Future of Portage Park is Latino (Chicago, Oak Park: apartments, crime, houses)

[promis1]

Originally Posted by otters21

With the economy and the high and still rising prices ( owning cars -gas, upkeep, monthly payments,insurance and the colossal costs of maintaining homes in the newer outer auto centric suburbs and exurbs etc) I believe white flight will slow down and possibly halt in those areas in question ( northwest Chicago and Elmwood Park etc.) Today it is not affordable to simply "pull your suitcases out of the closet" pack and flee. Not all Caucasions are rich, yuppie or upper middle class. In fact most are not. As long as the Hispanics are decent and want to assimilate with their more longtime neighbors , people will probably stay put. It is not the Latinos themselves who are the problems- the real problems is are the trashy criminal thug element, gangbangers , filthy shooters etc. I think that the longtimers will now be more resistant to give up their neighborhoods because they cannot simply afford to move like they were in the past. Maybe before this recession things were skewing toward white flight but it changed things quite a bit. Also my ex roomate's boyfriend had spoken to some of his Latino co-workers. They had told him with the economy being so bad and the construction and home remodeling industry tanking many of their people are leaving the Midwestern region including Chicagoland because it is getting harder and harder to find work. That also can factor into a possible downturn of Latino influx in the neighborhoods. We will have just wait and see and only time will tell.

So very true, white flight may be forced to stop and that could be a good thing for the entire country.

[Humboldt1]

Another health club that is changing is the XSport fitness in Brickyard. You wouldn't believe all the trash I see when I go there to work out.

I see the same sort of trash downtown during the week when I go to Ballys at 25 e washington, except it is mostly the security officers downtown that you have robbing other members vs gangbangers. Cars are not an issue downtown as everyone takes public transit to this ballys. The contrast at ballys among members is one of the most extreme I have seen as you have executives, lawyers, secretaries and these thug security guards all in the same place. I am tempted to go back to my old health club (Fitness Formula) and pay the 115 per month as it prices out the thugs.

This is what makes areas vulnerable to thugs, affordability. Cheap housing stock in Portage Park and Elmwood Park, River Grove make them future Melrose Parks. Oak Park (especially as you go east) and River Forest have priced out the thugs. Similarly, lack of public transit and sidewalks historically kept many poor thugs out. The only true way to keeps thugs out is to keep the areas too expensive and not accessible to those without their own car. Unless Elmwood Park and Portage Park become all 500k homes with all single family where section 8 does not make sense (ie wilmette vs skokie) the thugs will keep coming. Good luck to you in Elmwood Park. I hope you can shut the immigration of thugs down by making the police so unwelcoming to new section 8 types that they will not come.

[mas23]

Originally Posted by otters21

With the economy and the high and still rising prices ( owning cars -gas, upkeep, monthly payments,insurance and the colossal costs of maintaining homes in the newer outer auto centric suburbs and exurbs etc) I believe white flight will slow down and possibly halt in those areas in question ( northwest Chicago and Elmwood Park etc.) Today it is not affordable to simply "pull your suitcases out of the closet" pack and flee. Not all Caucasions are rich, yuppie or upper middle class. In fact most are not. As long as the Hispanics are decent and want to assimilate with their more longtime neighbors , people will probably stay put. It is not the Latinos themselves who are the problems- the real problems is are the trashy criminal thug element, gangbangers , filthy shooters etc. I think that the longtimers will now be more resistant to give up their neighborhoods because they cannot simply afford to move like they were in the past. Maybe before this recession things were skewing toward white flight but it changed things quite a bit. Also my ex roomate's boyfriend had spoken to some of his Latino co-workers. They had told him with the economy being so bad and the construction and home remodeling industry tanking many of their people are leaving the Midwestern region including Chicagoland because it is getting harder and harder to find work. That also can factor into a possible downturn of Latino influx in the neighborhoods. We will have just wait and see and only time will tell.

umm you seem a bit too eager for this no?

the working class white people will probably leave chicago still BUT they'll probably end up somewhere in cook county and not to the NW burbs or southwest burbs like years before.

[Chicagoland60426]

Originally Posted by promis1

Well said and not much room for debate. However, where will whites continue to run. The reality is that they will have to learn to stabilize a neighborhood despite whatever else moves there. The entire world is being integrated. Each town must step up and implement ordinances that will protect their towns and the residents must band together and not the think the grass is greeneron the other side.

There is some room for debate with his comment, which I point to South Holland and Olympia Fields as examples where middle to upper class blacks moved in and these two suburbs are not crime-ridden, yet some white flight occur. Lynwood, IL is probably another good example. Around year or two ago, Lynwood, IL passed a law to fine people 25-$50 for sagging pants . Olympia Fields median income is $112,000, which make it wealthier than Palos Park. The difference with Olympia Fields is its cheaper than Palos Park and majority black. That is something else I notice that areas with a high population of blacks tend to be more affordable. Its both a good and bad thing. An area being too affordable allow unwanted elements to move in. I think that somewhat explain how some south suburban towns went totally downhill.

I think white flight has slowed down some since the recession, but I think its ridiculous it still happening in Chicagoland. Next thing you know Rockford will be a suburb if the sprawl continues. The fact is Chicagoland is not close to being the whitest metro in the US and around 44% of it is Latino, black, and Asian. Cook County is 45% white non hispanic. Even Dupage County is becoming more latino and around 10% Asian. I guess Asians are more favored. Whites who don't won't latino/black diversity can't run forever.

[HamlinandLyndale]

Gentrification has been great for Lakeview, Lincoln Park, North Center, Bucktown and West town among others over the last 30 years. The area around Wrigley wasn't that good in the 70's believe it or not. However there is no doubt that places like Belmont Cragin, Hermosa where my Grandmother grewup and my parents went to high school, Franklin Park, Melrose Park, Portage Park among others have been badly hurt by this. Many Latinos I know would never raise their kids in Pilsen or Little Village. The key is getting Latinos to have a stake in the community working with whites. They don't need these thugs either.

[HamlinandLyndale]

I just read an article from September 2007 according to 38th ward sources the area from Cicero to Laramie and from Belmont to Irving is 80% Latino, and the area from Laramie to Narraganset and from Addison to Belmont isn't far behind. Don't have the numbers for Irving to Lawerance. The 2000 Census put Whites at 69% Latinos at 23% Asians at 4% and Blacks at less than one percent. This is a huge chunk of PP listed above given that a Latino majority could happen maybe by even 2015. There are foreclosures going for the low 200,000's here too.

[oakparkdude]

Originally Posted by promis1

The Elmwood Park Neighborhood Civic Organization, Elmwood Park Neighborhood Civic Organization, is what will stabilize the Elmwood Park community. This neighborhood organization began last August and now has almost 400 members. Life long residents are joining together to make a difeerence. They hold their meeting every third Tuesday of the month at 700 p.m. at the Elmwood Park Library conference center. I am now a proud member. Since their founding about 7 months ago, they have brought a very reputable police officer and gang trainer from Gang Combat Dynamics, to begin gang suppresion training to the Elmwood Park police dept. They donate large amounts of money and time to needy residents in town. They held a huge Toys for Tots Christmas breakfast with Santa, an all free event for EP residents to come for a free pancake and egg breakfast. They had beautiful horse and carriage rides outside to take the families for a winter stroll- all free events. Now, they are holding a fundraiser for the EP baseball and softball league and their goal is to raise over 10,000 to rehab one of their ball fields for the kids. This organization will save EP and bring the town back to life, hopefully attracting yuppies to come and buy in the near future.

Best of luck. Sounds like the kind of community organizing that's necessary to forestall neighborhood decline. Just remember, the yuppies you hope to attract often bring liberal values along with high incomes. If you are successful, you may end up with another Oak Park (which according to your previous posts, you hold in great contempt.)

[Vespatian]

Alot of posters here have mentioned Avondale possibly going into decline.

From what I see, it's the opposite. A lot of young kids looking for cheap rent. Already there are trendy restaurants in the vicinity of Belmont, California and Elston. It's only a matter of time until the area becomes similar to Yuppieland, aka Wicker Park.

Logan Square's western portion is still pretty rough, though.

[Humboldt1]

Avondale definitely on the decline, especially as you go west. If they can salvage Shoemaker Lofts area it may have a chance. No matter what polish will continue to be replaced by hispanics. At least you don't have the ghetto blacks we have in parts of Humboldt Park though I have seen a fair amount of hispanic gang activity (including when a mexican guy was shot at my roofing a house next to my pastor with a machine gun. This happened just north of diversey a couple blocks east of pulaski.

[otters21]

Originally Posted by oakparkdude

Best of luck. Sounds like the kind of community organizing that's necessary to forestall neighborhood decline. Just remember, the yuppies you hope to attract often bring liberal values along with high incomes. If you are successful, you may end up with another Oak Park (which according to your previous posts, you hold in great contempt.)

I rather see another Oak Park than a declining area where crimimials, thugs, gangbangers, etc. are moving in with increasing crime,shootings ,drugs, blight and rampant white and/or middle class flight.