Sterling/rock falls (Chicago, Rockford, Moline: middle-class, fit in, sale)

[Jay W.]

My family is relocating to the sterling/rock falls area.Just wondering what its like Im in high school.Hows the schools and what the area overall like.anyone know about it?

[Drover]

Where are you moving from? If you're moving from Brooklyn, prepare for culture shock. If you're moving from, say, the town of Knob Thorn in Oklahoma, it's probably just more of the same.

[Jay W.]

were moving from good year,AZ a suburb of Phoenix.My mother's family is in Sterling and my grandmother is sick so were moving to be closer.My father has a job lined up and we're kind of hoping to move a away from the drugs and gangs leaking into the suburbs out here.

[Drover]

Unfortunately you'll learn that drugs are a fact of life everywhere; the only difference is who is using them, what's being used, and the manner in which it is dealt with in the respective demographic/social circles. Inner-city folks use drugs (coke, heroin, weed) and it's a more-or-less accepted part of the culture, or at least a substantial part of the sub-culture. The middle-class through upper-class suburban kids use drugs (mostly pot, some coke, sometimes heroin) because they have the disposable income to buy the stuff. In their case, the culture around them responds in one of two ways: a) pretending like there are no drugs in their community, or b) just not talking about it at all, lest they be forced to confront the fact that there are drugs in their community. Rural folks take drugs (pot, crystal meth) because a) in some places there's not much else to do and drugs are the most available form of entertainment, and b) there's not much scrutiny of your actions if you're out in the sticks by yourself with no neighbors to stick their nose in your business. So it comes down to this: drugs are everywhere; the only difference is quantity and type. Your best defense against drugs is to stay away from the places where their sale and use are conducted openly (mostly inner cities) and to be selective about the company you keep.

Now, with that out of the way... I don't know what the specific crime situation is in Sterling/Rock Falls. Most smaller towns in Illinois located away from the larger cities tend to have pretty low crime. There are some exceptions (Cairo comes to mind). The crime stats here on city-data for Sterling seem to indicate it's pretty problematic. There were 5 reported murders in 2004 (the last year reported on city-data), which is astonishing for a town of 15,000. Rock Falls' crime index is better than Sterling's but it still seems quite high for a town of its size and location. It seems a little better than Goodyear in terms of crime.

Lastly... I'm sorry to say this, but prepare yourself for some serious culture shock. Sterling/Rock Falls isn't near any major metropolitan areas. The closest thing approximating a city nearby is the Quad Cities, consisting of Rock Island IL, Moline IL, Davenport IA and Bettendorf IA. Even that is a good 40 to 50 miles away, and there just isn't much there for a teenager to do anyway. Rockford is about 75 miles away, and again, not much there to make a road-trip worthwhile to a teenager (or just about anyone else, really.) Chicago is a good 150 miles away, so the occasional road trip might be possible on a Saturday every now and then, but it's not going to be right at your doorstep like Phoenix and its suburbs are right now.

And finally, prepare for winter temperatures that drop below zero.

Wish I had better news for you, kid... but if I had to move to Sterling/Rock Falls as a teenager, especially from a major metropolitan area... I'd be pissed.

[chilegal]

Jay,
I grew up in Rock Falls and its not what you are used to, but its what you want to make out of it. As for schools, you have 3 high schools, Sterling, Rock Falls and Newman, the Catholic high school. Great river to go boating on, and many parks in and around the area. The area is a large farming area, and many mfg companies.
Good luck on the move.
Jane

[Steve-o]

I also must bring bad news: youre probably going to hate it there. Those tows are old and run down, not much to do, hence the crime problems. If you absolutely MUST live in the area, pick Dixon, which is a little better. Id equate Sterling/Rock Falls to Bumblebee or Nogales, AZ. Just not desireable places to live. If you could, pick a further eastern suburb of Elburn or Wasco, maybe even Sycamore. Youll get a far better lifestyle, w/o being too expensive, and still only be an hour drive from Sterling. Or better yet, move to Chicago's suburbs. LOL j/k Ive been through Sterling/RF many times, and each time I just cant wait to get the heck out, I feel dirty there. No offense to any natives, I dont want to offend.

[cavewoman]

Wow... I would of never expected a small town like Rock Falls to generate this type of Public Relations. "ouch".

[Lucas Streit]

I moved to Dixon a year ago and I absolutely love this town! I am 24 married a college graduate and a bit of a small town fan. Dixon is only a few minutes from Sterling and is quite peaceful. As someone else stated drugs can be found anywhere but for those not searching for them they are a non point here. I know Dixon and Sterling have some kind of joint task force and really seem to crack down on the drug problem. I lived in St. Charles Il previously and the people there for the most part were simply snooty and rude. Everyone here so far has been friendly and personable. Of course that is just opinion and personal experience. I drive a Honda Civic not a BMW so I seem to fit in better here.

If you look into Sycamore or Elburn you better bring a large check book. The house I own in Dixon would sell for 2 to 3 times as much in Elburn or Sycamore and it is simply because they are further east. The only thing going for Sycamore is it's proximity to NIU if you ask me. I don't have much experience with Elburn but it seems to be coming your typical suburb which to me is a major turn off.

NE Dixon is gorgeous. My wife and I go on walks along the river and enjoy some of the architechture of the old houses. I can't speak about Rock Falls and Sterling as I don't live there ( I don't understand how so many people comment on City's they've hardly visited) but I can give Dixon a big thumbs up.

[aloo]

Honey, I am sorry that you have to move into this area of northwestern Illinois, but as others have said, try hard to do your best in school and then get the heck out.

I've lived here for 7 1/2 years. I came here as a young adult and married a native. Now I have two kids and am hoping to leave this area before my children get in school. The schools are terrible. The education standard in this area is abysmal. The future for the towns is seriously in question.

Lucas is right. Dixon is a much nicer town than Sterling or Rock Falls. But it also has major problems with rising crime rates, falling property prices and lack of education. These are towns in transition -- moving from places dependent upon manufacturing industries to goodness-knows-what. They have been inwardly focused for far too long. It was possible for people to grow up here, get a job at some mill, and then stay here until they died, doing all of their shopping and basic living in at 20 mile radius. Additionally, Sterling and Rock Falls have a terrible and tragic rivalry between the two towns borne from the tradition of wealth settling in Sterling while less wealthy factory workers settled in Rock Falls. It's led to an independence that is just ignorant, in the full sense of that term.

It is possible that in 20 years, this area will have seen an influx of people who want to work in Chicago and are willing to drive the hour to DeKalb to get on the train to do that, but it is also possible that the towns will just further deteriorate. I'm usually an optimist about most things (you could guess that, right? ), but my guess would be the latter. I love small towns, but these are not healthy hometowns. They are sick. And dying.

Good luck. Work hard. Get out.

[krystalcarlson]

Ya know, it's kinda crappy how people are sitting here diggin on sterling rock falls...I lived in Sterling for 20years. I'm now only 22, and have move on, ONLY because my husbands job. I miss that town like crazy because that's were I grew up, Jay...It may be hard at first but once you make friends your going to have blast. I graduated from the high school and those were some of the best years of my life, we make good friends and get really close to them. I think you will really like it there, Good luck!!