They’re gonna move to the collar counties next.
“They’re gonna move to the collar counties next.”
That’s well under way. When they closed Cabrini Green, Altgeld Gardens, and the like they moved a whole lot of folks into “scattered site” housing. Supposedly the motive was to “break the cycle” of generation after generation living in gang infested high rises.
Then a whole bunch of absentee landlords started dropping them into Section 8 housing in the suburbs. We had it right on our own block out here in DuPage County. One “single mother” would move in who was immediately joined by the utterly predictable “teens” almost before the ink was dry on the lease.
It took us almost 5 years to clean the riff raff out once they got a foothold. The landlords didn’t pay attention until my Village passed a Nuisance Property ordinance and seized one of the homes. That changed their behavior.
It’s a giant game of Whack-A-Mole now. But our little Village doesn’t tolerate it. There are strict requirements for all rental properties these days, including regular inspections. No criminal activity is tolerated and Neighborhood Watches work very closely with the local PD.
But Mrs. L and I are done with Illinois. The goal is 2 years and we are gone. We’ve got friends who just moved from Wheaton to Texas and are loving it. They told us that even with the same jobs and the same salaries they got a $30k annual raise.
So we’d be stupid to stick around here just waiting for the wheels to come off. And come off they will.
Best,
L