned Chatham has many many youth sports activities through community programs and the schools. Soccer, basketball, softball, baseball, hockey, track, volleyball, wrestling, golf, tennis and so on including football, football, football. There are many non-sports related extra cirricular activities, if your kids are so inclined. Springfield has the Abraham Lincoln Museum, Hoogland Center for the Arts, The Muni which has an outdoor theatre in the summer if anyone has a flair for acting, New Salem is close by, the Nelson Center for ice skating and swimming, Sangamon Auditorium on the UIS campus brings in a wide variety of talent, the State Fair Grounds hosts many events besides the fair including a home show, boat show, horse racing, motorcyle racing, lots of horse shows, ethnic fair, concerts, etc etc. So, we're not a giant metropolis, but the people are friendly, we have rush minutes instead of hours and, in my opinion, it's a good place to raise a family. We had six, the youngest is 18 and headed to college this fall.

[waldo]

Originally Posted by AnimalLover

I should have also mentioned Chatham has many many youth sports activities through community programs and the schools. Soccer, basketball, softball, baseball, hockey, track, volleyball, wrestling, golf, tennis and so on including football, football, football. There are many non-sports related extra cirricular activities, if your kids are so inclined. Springfield has the Abraham Lincoln Museum, Hoogland Center for the Arts, The Muni which has an outdoor theatre in the summer if anyone has a flair for acting, New Salem is close by, the Nelson Center for ice skating and swimming, Sangamon Auditorium on the UIS campus brings in a wide variety of talent, the State Fair Grounds hosts many events besides the fair including a home show, boat show, horse racing, motorcyle racing, lots of horse shows, ethnic fair, concerts, etc etc. So, we're not a giant metropolis, but the people are friendly, we have rush minutes instead of hours and, in my opinion, it's a good place to raise a family. We had six, the youngest is 18 and headed to college this fall.

wow. thanks for the info. i will check it out.

[doll lady]

Waldo....I'm from the Springfield area and I agree with animalover. The Chatham area is a nice area and still very close to Springfield. There are some awesome houses on the road (Route 4) between Springfield and Chatham....Panther Creek, The Reserve (just off Route 4) and Piper Glen are some of the upscale subdivisions. The Reserve is the most impressive.

I would think the choice would also depend on where the majority of your business will be located.

My second choice would be Mt. Vernon simply because of it's location on the Interstates - Junction of I-57 and I-64.....also for ease of travelling and fair travelling time to larger cities such as St Louis and Evansville Indiana. Third choice would be Effingham.

Unfortunately there isn't an Interstate directly from Springfield going southeast.....in order to use interstates to the southern part of state from Springfield, people usually use I-55 to two lane Route 4 to Interstate 64 east to I-57. Otherwise it is slow going on two lane highways to the southeast of the state from Springfield. Definitely slow going during planting and harvesting seasons or during school bus pick up times. (P.S. I used to travel with my job and had to go these routes. - YIKES!)