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I am a Valparaiso resident and love the way it has been modernized and improved, especially the downtown area, (except the school system's beyond severe money problems) and I looked at the population of Valpo in 2010 and it was at 31,730. I am wondering how people think it will expand and increase in population and size in the next 10-20 years.
I have looked at the city limits map and I wonder if it will soon expand through western Center Township that is unincorporated, further into Washington Twp.,which already has a small portion incorporated by Valparaiso, and possibly south into Porter and Morgan Twp. I think Valpo could grow in population to about 35-37,000 in the next 10-20 years. What do you guys think about Valpo's future development and progress/stability?
I also wonder if the diversity will change some in the future. Valpo has only a 3.3% African American population, while it has a 7.1% Hispanic/Latino Population, according to the 2010 Census. I think the African American population will definitely increase.
Look at other NWI communities in the past:
(Gary, all white at one pt, gets a lot of AAs from Chicago, later Merrillville, formerly all white, gets some of the AA population from Gary, and towns like Lake Station, Griffith, and East Chicago also get a lot of the AA population. Portage has also received a decent amount of the AA population from LS and M-Ville.) It's only a matter of time before Valparaiso becomes more diverse, which is a very good thing, and I think many African Americans will start to move into Valparaiso.
I really hope my city continues to improve and prosper, along with becoming more diverse which could bring good changes to the Vale of Paradise, Valparaiso, Indiana! Please give me your thoughts on this topic and what you think the development of Valparaiso could be.
As far as growth, I believe Valpo will continue to grow into a larger city. The good thing about Valpo is that while it does have its suburban sprawl, it also has growth and the development in the city center. The core may not be as lively as it used to be (or that peopl think it should) but I would not say it is near dying or anything.
As far as diversity, it will definitely increase in Valpo not only due to the presence of the university but because NWI is becoming more diverse overall.
Cities such as Merrillville and Portage have been the primary "destination" cities for African-Americans looking to move up. Cities such as Crown Point and Valparaiso are becoming more so of move-up places for African-Americans as well. Cities such as Hobart, Lake Station, and Griffith has not really been move up areas for AA's. In Griffith for example, most live in a couple apartment complexes but the neighborhoods with homes are not very diverse whereas you see a larger overall presence in the main cities I mentions. Also, these are most of the destination cities for AAs who hail from NWI (mostly Gary)...from other areas (with the exception of maybe Crown Point and Valpo), destination areas may be places on the west side of lake County. The Hispanic population is pretty much growing in almost every city in NWI and it will definitely grow in Valparaiso. The Hispanic population in NWI is also becoming more diverse economically as there is a more even spread of lower-income and middle-income Hispanic families. Overall, I see Valpo becoming more diverse in the core and then less so on the outskirts unless it is a popular subdivision area.
It will be interesting as Valpo historically (and a little to this day) has had some racial tensions. It tends to decrease depending on the education of residents so it will be interesting to see if there are any changes. Valpo is known as a destination city as well for individuals seeking less diverse areas (mainly the unincorporated areas).
This is interesting...I know that the USA in general is getting older, but as much as I hear of Valpo growing, I didn't think they would be facing this issue this soon. On the other hand, a lot of young families that I hear that say that they are going to "move to Valpo" or whom actually moved there may actually moving into the school districts Wheeler, Boone Grove, or East Porter Township more-so than Valpo Community Schools...is it due to land availability for new housing? I don't know.
This is interesting...I know that the USA in general is getting older, but as much as I hear of Valpo growing, I didn't think they would be facing this issue this soon. On the other hand, a lot of young families that I hear that say that they are going to "move to Valpo" or whom actually moved there may actually moving into the school districts Wheeler, Boone Grove, or East Porter Township more-so than Valpo Community Schools...is it due to land availability for new housing? I don't know.
Years ago, they did a study to project where the majority of growth would be - based on that they built the ginormous Flint Lake on the north side. I'll give you a couple of guesses where the population growth REALLY happened.
Yep. South. So much so, that there were overcrowded classrooms and they had to add a whole 'nother class at the furthest south school - Hayes Leonard. Hayes also had to turn new students away and send them to Central at several points over the last decade.
So I don't put much stock into their "projections".
As for available land for new housing ... there are lots of subdivisions with open lots that fall within the Valpo school district. One should remember that you don't have to be within city limits to be in the school district, but within Center Township.
This is interesting...I know that the USA in general is getting older, but as much as I hear of Valpo growing, I didn't think they would be facing this issue this soon. On the other hand, a lot of young families that I hear that say that they are going to "move to Valpo" or whom actually moved there may actually moving into the school districts Wheeler, Boone Grove, or East Porter Township more-so than Valpo Community Schools...is it due to land availability for new housing? I don't know.
I think that study is a joke. There are simply too many significant variables that would go into making even just approximations or projections on the growth of a town like Valpo and its school system. Too many variables that are not possible for anyone, even experts, to confidently predict or approximate. To add another layer to my skepticism, do you really think a company from South Carolina truly understands the dynamics of Northwest Indiana, perceptions, reasons why people are attracted to one town in this area or not? I doubt it. He's merely crunching numbers in a spreadsheet, that's it. Think about it... we don't even know what is going to happen tomorrow (literally) with our economy. How can someone try to predict what will happen 5-10 years from now with any real confidence? Many people believe within 5-10 years we'll have an excellent economy again, humming along with real estate having made a huge comeback. Many others believe we'll be in a depression or deep recession and another real estate bubble will have popped. Nobody knows for sure.
Here are some really important variables that should be considered that I'm sure were not:
-What if the South Shore gets extended to Valpo?
-What's the impact of the Lake County Income Tax on people moving to Porter County?
-What's the impact on the Chicago pension debacle, rising taxes on nearly everyone in and around Chicago, and how much will Valpo as a community attract people who are fed up with that?
-Impact of more white flight? What is the likelihood of towns like Griffith, Highland, Hobart, Portage and others potentially turning for the worse within the next 10 years and people "fleeing" those towns for other towns such as Valpo?
-What if public schools in the area go to open enrollment within 5-10 years like many people believe?
And what about the quote in the article of "...the majority of young families and school-age children will live in the vicinity of Lincolnway, McKibben said." What? More than half of the young families in Valpo are near one street? What I think he meant is...more than any other part of town, the southern end of town has a higher density of younger families with kids due to that being the more popular area for new home construction...and that there is currently only one school near Rt. 30 (Hayes Leonard) and none south of 30.
Valpo schools are very good. I just hope they didn't pay tens of thousands of dollars for this study. Seems pointless to me.
I think that study is a joke. There are simply too many significant variables that would go into making even just approximations or projections on the growth of a town like Valpo and its school system. Too many variables that are not possible for anyone, even experts, to confidently predict or approximate. To add another layer to my skepticism, do you really think a company from South Carolina truly understands the dynamics of Northwest Indiana, perceptions, reasons why people are attracted to one town in this area or not? I doubt it. He's merely crunching numbers in a spreadsheet, that's it. Think about it... we don't even know what is going to happen tomorrow (literally) with our economy. How can someone try to predict what will happen 5-10 years from now with any real confidence? Many people believe within 5-10 years we'll have an excellent economy again, humming along with real estate having made a huge comeback. Many others believe we'll be in a depression or deep recession and another real estate bubble will have popped. Nobody knows for sure.
Here are some really important variables that should be considered that I'm sure were not:
-What if the South Shore gets extended to Valpo?
-What's the impact of the Lake County Income Tax on people moving to Porter County?
-What's the impact on the Chicago pension debacle, rising taxes on nearly everyone in and around Chicago, and how much will Valpo as a community attract people who are fed up with that?
-Impact of more white flight? What is the likelihood of towns like Griffith, Highland, Hobart, Portage and others potentially turning for the worse within the next 10 years and people "fleeing" those towns for other towns such as Valpo?
-What if public schools in the area go to open enrollment within 5-10 years like many people believe?
And what about the quote in the article of "...the majority of young families and school-age children will live in the vicinity of Lincolnway, McKibben said." What? More than half of the young families in Valpo are near one street? What I think he meant is...more than any other part of town, the southern end of town has a higher density of younger families with kids due to that being the more popular area for new home construction...and that there is currently only one school near Rt. 30 (Hayes Leonard) and none south of 30.
Valpo schools are very good. I just hope they didn't pay tens of thousands of dollars for this study. Seems pointless to me.
I agree there are a lot more variables than were considered. One thing that is interesting is that Valpo Schools currently have open enrollment (if not for the whole system, just for the high school). I just found that out.
Does anyone know the current status of the Lakes of Valparaiso Apartment/Business Campus development and/or where to find any renderings of the project?
IMO, Valpo is too far from Chicago to really grow or become diverse. And let's be honest, when has becoming more diverse increased home values in this area? I wouldn't expect much change in the Valpo area over the next 20 years unless someone decides to extend rail to the area from Chicago.
IMO, Valpo is too far from Chicago to really grow or become diverse. And let's be honest, when has becoming more diverse increased home values in this area? I wouldn't expect much change in the Valpo area over the next 20 years unless someone decides to extend rail to the area from Chicago.
High Speed Rail is still a remote possibility, but if it ever comes to fruition it could dramatically transform Valpo, which will be one of the two NWI stops on the Chicago-Columbus line (the other being Gary). Proponents are saying that at top speeds of 110-130 MPH, the line will go from Valpo to Chicago's Loop in 38 minutes. That's pretty huge IMO. For better or for worse, it makes Valpo look less like a far-flung exurb and more like a suburb with a not-unreasonable commute to Chicago.
The one problem, however, is that I read somewhere they estimating a one way ticket at about $12. That makes for an excessively expensive daily commute to me. They are saying that they would offer discounted packages for commuters, but I'm wondering how much that will actually be? OTOH, I think those kinds of prices would definitely inhibit a lot of "unsavoury characters" using the train to come into the city, which is a common concern associated with public transportation.
I'm also skeptical that Indiana would stand behind this project, even though it wouldn't just benefit NWI but other thru-cities too like Fort Wayne. Right now the governor is of the opinion that if it's going to be profitable, he's willing to support it, but it's difficult to project profitability levels with such a massive project like this with so many factors at play. It's still a far-off thing as they are now still trying to raise funds for environmental impact studies, but there seems to be a lot of support in Northern Indiana for it.
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