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A number of the posts that I have seen on the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana, Illinois are not particularly helpful to those who want objective information the two cities. I grew up in Urbana and went to the University of Illinois, and I feel somewhat obligated to respond. I was away for many years, but visited relatives in the area often. I again lived part-time recently in Champaign from 2005-2010. Over the years, I kept up on the news by reading the Champaign Urbana News Gazette (news-gazette dot com), local blogs, and by talking to friends and my relatives. I will give you the truth about the situation there in case you are considering moving to Urbana or Champaign.
Unfortunately, the two cities have both declined significantly in quality of life over about the past 15 years. Now I am sure that there will be newer residents of C-U who will desparately try to argue the contrary (mostly for political reasons). However, you can verify the facts from historical data on the Net if you wish, and consider that I have a family perspective of nearly 50 years in the area.
Until the mid-1990′s the two towns of Urbana and Champagign (right next to each other) were a low-crime, vibrant University area, the home of the large University of Illinois and smaller Parkland College. There were also abundant jobs at mid-size employers such as Kraft Foods and Solo Cup. Both cities had a large number of small independent businesses. Until recent years, there were also many family farms in the area, so there was also a nice agricultural atmosphere to the area, especially in the many pretty small towns nearby. If you wanted a change of scenery you could drive to the state parks for recreation (many withing reasonable driving distance), and the forests of southern Indiana were only a day's drive away. Crime was relatively low, and limited mostly to certain areas in Champaign. The crimes were mostly property crimes; violent crime was rare. The public schools were good. It was a a nice place to raise a family. Until about the mid 1990s, the local politics were a moderate-to-liberal mix of both Democrats and Republicans.
Unfortunately, the situation has changed significantly.
As far as politics, these are the facts: the Urbana City Council is now dominated by very liberal Democrats, and Champaign is slowly moving in that same direction. Of course, the state government is now also dominated by Democrats. The state of Illinois is billions of dollars in debt, and there is widespread political corruption at the state level (largely influenced by Chicago politicians), with the last two governors and numerous other politicians convicted of serious felonies. Local property and business taxes in Urbana have increased dramatically over the last 15 years to support all sorts of liberal programs. State and local taxes on individuals and businesses have increased significantly. My former family home in Urbana is worth about $160,000 now and the property taxes are over $5000 per year.
Urbana passed a “human rights ordinance” prohibiting landlords from declining tenants for having criminal records. At the same time, Urbana transferred many Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) public housing residents to southeast Urbana. This was a part of CHA's "Plan for Tranformation" that relocated thousands of public housing residents to downstate Illinois communities. Unfortunately, this has been a disaster for Urbana.
Southeast Urbana used to be an idyllic crime-free family area bordering farm fields to the south and east. Now the area near the public housing (by Sunnycrest Shopping Center) has deteriorated and is a high-crime area after dark. Over the last few years there have been murders, armed robberies, rapes and home invasions. And it is getting worse. Recently there have been public meetings where residents have implored the City Council members and the police to help them. Here is where I'm sure certain Urbana citizens will say things like "it's not as bad as Chicago," or "it's still nice compared to other towns." However, if you can no longer walk at night in a neighborhood without fear of violent crime, do you really want to live there? Do you want your children living there?
Obviously most of the public housing and those using federal Section 8 housing vouchers are not committting crimes. But the fact is that criminals have moved from the Chicago area to Urbana, taking advantage of the the Human Rights Ordinance. They see the University town as easy pickings. Many apartment complexes have now deteriorated, and the City Council blames the landlords instead of themselves for the unintended consequences of their own actions.
The Urbana police department is not large, and the City Council will not hire an adequate number of officers to deal with the situation. The Council is also very “politically-correct” and highly sensitive to complaints about police brutality or profiling, so officers are not allowed to agressively confront the crime problem.
According to objective student performance criteria, the once-excellent public schools in both Urbana and Champaign have decreased in quality and also now have crime problems with police being called to the high schools often. There have even been large fights at the high schools where police were beaten trying to break them up.
The University of Illinois has major budget problems which affect the quality of undergraduate education sand student services significantly. They sufferred the serious "clout list" scandal a few years ago which caused the president and trustees to resign.
On the University of Illinois campus, women can no longer walk alone at night without fear of rape, and there are robberies and assaults of students nearly every week reported in the newspaper. Property theft is also high on campus. Typical “targets” for robberies and beatings by criminal thugs are lone students with laptop computers and other electronic gear. I compare this to the way things used to be on campus. Students used to be able to hang out late at night on the UI quad or cook out on campfires in the forrested Illini Grove. As teenager “townies” my friends and I were perfectly safe roaming around campus after dark at night, going to movies and playing at the video game arcades. You’d be insane now to let your kids to that.
By the way, if you doubt any of what I am saying about the crime situation, simply search the Champaign Urbana News Gazette website for “crime” + “southeast Urbana,” “University,” etc. [news-gazette dot com]. There are hundreds of crime articles over the last few years.
Because of the increasing crime and taxes, many small businesses have left Urbana, and the downdown area is a sad shell of the thriving area it once was. The only things really keeping it alive are the county and federal courthouses, sheriff’s office and the fire/police station. The wonderful Urbana Free Library has had distrubances by disruptive teenagers that require police response. The Lincoln Square Mall is half-vacant. Despite the tax increases, city services are declining. The City Council spends money on all sorts of other programs instead of concentrating on public works and hiring more police to deal with the crime. The anti-business climate has decreased the tax base significantly, and so there is going to be a tax "death spiral" as property and sales taxes are increased to try to keep city revenue up.
There are many liberal Democrats in Urbana who are just fine with the situation, so if that is your political stance, Urbana may be just your thing. You can avoid the high crime areas, hang out at the Strawberry Fields health food store, and your kids can take environmental sensitivity classes instead of calculus at Urbana High. However, if you are a moderate or conservative and you want to raise your kids in a low-crime town with good schools - well that was the old Urbana 20 years ago. Trust me, and don't make a big mistake.
If you are a potential faculty member, don't think that Urbana is still like many other low-crime University towns. If you are a student coming here, you can tolerate the situation for a few years, but be aware of the crime situation. And if you want to live off-campus, you'll have to spend some money to find a decent crime-free place to live.
Now more on Champaign -
Champaign has remained more business-friendly than Urbana and resisted the political policies that have have changed that town. But north of downtown and south of the highway Champaign now also has a serious crime problem (with the criminal migration from Chicago). This is affecting business. The large shopping mall area across the highway north of town is still active, but retail vacancies are rising. Crime is also increasing in the mall area and people have to be cautious in the parking lots at night. The truth is that the south side of Champaign is the only area that could be called very safe anymore for a family. I think that many business are probably going to relocate to the far southwest side of Champaign near the new highway interchange to get away from the crime. Some businesses have also announced that they are moving or considering moving because of the recent very large state income tax increase.
As a result of the crime increase, many people at the University and town businesses now commute by car into work from the small rural towns around the area. This includes Savoy (very close to the south), Mahomet, Saint Joseph, Tolono, and even farther out Monticello (which is still very nice). These are nice towns with decent schools. However, strangely there is no public transporation to these towns, so you have to like the drive. It is not bad at all if you are used to big city commutes, but you can get a few very bad days in winter. Be aware though that even these towns have seen some sporadic violent crime by criminals coming from Champaign and Urbana or coming down the interstate highway from Chicago.
So that's the story from someone who knows. I am sad to see what has happened over the years. Urbana and Champaign were once wonderful low-crime towns, but the unvarnished truth is that the quality of life in C-U has been degraded by well-meaning but misguided politicians. In in ten years I fear that things will be much worse. Like me, most of the friends that I grew up with have moved out of the area because they cannot stand to see what has happened to our hometowns. Of course, things could turn around, but that would require a dramatic change in state and local politics.
I think it is interesting that you blame Chicago, Urbana, Champaign, police and the state instead of putting the blame where it belongs. Recession is a hard master. Crime increases, stores close, and everyone takes a hit one way or the other. Real estate taxes support the schools. If you want to lower real estate taxes then it time to let every one share the cost of schools thru personal property tax on your cars, boats, RVs, SUVs. trailers, golf carts, cows, hogs, horses, tractors and more. You will still pay the same amount of taxesbut you will get two bills instead of one. And everyone who owns anything will get one too. The retiree and others in rural areas who need their cars will pay just like your grandparents and kids. It will bring in more money and so will an added 1% on groceries. In fact Illinois could raise grocery to 7% like Missouri.
It is sad that U-C has this problem as 35,000 students and teachers fuel the economy, but the fact is not every town in Illinois is in the deep decline you claim U-C is. In fact I would say the most recent census shows both towns have gained residents and I believe the current count is about a 122,000 population. Of course if the school closes the towns will have a bigger problem. Business will flee, malls will close and U-C will be twin ghost towns.
Maybe the school should stop offering $100,000 scholarships? Maybe the state should stop giving illegals free college education? Maybe Urbana should call in the National Guard to restore order while the city fathers find a solution? Maybe parents should stop expecting the teachers and police to be their personal babysitters? Maybe the problems Chicago sent to Urbana should be returned to Chicago? Maybe a better idea is to educate Section 8 mothers, provide parenting classes and mentoring? Casting aspersions does not catch fish or solve problems; finger pointing rarely does.
If you feel so feel so badly do something for your community. Fix the Depression and do try to explain to the unemployed that the days of the $25/hr entry level manufacturing jobs are a gone. They've been replaced with $10/hr jobs with few benefits. How many seniors do you know that want to work at 70? It is what we are being forced into. Every job a senior takes is one less job available to a family. In 1999 I paid $0.96 for gas. It never did stop rising thru 8 years of Republcan stewardship. Neither did the cost of utilities or the cost of insurance or taxes or food or the real estate bubble. It is really time We The People stop playing armchair politics and come together to solve a national provlem. Surely there are still ia few intelligent, resonable people still living? I wish they would stand up and be counted.
As someone who still lives in the area, I'd say Hank's assessment of the current climate is pretty accurate. The only minor points I'd disagree with are that the area between Downtown Champaign and I-74 has been dodgy for as long as I can remember and the vacancies in the north Champaign retail area don't seem remarkable given the overall economy. One important development that was missing from the analysis is the renaissance of downtown Champaign. "Gritty" is being replaced by "upscale," and the evening crowds downtown are quite different socioeconomically than they were 15 or 20 years ago.
This is not a blighted area by any stretch of the imagination, but common urban problems have accelerated as the area has grown. You can still find nice neighborhoods in both cities. They just don't feel as insulated from the threat of crime as maybe they used to. And many of the more affordable neighborhoods feel a lot more risky than they used to. As for the public school systems, they certainly aren't moving in the right direction. Can your kids get a good public education in Champaign or Urbana? Yes, it is possible. But they have to fight too many negative factors that they shouldn't have to in order to achieve that.
As for blaming it on the "recession" I'd say it may have aggravated some of the issues, but the trends were in motion well before the recent national downturn.
I have observed several of my (well educated and well-to-do) colleagues who have moved into Champaign from outside have opted to put their kids in private schools. The public schools are committing suicide by having a 'lottery' style school allocation.
Not wanting to take chances with their kids, many are putting them in private. No wonder schools like Next Generation and Countryside are full.
A number of the posts that I have seen on the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana, Illinois are not particularly helpful to those who want objective information the two cities . . .
. . . but thankfully, now you've rectified that oversight with 84 paragraphs of your own subjective input!
Not that there's anything wrong with it, but please don't act like your impressions are any more objective than anyone else's.
I have observed several of my (well educated and well-to-do) colleagues who have moved into Champaign from outside have opted to put their kids in private schools. The public schools are committing suicide by having a 'lottery' style school allocation.
Not wanting to take chances with their kids, many are putting them in private. No wonder schools like Next Generation and Countryside are full.
This is not a new development. Champaign and Urbana schools have been generally considered unsuitable by white-collar professionals for decades, so they have either a) gone private, or b) settled in St. Joe, Mahomet or Monticello.
Considering that replacement units were not available immediately, the numbers indicate that more than 15,000 CHA "leaseholders" (counting just the head of a household or single persons) would have had to use option 2 or 3. Some of these households moved downstate or elsewhere outside of Chicago. MOD CUT Please read the rules regarding quotes.
Specifically consider this from another CHA Net post:
"The hardest group to track [from those relocated] are those who live in CHA housing but are not CHA leaseholders. To qualify for public housing and to remain lease-compliant, CHA RESIDENTS [my emphasis] cannot have a felony record. ... MOD CUT
Logic: If a town does not allow landlords to reject people who may STILL be violent felons, more violent felons will move to that town.
Note to the Urbana City Council: Good intention. Bad idea.
And respectfully, don't ride your bike alone late at night in southeast Urbana unless you are one very bad dude.
Last edited by linicx; 03-18-2012 at 08:52 PM..
Reason: TOS Copyright violations
I have worked in CU for 20 years.. moved away and came back for several years. This poster is not even close to the politial climate in Champaign. It's obvious by his ranting about liberals where he stands politically. To equate Champaign as going down the road to liberal politics ( like Urbana he says) is the most ridiculous untruth ever spoken about Champaign. If that is the case, why does the LOCAL radio station have Rush Limbaugh playing SEVEN DAYS a week. Yes, you heard it right, Rush. WDWS is the most one sided conservative oriented station in the STATE.
Just read the local rag sheet that is on its last legs. Everyone knows the News Gazette is going under. It's right wing GOP driven agenda is simply appallingly offensive. Come now.. would a democratic liberal leaning paper for CU endorse weekly columns by Charles Krauthammer and that pin head Cal Thomas. The problem with Champaign is that it has no b a l l s .. it is a horribly conservative town that refuses ( like most GOP) to stand up and look their problems right in the eye. Their problem is they pander to the black population here in Champaign due to their fear of getting sued federally like they were 20 years ago. It's disturbing, all the programs adopted for the black population here while they continue to commit 80% of the crime, including coming on campus and assaulting students virtually EVERY DAY. I've never lived in a city so afraid to take a stance against crime simply because its by a particular race. That is why the black population of Champaign has risen from 5 % to 15 % in ten years.
But to believe Champaign is turning the corner to that horrible liberalism is too sad to be funny. This person has an agenda like all GOP, to slander without facts. So if you move here to Champaign, be prepared to be inundated by very conservative thinkers. Thank god , Champaigns mayor was voted out of office recently. a post he held for several years, he was an admitted BIRTHER for gods sake and was on national TV for his ridiculous stances. End of Discussion
The original post was talking about an increase in crime starting about 15 years ago. I don't think there is much doubt that violent crime was lower in C-U during the 1980s or early 1990's. And property crime stats have probably always been relatively high in C-U because of crimes near the UI campus - stolen bikes, computers, vandalism etc..
However, crime is only one aspect of a town; It's also jobs & business climate, taxes, schools, upkeep of public works, etc. If these other things are declining in your town, crime is an additional irritating annoyance in your life.
But in any case, when you are looking at crime statistics per 100,000 residents (particularly violent crime), they can be very misleading either in small towns (under 10K) or in towns like C-U where the crime is concentrated in parts of the city, with other areas being very low crime. Both Champaign and Urbana are like this. The "hot spots" for police in Urbana are the UI campus and vicinity, some areas in north Urbana, and the area in southeast Urbana that was the subject of the public meeting covered recently in the paper. Champaign hot spots are also the campus vicinity, and certain areas generally north of Springfield Avenue. It is also worth noting that most of the violent crime occurs at night.
However, criminals do victimize other areas of the two towns and have gone out to places like St. Joe. Remember the well-known pawn shop owner and his wife who were targeted and followed home? As one poster suggested, the thing that has people troubled is that formerly very safe areas or public events also now are vulnerable to random crime. People have been beaten for no reason just leaving high school games or walking home from the UI campus. I think you just have to be aware of your surroundings anywhere in both towns now and know where the bad areas are. (People in Chicago have been doing this for a hundred years.) No more leaving your car doors unlocked or your garage open at night.
From the recent reported crimes in the paper, the southeast Urbana area of particular concern over the last few years seems to be roughly bordered by Cottage Grove Ave. on the west, McHenry St. on the south, Main St. on the north, then draw a diagonal from Main & Pfeffer in the northeast to Philo Road & McHenry. However, you walk 3/4 mile west to the neighborhood near Meadowbrook Park and everything's OK. Downtown Urbana and the area southwest of there are also quite safe. Downtown it's because there is not much going on there any more and because the police station, and sheriff's office are right there (as well as the two court houses). Commit a crime there during the day and you'd have five police officers or sheriff's deputies on you (and five lawyers standing around watching.)
Same deal in Champaign. South Champaign is very nice, but there are some high crime areas in north Champaign.
If you want the real story, you have to talk to some officers or deputies who have been around C-U for many years. But for a number of reasons, most of them won't discuss it unless you are friends.
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Late night bike rides in SE Urbana - a bad idea
