Why don't Chicagoans consider NWI part of the Chicagoland area?

[Plzeň]

Originally Posted by gregoo

I lived in Bradley, Il which was 1 hour south of Chicago. They would say we are not a suburb.

Bradley is significantly further from Chicago than most of NWI, and in fact isn't a part of the Chicago Metropolitan Area, though it is a part of the Combined Statistical Area, which extends further.

Originally Posted by Bluefoxwarrior

Eh. It's definitely becoming consumed by the metro area, but I think it has also has retained a great deal of its own character. Older Victorian homes, mature foliage, an actual downtown..

This is actually true of many of the Illinois suburbs, too. Naperville, for example, has an old downtown at its core that is not unlike Valpo's or Crown Point's. This is what happens when pre-existing smaller towns get swallowed up by expanding metro areas. It has happened (and is happening) in both Illinois and Indiana. And then of course you have Portage, a more recently incorporated town without an old downtown, which is the other type of suburb you'll find on both sides of the state line.

[Bluefox]

Originally Posted by Plzeň

This is actually true of many of the Illinois suburbs, too. Naperville, for example, has an old downtown at its core that is not unlike Valpo's or Crown Point's. This is what happens when pre-existing smaller towns get swallowed up by expanding metro areas. It has happened (and is happening) in both Illinois and Indiana. And then of course you have Portage, a more recently incorporated town without an old downtown, which is the other type of suburb you'll find on both sides of the state line.

Yeah - Naperville does have a very nice downtown, and obviously you've got the older suburbs like Oak Park and Evanston that most definitely don't have that "cookie cutter" feel either, though for different reasons.

I didn't mean to imply that there is an IN/IL distinction per se - but a lot of the "newer" suburbs tend to be on the IL side for obvious reasons (some areas in NWI too like Portage as you said), and zoning laws had changed quite a bit by the time those suburbs grew up. I feel like a lot of the cities in NWI, and many of the IL cities in the outer rings of the metro, were already established independent of Chicago. They grew up in a different era, which I think is the sole reason why they don't have that cliche suburban look. That being said, drive outside of the core downtown/core neighborhoods, and it's normal "suburbia"

[GregHenry]

Originally Posted by domergurl

one more year of lovie and then Gruden!!!!! and yea, that manning retiring thing ... how many years was mr. happy feet the QB before they started winning ... how many years did it take for the koltz to finally not have to threaten to black out local games due to lack of ticket sales ... how many times have the Bears had to practically give their tickets away to put butts in the seats? those days will be back in indy soon. and again I'll be waiting, waiting, waiting.

Your wait is over.

Colts will black out games if all tickets not sold | Indianapolis Star | indystar.com