Do you consider Northwest Indiana the suburbs of Chicago?

[urza216]

Originally Posted by dudenamedric

I'm referring to the rural areas in Porter County, where it's mostly farmland or prairie. I don't know much about the rest of the state, but I know it looks about the same. I'd love for you to elaborate on your thought.

Gladly. Most of Indiana is the Bible Belt. However, even the rural areas of Porter County don't reflect this. Lake County, Indiana is solidly Democrat while Indiana is a red state. Did you know there's even an Indiana accent that is distinctly different from Chicago's? In even the rural areas of Porter County, they walk like us and talk like us much more so than most Hoosiers. NWI is what it is today because of the steel mills that are also on the southeast side of Chicago, the financial hub of downtown Chicago and south side Chicago white flight. More blacks live in NWI than any other part of Indiana, including Indianapolis. NWI is very "Chicago" and not particularly "Indiana". This is why the state is always so hesitant to allocate resources to "da region".

[Bluefox]

Originally Posted by urza216

Gladly. Most of Indiana is the Bible Belt. However, even the rural areas of Porter County don't reflect this. Lake County, Indiana is solidly Democrat while Indiana is a red state. Did you know there's even an Indiana accent that is distinctly different from Chicago's? In even the rural areas of Porter County, they walk like us and talk like us much more so than most Hoosiers. NWI is what it is today because of the steel mills that are also on the southeast side of Chicago, the financial hub of downtown Chicago and south side Chicago white flight. More blacks live in NWI than any other part of Indiana, including Indianapolis. NWI is very "Chicago" and not particularly "Indiana". This is why the state is always so hesitant to allocate resources to "da region".

So spot on. There is a very distinct cultural dissimilarity between "da Region" and the rest of the state. Growing up in Valpo, it was always Chicago this or Chicago that. You turn on the TV and it's Chicago news and commercials for Chicago businesses. Everyone watches Chicago sports. My father was a Wisconsin native so I'm of course a Green Bay fan by default, but I always got a lot of **** from all my friends, who of course were all Bears fans and not Colts fans. When we went on field trips, about 80% of the time it was somewhere in Chicago. NWI is in the Chicago time zone unlike the rest of the state. People in NWI have distinct accents that are definitely unique but way more like Chicago accents than anything you'd hear in Indianapolis. NWI has a lot of Chicago franchises (Portillo's, Oberweis, etc.) and as far as I know up until relatively recently the only Dunkin Donuts anywhere in Indiana was in the Region. NWI shares lot of the same industrial roots as Chicago as well as a lot of the same problems.

So it only makes sense that someone downstate would kind of raise an eyebrow. It's just a very different area. Going to college downstate, there was definitely a stigma of NWI from many people I met. Many thought it was all just a big contiguous getto. Yes, all 800,000 of them live in a big ghetto.

At the same time, many people on the Illinois side get caught up in the fact that we're in Indiana, and thinking that once you cross the IL/IN border you're in Hickville. When really the state line, from a cultural standpoint, is quite arbitrary.

So I think in many ways NWI has a bit of an identity crisis.... shunned by its own state, and misunderstood by its cultural center.

[dudenamedric]

Thanks to both of you. Very interesting points. I can't say I've ever been anywhere else in Indiana besides NWI, aside from Shelbyville, which is where I stayed overnight when I was moving up to Valpo. Can't say I was observing anything that closely at that time lol. It's definitely a sad situation for NWI. My family is all out in Steger, IL, and they talk about Indiana exactly as you described, like hicks.

Should NWI strive to be more Indiana or embrace the Chicago spirit?

[Bluefox]

Originally Posted by dudenamedric

Thanks to both of you. Very interesting points. I can't say I've ever been anywhere else in Indiana besides NWI, aside from Shelbyville, which is where I stayed overnight when I was moving up to Valpo. Can't say I was observing anything that closely at that time lol. It's definitely a sad situation for NWI. My family is all out in Steger, IL, and they talk about Indiana exactly as you described, like hicks.

Should NWI strive to be more Indiana or embrace the Chicago spirit?

I think NWI should embrace its own identity. And I think the rest of Indiana needs to be a bit more open minded about its northwest corner. The safe, family friendly cities and towns in the region have some of the highest average property values in the entire state (though compared to the IL side of the metro it's still pretty low). NWI benefits greatly by its proximity to Chicago, and could be a huge economic asset to the state if Indianapolis could actually see the big picture. But they just see blue.

On the other hand, the Chicago metro could stand to gain a lot from having part of its metro in a state that has what many would consider to be a much more amenable business climate.

I'm not a huge fan of "urbanophile" but I think he touches on some truths in this article.

The Urbanophile » Blog Archive » Chicago’s Northwest Indiana Advantage

[urza216]

Originally Posted by Bluefox

I think NWI should embrace its own identity. And I think the rest of Indiana needs to be a bit more open minded about its northwest corner. The safe, family friendly cities and towns in the region have some of the highest average property values in the entire state (though compared to the IL side of the metro it's still pretty low). NWI benefits greatly by its proximity to Chicago, and could be a huge economic asset to the state if Indianapolis could actually see the big picture. But they just see blue.

On the other hand, the Chicago metro could stand to gain a lot from having part of its metro in a state that has what many would consider to be a much more amenable business climate.

I'm not a huge fan of "urbanophile" but I think he touches on some truths in this article.

The Urbanophile » Blog Archive » Chicago’s Northwest Indiana Advantage

Sure, I guess. But if you're comparing it to the Illinois side of the Southland... No, not really.

[Bluefox]

Originally Posted by urza216

Sure, I guess. But if you're comparing it to the Illinois side of the Southland... No, not really.

Yeah I was comparing to the rest of the metro overall...I agree about the southern suburbs, but it's definitely less than most of the SW burbs and nearly all points north, besides the shore communities.

[urza216]

Originally Posted by Bluefox

Yeah I was comparing to the rest of the metro overall...I agree about the southern suburbs, but it's definitely less than most of the SW burbs and nearly all points north, besides the shore communities.

Less than MOST southwest suburbs? I don't think so.. NW overall is about the same as the southwest suburbs overall... I'd like to see some data because I don't think you're correct at all..

[Bluefox]

Originally Posted by urza216

Less than MOST southwest suburbs? I don't think so.. NW overall is about the same as the southwest suburbs overall... I'd like to see some data because I don't think you're correct at all..

For apples to apples comparisons, absolutely. Take these six low crime suburbs with good schools, 3 in IN and 3 in SW Burbs. The three NWI towns, along with Dyer, are definitely the most affluent in Lake County. These are 2011 data but I doubt there is a huge change in the differences in 2013.

Munster:
Estimated median house or condo value in 2011: $198,637 (it was $160,400 in 2000)
Munster: $198,637
Indiana: $122,400
Mean prices in 2011: All housing units: $232,502; Detached houses: $243,896;

St. John
Estimated median house or condo value in 2011: $262,966 (it was $171,000 in 2000)
St. John: $262,966
Indiana: $122,400
Mean prices in 2011: All housing units: $274,288; Detached houses: $280,568

Read more: https://www.city-data.com/city/St.-Jo...#ixzz2hB4bkJ2c

Schererville
Estimated median house or condo value in 2011: $201,115 (it was $155,400 in 2000)
Schererville: $201,115
Indiana: $122,400
Mean prices in 2011: All housing units: $224,681; Detached houses: $240,736;

Read more: https://www.city-data.com/city/Schere...#ixzz2hB4UgD4s

Tinley Park
Estimated median house or condo value in 2011: $218,072 (it was $160,900 in 2000)
Tinley Park: $218,072
Illinois: $178,500
Mean prices in 2011: All housing units: $272,312; Detached houses: $299,393;

Orland Park
Read more: https://www.city-data.com/city/Tinley...#ixzz2hB3Zp6Kb
Estimated median house or condo value in 2011:$267,972 (it was $196,700 in 2000)
Orland Park: $267,972
Illinois: $178,500
Mean prices in 2011: All housing units: $342,448; Detached houses: $406,235

Frankfort
Read more: https://www.city-data.com/city/Orland...#ixzz2hB3poBKP
Estimated median house or condo value in 2011: $368,394 (it was $245,000 in 2000)
Frankfort: $368,394
Illinois: $178,500
Mean prices in 2011: All housing units: $456,001; Detached houses: $470,973;

Read more: https://www.city-data.com/city/Frankf...#ixzz2hB43VLpE

There definitely is a difference, at least regarding the middle-upper middle suburbs of both areas which were what I was referring to in my prior post.

[ikcyzrteip]

We are most definitely a part of Chicagoland. In Whiting, Hammond, and East Chicago our street grid system even follows Chicago's. I live off 115th St, two blocks from the Lake, and 15 miles from the Loop as the crow flies (closer than some far flung neighborhoods within city limits). When we talk about Chicago we refer to it as "the city" and when we go to downtown Chicago we just say we are going downtown. We have Vienna beef hot dog stands all over the place, and have similar accents to Chicagoans (though the further south and east you go this quickly starts changing). Whiting, Hammond, and EC are full of Chicago bungalows and two flats that look like they could belong in any neighborhood in the bungalow belt. Once you are east of Gary or south of Munster and Highland though it starts feeling less like Chicagoland and more like Indiana.