Category Archives: Neighborhood

Today’s Elgin Courier-News ran a story about crime in my neighborhood. The reporter did a ride-along with our local beat officer and wrote a good article about the different factors that influence crime and public safety in a our very diverse neighborhood.

I love my neighborhood dearly and can’t imagine living anywhere else. I’m quoted saying that crime has improved over the past few years, which it certainly has. It made me think back to the first couple rocky summers, when there were serious problems on my block and neighborhood.

Though problems still crop up, by being proactive, we have gotten much better at nipping them in the bud. Working with the city and the police is a reality that has helped slow the growth of new problems this spring. But we can’t rest on our laurels. This is still a large city (100,000+) facing the same economic problems that plague the rest of the region. I counted the other day and realized 5 of the 8 houses on my block have been in some stage of foreclosure in the past 18 months. Wow.

But still, I love this neighborhood for its sense of community, for the friendly neighbors, for the small-town feel. I’ve often called Elgin the “biggest small town I’ve ever known,” and it’s true. While there are  over 100,000 people in town, it’s rare that I can go out – even beyond the neighborhood – and not run into someone I know in some capacity. And I’ve only been here four years!

And that in and of itself is worth its weight in gold.

So when my neighborhood had all its, um, problems, one of the biggest sources stemmed from a “candy shop” across the street. When it first opened, it was truly a candy shop for kids – there were always tons of candy wrappers on my yard.

But then, things changed. The shop in question was bright pink, operated strange hours, covered up the windows with blackout curtains and shooed children away. The one time I ventured inside, the bare shelves boasted a few dusty cans of soup, a small fridge with cans of grape soda, and a few t-shirts and hoodies for sale. And lots of annoyed looks from the proprietress at my presence.

Plus, it was the only drive-up candy shop I’ve ever seen! Cars would pull up, and someone would race to the driver’s window, and perform the transaction. They must have had call-ahead service!

Eventually things changed again, for the better. And the neighborhood quieted down. Kids started playing on the block again. It was great.

But now a new sweet shop has opened around the corner. And it reminds me of the old one. Which leads me to ask – why a candy shop as a ruse? Why take something so innocent and retro – heck, my small town never had a candy shop when I was a kid – and turn it into something so putrid? When I first bought my house – and closed on the same day as the pink shop’s grand opening – I thought to myself, “How quaint. How suburban. How nice for kids, to have someplace in the neighborhood where they can spend their allowance money on candy.” Growing up in a cornfield subdivision that was miles from anything, I embraced the idea of an older neighborhood designed to allow residents to walk to their needs – and let kids do the same.

So why ruin that nostalgia with something so tawdry?

Hopefully I’m wrong. Maybe it really is just a candy shop, with its hand-made signs and shaded windows. Maybe they’re trying to keep the sun out, not prying eyes.

When the auto body shop opened across the street last year, I was wary. I was skeptical. But then I was delighted.

Sure, they sell car stereos, alarms and a more varieties of rims than I ever knew existed. They serve as a meeting point and hangout for a large group of men who spend their free time customizing and polishing their cars and preparing for car shows. But they cleaned up the long-vacant property, are relatively friendly, and usually close up shop by 8 PM. During the day, yeah, we’ll hear outbreaks of car alarms as they’re testing stereo installations, and occasionally they install so much bass that the pictures on our walls rattle, but for the most part, they’re pretty good neighbors. And, they installed so many cameras to protect their investment that they drove the previous, crack-dealing neighbors out of business.

Occasionally, prior to car shows, the guys will pull some late evenings. We’ll see lights on until 9 or 10 PM and hear a bit of music as they’re finishing their work. Last night, though, was awful. It’s been a long week, with activities every night. I haven’t had a quiet, spend-time-vegging-on-the-couch night in over a week. I got home from the city last night about 10, did a bit of cleanup, made lunch for today, and fell into bed around midnight. As soon as it was quiet, we realized it wasn’t so. Across the street, we could hear grinding metal. It was loud and one of those piercing sounds that penetrates your skull. Sure, living right by the train, we’re used to the late night train horns and the rumbling of the house as the 1:30 and 4:00 AM freight trains tear through town. But they’re relatively quick sounds that I usually sleep through. But this sound was insane. We called the police non-emergency number and logged a complaint around 1 AM and were told it was a busy night but they would try to send a squad out. I fell into an uneasy sleep, tossing and turning. Around 3 AM, when a huge thunderstorm rumbled in, I got up to make sure it wasn’t raining in, and there were still lights on across the street. The thunder was drowning out the worst of the grinding metal, thankfully.

It was an awful night’s sleep, and I’m paying for it today. Next time, I’m going over there myself. The guys are pretty friendly and I would think if I wandered over at 2 AM and asked them to please, for the love of god, stop cutting metal, they would listen? Maybe?