What is it about Oak Park ... ? (Chicago, Lincoln: lease, movers, crime rate)

[chitownperson]

Originally Posted by smittyjohnny38

Oak Park never appealed to me. Although the downtown area is vibrant, it is still surrounded aggressively by areas inhabited by the worst of humanity. Whenever I go out there to visit friends, once the nighttime comes the usual suspects of malcontents and freaks come out. Areas like this don't maintain their charm over the long haul. There are cop cars always driving by by the dozens once night time comes. It's very easy to be self proclaimed 'open minded' and liberal when an overabundance of cops put a band aid on the area. If you want to be so open minded tell the cops not to set up shop in Oak Park and let all the people roam there from the towns surrounding Oak Park, that is true diversity. My guess is you won't stay open minded for long

But Oak Park has not only maintained it's charm over the long haul, but has increased it, as crime has decrease every year since the 90s. It has less crime than one of the most desirable areas in Chicago that's considered safe, and most crimes are things like people seeing a garage door open and taking the snow blower... What does not having cops in a place have to do with being open minded? So basically anyone who lives in a desirable town with cops is not open minded? It also sounds like you're limiting your definition of "diversity" to race, which is only one possible side of it, but if people in Oak Park were as secretly uncomfortable with their neighbors as you're suggesting, they would have chosen to live some place else, further out and more isolated from these communities you seem to detest.

It also sounds like you're characterizing an entire area of people as "the worst of humanity", when in reality there are many good people that live in the neighboring communities that happen to be down on their luck or just straight up poor. With that mindset, I'd be questioning who's the one in need of opening their mind.

Cops perform an important function, and I wouldn't reduce the importance of what they do by calling it putting a "band aid on the area". People from other communities are free to go into or through the village, and they do... they use the roads to get from A to B, visit the farmers market, enjoy the parks etc... What people are not allow to do is commit crime, hence the function of the police. I'd imagine if you eliminated with police from ANY town, you'd see a dramatic increase of crime, even in the wealthy suburbs further north and west. Why, because criminals will go anywhere unguarded to make life easier for them.

As usual, judgements, racial stereotypes and generalizations of people and life in and around the village typically come from people that have little or no real experience of what people and life in and around the village are like.

Mac Specialist just moved in to Oak Park, constant and steady reconstruction of infrastructure and parks, new eateries, consistent decline in crime etc... those are the characteristics of towns that maintain growth, maintain desirability, charm, and continue to grow.

[linicx]

If Oak Park was a horrible place to live residents would leave. I don't see a significant measure of upper income families moving. The 21% black includes physicians, lawyers, bankers and less affluent. You will find the same thing among whites. I lived in Chicago when Maywood was s majority middle income white. If the trust fund babies and college educated, upper income flee from OP then there would be cause for alarm. Quite frankly I don't see it happening very soon. Most of the people I know who live there seem to like Oak Park - warts and all.

[smittyjohnny38]

Oak Park also has the third largest police force in the whole state. Sounds like controlled diversity to me. Get the cops out of there and see how your all inclusive experiment works.

[oakparkdude]

Originally Posted by smittyjohnny38

Oak Park also has the third largest police force in the whole state. Sounds like controlled diversity to me. Get the cops out of there and see how your all inclusive experiment works.

I don't understand.
Problem: Possibility of high crime.
Solution: large police force.
Result: adequate level of safety

Your objection is that the problem (crime) is only solved because there's a solution (cops), and if the solution wasn't applied, the problem would still exist? That's brilliant deductive reasoning. Well done.

[urza216]

Originally Posted by linicx

If Oak Park was a horrible place to live residents would leave. I don't see a significant measure of upper income families moving. The 21% black includes physicians, lawyers, bankers and less affluent. You will find the same thing among whites. I lived in Chicago when Maywood was s majority middle income white. If the trust fund babies and college educated, upper income flee from OP then there would be cause for alarm. Quite frankly I don't see it happening very soon. Most of the people I know who live there seem to like Oak Park - warts and all.

Not even Chet Everett himself has said anything close to calling Oak Park a "horrible place".

[chitownperson]

Originally Posted by smittyjohnny38

Oak Park also has the third largest police force in the whole state. Sounds like controlled diversity to me. Get the cops out of there and see how your all inclusive experiment works.

The inclusiveness is partly fostered by like minded residents, prospective residents moving in, the OPHA, OPALGA etc... The police force tackle crime (just like any other place). You're confusing apples and oranges. So basically you've pointed out that if a place loses their police force crime will rise to an unacceptable level and people will choose to leave. This would happen to any western or northern Chicago suburb and has nothing to do with "diversity".

[urza216]

LOL.. Cops are usually very conservative minded. Any ant that strays away from the typical movement in the colony is "suspicious".

For instance, a few nights ago, I walked down the street to the post office at about 2AM in Flossmoor. A squad car rolled past and slowed down as he saw me. He practically stopped the car when he was next to me. But instead he just continued to eyeball me and eventually sped back up and drove off. You can ask me why I was walking to the post office at 2AM but I can ask you why the hell that's any of your business and why the hell do you care? Not that I'd say that to a cop. I have the right to remain silent.

If anything, telling me that Oak Park is crawling with cops is an argument AGAINST its supposed "inclusiveness". Less cops is better and more inclusive.

[chitownperson]

Well, that's your personal interpretation of what is for or against "inclusiveness". Oak Park has it's police force to address the specific needs of the community just like any other community, and if the showing of the police was so "AGAINST" "inclusiveness", as you claim it is, it would be a big issue in the village, which it isn't... Which is also why It continues to be a destination for diverse populations looking to put down roots.

It sounds like you've had negative experiences with the police, but thats got nothing to do with "inclusiveness" in Oak Park. Less cops does not mean more inclusive, nor does more cops mean less inclusive. So if there are a certain amount of cops to deal with stolen lawn mowers or power tools or graffiti... That means the place is less inclusive? Lol. It comes down to the needs of the community, which ever community that may be.

So I suppose you are for smitty's idea of getting rid of the police to test "inclusiveness"? I personally don't think that's the answer to a more inclusive community, but feel free to go ahead and try it out in yours.

[urza216]

Originally Posted by chitownperson

Well, that's your personal interpretation of what is for or against "inclusiveness". Oak Park has it's police force to address the specific needs of the community just like any other community, and if the showing of the police was so "AGAINST" "inclusiveness", as you claim it is, it would be a big issue in the village, which it isn't.

It sounds like you've had negative experiences with the police, but thats got nothing to do with "inclusiveness" in Oak Park.

In other words, I'm not sheltered. That's just how the police OPERATE.. A negative experience with the police would be if they pulled over and started whoopin my ass. My post was just about cops being cops. You're probably a good American who is never out past 10 on a weekday. So you just don't know.

Since Oak Park is NOT a high crime area, there's no reason for it to have the 3rd largest police force in the state. So what's up with that? How do cops spend their time in Oak Park?

[chitownperson]

I've lived in a variety of places and have had mixed experiences with police, so I am far from "sheltered", so you're in no place to say what I know or "don't know".

The flip side of your last statement is that One of the reasons Oak Park is not a high crime area BECAUSE of it's police force.