How safe is "downtown" Lockport? (Bonnie: house, live)

[urza216]

Originally Posted by Tex?Il?

Lockport is as safe as one can get. Its very "mayberry".

Come on, man. Why you gotta say it like that? That's just asking for people to start talking about the potentional safety issues that do exist.

Lockport IS safe. Out of all the towns that border Joliet, Lockport is one of the safest. The crime rate in Lockport is below the national average. I've always said that if you are paranoid about south or southwest suburbs like Lockport, maybe it would be a good idea for you to move to Iowa or something.

But to say it's one of the safest places in the U.S is factually inaccurate and blatantly so. To compare it to Mayberry is preposterous. If you're not from the area, it's kinda hard to tell where Joliet ends and where Lockport begins. Lockport does, in fact, suffer from the same problems as Joliet. It's not a gated community. And it's definitely not Mayberry.

To the OP: Yeah, Lockport is safe. But not to the point where street smarts and common sense are unessesary . There are some unsavory characters that may or may not live inside the Lockport village limits. But with a little bit of common sense, your livelihood and sense of security should remain unaffected.

Originally Posted by JacksonPanther

How do you explain this:

Gang Murders in Lockport

In case the Sun-Times blocks you, the story is about a Lockport resident getting 85 years for shooting up a Lockport home, killing one teenager and wounding two other teens.
The story also mentions that the dead teen's brother is accused of another murder, but in Joliet, not Lockport. Various membership in gangs is discussed (Gangster Disciples, Vice Lords, etc).

Apparently the description of Lockport as "Mayberry" needs some updating...

Man bites dog. I bet you if the same thing happened in Chicago Heights or Joliet, there wouldn't be an in-depth report like this.. Because no one would care.

[Threegoofs]

Someone needs to point out that downtown Lockport is not right by Joliet.

Downtown Lockport might not be as safe as, say, the Homer Glen part of Lockport, but thats what happens when you are near bars and businesses that are open late, which makes the downtown part a bit more interesting.

But you can feel safe as a single woman walking the streets day and night.

[aka_anon]

Hello everyone - I truly appreciate everyone's help. I drove around Lockport and I also checked out Lemont while I was there. Lockport seemed fine to me, though there was a ton of traffic on 159th, which would probably be even worse during 'rush hour'

I sat down and went over my options and came to the conclusion that with the extra money I would be spending on tolls and gas to commute to New Lenox from Lockport or Lemont, I might as well expand my price range a little bit and see what was out there closer.

I had very little luck on Craigslist, so I drove around looking for complexes (and actually went on Google Maps to try to find apartment buildings). One of the buildings I called had a 2 bedroom in Mokena open. I looked at it today, put in an application, and hopefully I will be signing a lease next week!

Thank you again for all of your advice.

[Tex?Il?]

Originally Posted by urza216

Come on, man. Why you gotta say it like that? That's just asking for people to start talking about the potentional safety issues that do exist.

Lockport IS safe. Out of all the towns that border Joliet, Lockport is one of the safest. The crime rate in Lockport is below the national average. I've always said that if you are paranoid about south or southwest suburbs like Lockport, maybe it would be a good idea for you to move to Iowa or something.

But to say it's one of the safest places in the U.S is factually inaccurate and blatantly so. To compare it to Mayberry is preposterous. If you're not from the area, it's kinda hard to tell where Joliet ends and where Lockport begins. Lockport does, in fact, suffer from the same problems as Joliet. It's not a gated community. And it's definitely not Mayberry.

To the OP: Yeah, Lockport is safe. But not to the point where street smarts and common sense are unessesary . There are some unsavory characters that may or may not live inside the Lockport village limits. But with a little bit of common sense, your livelihood and sense of security should remain unaffected.



Man bites dog. I bet you if the same thing happened in Chicago Heights or Joliet, there wouldn't be an in-depth report like this.. Because no one would care.

I guess when I said Lockport was "mayberry", I wasn't suggesting that it is literally THAT safe per se, but rather simply that is has a small town vibe, with a strong sense of community.

Of course, that is saying of course, even places like, even those that are further from big cities and not at all suburbs, can still have crime problems.

Obviously the whole meth lab wave is the obvious one. But there is even gang presence is some very podunk places. Which isn't too suprising, considering many farm towns may have a large migrant hispanic population. (Please, I don't mean to offend anyone here stereotyping).

I guess I wouldn't expect for someone to take that literally but I should know that some people might, so I should be careful of what I say.

[chet everett]

... If dope were decriminalized? Would people be satisfied getting stoned on weed or would the gangs fight harder to push crystal meth and oxy?

Intersecting question...

Originally Posted by Tex?Il?

I guess when I said Lockport was "mayberry", I wasn't suggesting that it is literally THAT safe per se, but rather simply that is has a small town vibe, with a strong sense of community.

Of course, that is saying of course, even places like, even those that are further from big cities and not at all suburbs, can still have crime problems.

Obviously the whole meth lab wave is the obvious one. But there is even gang presence is some very podunk places. Which isn't too suprising, considering many farm towns may have a large migrant hispanic population. (Please, I don't mean to offend anyone here stereotyping).

I guess I wouldn't expect for someone to take that literally but I should know that some people might, so I should be careful of what I say.

[JacksonPanther]

Originally Posted by chet everett

... If dope were decriminalized? Would people be satisfied getting stoned on weed or would the gangs fight harder to push crystal meth and oxy?

Intersecting question...

Don't ask questions that you already know the answer to...

Decriminalizing one relatively low-profit drug (weed) while keeping the others (meth, crack, heroin) as illegal won't change very much.

Would Prohibition have been a success if beer was legal, but not hard liquor? No.

[JacksonPanther]

Originally Posted by Tex?Il?

I guess when I said Lockport was "mayberry", I wasn't suggesting that it is literally THAT safe per se, but rather simply that is has a small town vibe, with a strong sense of community.

I guess I wouldn't expect for someone to take that literally but I should know that some people might, so I should be careful of what I say.

We don't know you personally, and don't know your sense of humor. We can only take you at your word. Saying a place is like "Mayberry" conjures up a certain peaceful and idyllic setting that maybe is unfair to expect in any town this close to a major metro area. If you actually meant by "Mayberry," that Lockport is "boring" with not much to do, then I understand, but you probably should stick with saying "boring and not much to do."

[Tex?Il?]

Originally Posted by JacksonPanther

We don't know you personally, and don't know your sense of humor. We can only take you at your word. Saying a place is like "Mayberry" conjures up a certain peaceful and idyllic setting that maybe is unfair to expect in any town this close to a major metro area. If you actually meant by "Mayberry," that Lockport is "boring" with not much to do, then I understand, but you probably should stick with saying "boring and not much to do."

Good enough. Agreed.

Although on a side note, I will say that a small town that is far from a major metro area can still have bad crime problems if there is poverty, etc.

Good example in Illinois would the Cairo at the southern tip of the state. There are many others.

[AverageGuy2006]

Originally Posted by Tex?Il?

I guess when I said Lockport was "mayberry", I wasn't suggesting that it is literally THAT safe per se, but rather simply that is has a small town vibe, with a strong sense of community.

Of course, that is saying of course, even places like, even those that are further from big cities and not at all suburbs, can still have crime problems.

Obviously the whole meth lab wave is the obvious one. But there is even gang presence is some very podunk places. Which isn't too suprising, considering many farm towns may have a large migrant hispanic population. (Please, I don't mean to offend anyone here stereotyping).

I guess I wouldn't expect for someone to take that literally but I should know that some people might, so I should be careful of what I say.

You have an EXTREMLY biased view of Lockport. I lived there for about 2 years in the downtown area. I wasn't from the south suburbs, so I was a little bit of a transplant.
I wouldn't say that Lockport is ghetto or 'bad', but a single woman, or even a single guy that can afford it is better off living in New Lenox, or Mokena, or perhaps Frankfort (I dont know all of Frankfort, as I am a transplant myself), or Tinley park, or somewhere else. I met some ok people in Lockport, but that town is seriously one of the most Blue-collar demographic I have EVER experienced.
Also, everyone seems to have failed IMO the biggest issue with downtown Lockport.
THE TRAIN NOISE ! Omg, I moved out of my apartment because for some reason, the freight lines started using the passenger rails, and literally disrupted my sleep. Although kind of cheap, I don't really recommend Lockport to ANYONE. If you don't HAVE to live there, find somewhere quieter, and with less bars and drunks walking around. That was another issue, the drunks screaming at 1-2am on weekdays in the spring when it got warm enough for people to smoke outside the bars. Granted my experience is directly related with the historic downtown Lockport, but I got to know all of Lockport, and if I had to do it all over, I would find somewhere else to live. Well, technically, I did do iust that, and found somewhere else to live.

[AngelEyez]

Originally Posted by AverageGuy2006

I met some ok people in Lockport, but that town is seriously one of the most Blue-collar demographic I have EVER experienced.

SO???? What the hell is THAT supposed to mean?? The only "ok" people you met were most certainly not *gasp* "blue-collar"??

Does "Blue-collar" demographic automatically mean drunken brawls every night of the week? Does "Blue-collar" demographic automatically mean unsafe? SERIOUSLY??

I've lived in Lockport now for about three years (the home we purchased is only one block away from Lockport's historic downtown) and except for the majority on the council that is preventing progress and growth, I really like it here.


I find your statement offensive. I came from a blue-collar family and I married into a blue-collar family. We are ALL respectful, responsible, decent people that work hard and take good care of our homes, children, property and community. I can honestly say that NOBODY in my or my husband's HUGE family have ever gotten into any drunken brawls, caused any trouble, nor disrupted anybody in our community, ever.

You get used to the train noise. That is, unless, you have the delicate ears of a princess.