Why does most of downstate Illinois not care for Chicago? (Naperville: amusement park, schools)

[SJaye]

I agree that there are differences in attitudes/outlooks between people "downstate" and people in Chicago. Race and religion are part of it, but not the be all/ end all. Rural and urban lifestyle are just different, and people who are always in one end up with a different outlook on life than people who are always in the other.

I'd like to see some serious statistics about state government outlays and returns by county, similar to the ones the Tax Foundation puts out about the states showing which ones are donors and which ones are recipients. Tax Donor or Contrib States

Anyone know of such information?

[linicx]

Illinois has a lot of counties, and a lot of schools that get tax money. How much money each school district receives from the state is based upon the number of schools and the amount of money each school district receives from real estate tax dollars in their district. Schools in poor counties receive more state tax dollars than the wealthy counties. I think NIU puts out a list. I think the State Treasurer in Illinois will talk to you and explain it.

I don't thank culture or religion has anything to do with it. Peoria has plenty of both.

[Central Illinois 1]

I hate to say it. But Downstate would be in deep trouble if it lost the Chicagoland tax base. We'd be right down there with places like Arkansas, Kentucky, and Louisiana as "40 something" states. As in "40 something in education", "40 something" in health care, "40 something in roads, etc.

[Chicagoland60426]

Originally Posted by linicx

Illinois has a lot of counties, and a lot of schools that get tax money. How much money each school district receives from the state is based upon the number of schools and the amount of money each school district receives from real estate tax dollars in their district. Schools in poor counties receive more state tax dollars than the wealthy counties. I think NIU puts out a list. I think the State Treasurer in Illinois will talk to you and explain it.

I don't thank culture or religion has anything to do with it. Peoria has plenty of both.

Illinois have too many counties with 102 of them. Even the most populous state(California) doesn't have that many counties.

[It'sAutomatic]

Originally Posted by TootsieWootsie

The money may be disbursed for the State in Springfield, but ain't it a shock that Chicago gets such a disproportionate amount of that money? Daley Machine at work for generations? You betcha.

Yes, Chicago gets a disproportionate amount of money because a disproportionately high number of people live there.

Cities generally subsidize activities in the rest of their states, in fact. Higher incomes concentrated around the city mean higher income taxes paid. I couldn't find any recent data about Illinois in a brief search, but there was a supreme court ruling about 15 years ago that New York State couldn't keep squeezing NYC dry for cash, as they were getting only 66 cents to the dollar back from the state in services.

[TabulaRasa]

It also merits mention that if there are segments of non-Chicago Illinois that are negatively biased towards all things they perceive to be specific to Chicago, there are DEFINITELY segments of the Chicago population who are wholeheartedly biased against all things they perceive to be specific to non-Chicago Illinois.

[linicx]

You are absolutely right. And some of it is perpetuated on this forums. People who have never set foot south of I-80, and those who have not been in Peoria for any length of time in several years consistently bash Peoria.

For a city of !20,000 were not doing too badly considering the economy. Houses are selling, a fourth hospital is going up, we have 4x more doctors than the national average; we are hiring more. Manufacturing has not died yet, the farms are not dwindling any faster than any other state, we do have a culture that is very diverse when compared to B-N and some of the other smaller communities - which is why we attract good doctors. Our private university is a good deal financially, many of our 100-year old businesses are thriving, we have the largest Jewish community outside of Chicago, and we still have 5 country clubs. I'd say we're not doing too badly for a river city in the middle of those boring cornfields and ranches.

Sure Peoria has flaws, but so does Chicago. But we do not pay Chicago taxes, and our real estate taxes are not as outrageous either. We don't get that Canadian wind chill off Lake Michigan in the winter. We don't have Chicago problems because we are 1/10 its size. and we don't want them. Chicago may be the largest convenience store in the Midwest, but we're pretty content with what we do have.

I've lived in many large mega-metro cities. LA has Hollywood and traffic that makes Chicago traffic look like a walk in the park on a Sunday afternoon. I did not find anything fascinating about paying $150 for an $15 lobster; I still don't. The best meal I had was an $8 Cobb Salad. Chicago beats LA 10 ways to one. I don't want to live in any mega-city. Chicago is great city and it is a fun city. It's the city that Billy Sunday could not shut down. I shop in St. Louis.

[Chicagoland60426]

Originally Posted by linicx

You are absolutely right. And some of it is perpetuated on this forums. People who have never set foot south of I-80, and those who have not been in Peoria for any length of time in several years consistently bash Peoria.

For a city of !20,000 were not doing too badly considering the economy. Houses are selling, a fourth hospital is going up, we have 4x more doctors than the national average; we are hiring more. Manufacturing has not died yet, the farms are not dwindling any faster than any other state, we do have a culture that is very diverse when compared to B-N and some of the other smaller communities - which is why we attract good doctors. Our private university is a good deal financially, many of our 100-year old businesses are thriving, we have the largest Jewish community outside of Chicago, and we still have 5 country clubs. I'd say we're not doing too badly for a river city in the middle of those boring cornfields and ranches.

Sure Peoria has flaws, but so does Chicago. But we do not pay Chicago taxes, and our real estate taxes are not as outrageous either. We don't get that Canadian wind chill off Lake Michigan in the winter. We don't have Chicago problems because we are 1/10 its size. and we don't want them. Chicago may be the largest convenience store in the Midwest, but we're pretty content with what we do have.

I've lived in many large mega-metro cities. LA has Hollywood and traffic that makes Chicago traffic look like a walk in the park on a Sunday afternoon. I did not find anything fascinating about paying $150 for an $15 lobster; I still don't. The best meal I had was an $8 Cobb Salad. Chicago beats LA 10 ways to one. I don't want to live in any mega-city. Chicago is great city and it is a fun city. It's the city that Billy Sunday could not shut down. I shop in St. Louis.

I been to Peoria twice and its a fairly size city of 114,000. Most of the Midsized cities in Central Illinois are not doing bad with increasing population. Peoria is evenly half way between St. Louis and Chicago. Which of the two cities do Peoria people associate with more?

[TabulaRasa]

Seriously, give me the "boring cornfields" any day. I have a deep and abiding love for rural Illinois.

[via chicago]

Originally Posted by jwhittak

I love Chicago. I just don't know how people can afford to live there.

"Afford" is all relative. Most metropolitan areas have higher earnings to compensate for the higher cost of living. Lots of people are able to go carless in a dense city like Chicago, therefore you're not paying all the costs associated with automobile ownership. Housing is obviously more expensive and you get less for your money...but then again you're also living in the middle of a cosmopolitan city. It all comes down to location. The apartment is where you eat occasionally, sleep at night, maybe hang out and watch a little tv, and store your stuff. The city is your backyard, living room, entertainment center, etc.