The Chicago Factor: Are Transplants from Chicago Ruining Our State? (Des Moines: high crime, new home)

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by Chicago60614

Well yeah, I grew up in Iowa City in the 80's and 90's and anyone and everyone could very easily get drugs - that's certainly not changed or really been influenced.

The other comment about under the table income - that exists EVERYWHERE. Big cities, small towns, Iowa, New York, etc. etc. My friends own places in Chicago and we've all commented on the places that openly do the unreported income. There are very well known places in lakeview on the north side that always have the "cash only!" kitchens, events, rooms.... Anything that is given to you as cash only is more than likely off the books. They tell you its because its easier or faster or god knows what, but it's so they don't have to report the income. I've actually gotten in fights with people before where we'll be seated downstairs in a huge restaurant, then when our $300 bill comes we're told the downstairs is cash only. Yeah right. You have a "visa/mastercard" sign on the front door, my #ss you can only process cash. I only got upset because we obviously didn't have hundreds in cash sitting around, and the waiter told us it was just IMPOSSIBLE for him to ring us up with cards. We said we'd call the police and the city if he didn't take our card, and pointed out that they take them in the rest of the restaurant. That was the end of that.

It might make some sense that this could happen. I don't know of Iowa City from that time period. I only know of it being a university town and some other things.

It does exist everywhere. I mentioned one specific place as an example. I used to cut grass for people when I was a teenager. That was how I got paid, under the table. I mentioned "under the table" because people technically don't pay taxes on it and some people have used welfare/food stamps while working.
However, I never knew there were restaurants that only took cash. I haven't seen anything like that.

[Livedoneastsideb4itwasbad]

How many of you actually live on the east side?

How many have done so BEFORE it was bad, when you started to notice that there are now MORE section 8 and habitat housing, than actual housing

I have come to learn that they are going to build complexs (yes more than one) down off of whispering meadows, due to broadway, not going to accept section 8 anymore (yay!)

And for those of you skeptics, I have talked to some of the people who moved into section 8 housing, there ARE signs that say ''free housing iowa city'' (in chicago) or something of that variation

On a side note there are SOME (very little) that aren't bad, but the people you would expect, like people from kenya, or niger, ect, all OWN houses over there


Sorry for the bump, though

[Chicago60614]

Originally Posted by Livedoneastsideb4itwasbad

How many of you actually live on the east side?

How many have done so BEFORE it was bad, when you started to notice that there are now MORE section 8 and habitat housing, than actual housing

I have come to learn that they are going to build complexs (yes more than one) down off of whispering meadows, due to broadway, not going to accept section 8 anymore (yay!)

And for those of you skeptics, I have talked to some of the people who moved into section 8 housing, there ARE signs that say ''free housing iowa city'' (in chicago) or something of that variation
On a side note there are SOME (very little) that aren't bad, but the people you would expect, like people from kenya, or niger, ect, all OWN houses over there


Sorry for the bump, though

Where? I've been all over the city of Chicago for 10 years now, good and bad sides. I have never seen anything close to signs up randomly that say "free housing in Iowa City".

If anything it's random people who might be telling their friends about opportunities in Iowa City. It's certainly not the actual officials of either Iowa City or Chicago.

[Chicago60614]

Nevermind, I found it:

About those Chicago billboards
The Iowa Department of Economic Development has been advertising Iowa, as a place to live, in Chicago since the 1980s.

The department ran an ad on billboards along I-294, I-90, I-290 and I-94 in May, June and July of 2007. Those are all, of course, major interstates that can have apoplexy-inducing traffic.

The Iowa Department of Economic Development calls this “workforce recruitment,” an effort to reach University of Iowa graduates or native Iowans living in Chicago, get them to come back and raise their families here.

It’s really a far cry from the local myth that Iowa has been running Section 8 ads in south Chicago for years, but as Steve Rackis, the guy who oversees Section 8 in Iowa City, points out, everyone drives on the interstate, and everyone likes the idea of a safe, quiet place with good schools and no traffic.

I saw a picture of the billboard. It has nothing to do with free housing, certainly not section 8. It's geared to get U of Iowa graduates, over half of whom now come from the Chicago area, to think about setting up shop in Iowa. It's an Iowa way to try to fight the brain drain.

[Livedoneastsideb4itwasbad]

Originally Posted by Chicago60614

Where? I've been all over the city of Chicago for 10 years now, good and bad sides. I have never seen anything close to signs up randomly that say "free housing in Iowa City".

If anything it's random people who might be telling their friends about opportunities in Iowa City. It's certainly not the actual officials of either Iowa City or Chicago.

Its not like it is a billboard, more or less graffiti

[Squeaky2012]

Originally Posted by Chicago60614

Nevermind, I found it:




I saw a picture of the billboard. It has nothing to do with free housing, certainly not section 8. It's geared to get U of Iowa graduates, over half of whom now come from the Chicago area, to think about setting up shop in Iowa. It's an Iowa way to try to fight the brain drain.

I agree with you, and it's absolutely laughable to think that those billboards were a conspiracy by the state of Iowa to bring in hordes of "gangsters" and "welfare cheats" from Chicago and Gary, Indiana. 93% of all of the residents of the housing projects---roughly 100,000---either moved into other parts of the City of Chicago, or into the South Suburbs, leaving 7% to head elsewhere. Do the math people. That's 7,000 people moving EVERYWHERE, not just Iowa. Must be the Tea Party nuts whipping up another one of their half-witted conspiracy theories.

[Squeaky2012]

Originally Posted by Livedoneastsideb4itwasbad

Its not like it is a billboard, more or less graffiti

LOL...are you kidding me? Like Larry Hoover and Jeff Fort are sitting around prison telling fellow gangsters and their extended kin to spray paint in heiroglyphic fashion coded language encouraging blacks to move to Iowa. Uhh, perhaps they moved here because they read about Iowa on the INTERNET, saw it television, or, SURPRISE, SURPRISE, had relatives here for GENERATIONS. What a waste of brain cells.

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by Squeaky2012

LOL...are you kidding me? Like Larry Hoover and Jeff Fort are sitting around prison telling fellow gangsters and their extended kin to spray paint in heiroglyphic fashion coded language encouraging blacks to move to Iowa. Uhh, perhaps they moved here because they read about Iowa on the INTERNET, saw it television, or, SURPRISE, SURPRISE, had relatives here for GENERATIONS. What a waste of brain cells.

I would say gangs started choosing Iowa, not to mention Wisconsin and Minnesota because of the lack of lack of competition. In Chicago and New York, you have competition from other gangs. Iowa was considered to be fresh territory.

Ironically, it is the Black people who moving to the Upper Midwest for reasons including a better quality of life, jobs, and safer places to live, who get the least amount of attention. My father staying in Iowa because he has a job there doesn't get as much attention as gang members going there. Like a friend of mine said "if it bleeds, it leads".

[Squeamish]

Originally Posted by Squeaky2012

I agree with you, and it's absolutely laughable to think that those billboards were a conspiracy by the state of Iowa to bring in hordes of "gangsters" and "welfare cheats" from Chicago and Gary, Indiana. 93% of all of the residents of the housing projects---roughly 100,000---either moved into other parts of the City of Chicago, or into the South Suburbs, leaving 7% to head elsewhere. Do the math people. That's 7,000 people moving EVERYWHERE, not just Iowa. Must be the Tea Party nuts whipping up another one of their half-witted conspiracy theories.

Can anybody else confirm or refute this 7% statistic or link to a credible source? I've heard many times that crime rates have skyrocketed from Chicago transplants all over the Midwest. I'd have a hard time believing this drastic increase in crime is really due to 7000 people. Something isn't right here.

Forgive me for not reading the entire thread to see if the source is given. It's a REALLY long thread!

[Midwest1628]

Well, I have lived in Burlington just a few years. I can say I do not feel it is the safest place for a town of only 20,000. Since I have only lived here a few years, I do not feel it is my right to "judge" who commits the crime; I HAVE heard from several people who have lived here their whole lives that it didn't used to be like this. That it started getting bad when Tysen Food Company around Columbus Junction started busing in people from Chicago to work.

I know there is crime everywhere, I just hate that such small town Iowa can receive such a bad name! Like I said, I haven't been here nearly as long as some other people, so this is what I have heard from them.