Bloomington, Lincoln, Clinton or Springfield good to move to?

[CCrest182]

Originally Posted by friday13thx10

Hello I am curious about what people think of Bloominton, Clinton, Lincoln, and Springfield for a small family to move to...

I'd love insight on each town as my husband and I have discussed potentially moving to one of those towns in a couple years.

Our son would be 6 by the time we think we would want to move so school districts are very important to us.

What are the people like?
Democrats or Republicans?
Coffee and restaurants?
Family oriented?
Hows traffic from Clinton, Springfield or Lincoln to Bloomington?
Safety?
Etc.

Any insights would be appreciated!

I'm mostly only familiar with Bloomington and Springfield. The other two are much smaller to my knowledge though.

I would definitely say Bloomington (and Normal) is the best town all things considered. Tons of restaurants everywhere, on the outskirts of town as well as in town. There are decent schools in the area, and some not so decent schools, so important to do some research there. Pretty moderate city politically, as it has 2 liberal colleges but is in the middle of a very conservative region. Decent police force. There's a lot going on in Bloomington thanks to ILSTU, IL Wesleyan and State Farm, so it's not overall a terrible place in terms of crime.... but there are certainly areas that should be avoided. Blo-No also has Amtrak service to Chicago and St Louis, which may be a plus to you as well. I absolutely would prefer it to Springfield in most respects.

[stoptherideimayhurl]

Can I jump on here and ask how you guys rate Macomb? I am thinking about going to school there, but seems more going on in Bloomington..would it be unrealistic to commute 3-4 times a week between Bloomington and WIU?

[madpaddy]

Originally Posted by stoptherideimayhurl

Can I jump on here and ask how you guys rate Macomb? I am thinking about going to school there, but seems more going on in Bloomington..would it be unrealistic to commute 3-4 times a week between Bloomington and WIU?

It's nearly a 2 hour commute in good weather, each way. Bloomington isn't nearly worth that misery 3-4 times a week.

[stoptherideimayhurl]

Can you expand on living in Macomb? Any knowledge of WIU? I’ve been trying to find out more about living there because the program looks promising at WIU but the town though picturesque and cute looks kinda dead..I don’t need shopping malls or any of that crap, would just like to know more from a locals perspective. Are there any decent coffee places, restaurants, and what are the options for entertainment and jobs?
Thank you.