Issue date: 4/8/08 Section: City

Though Forbes.com named Evanston one of the nation's best suburbs, some Northwestern students question how livable the city really is.

In a March 26 article, the Web site compiled a list of the suburbs with the highest standard of living for the country's 15 largest cities. Criteria included school quality, crime rates, income, education levels and home ownership rates.

Forbes.com cited Evanston, Kenilworth and Winnetka as top Chicago suburbs. It focused on Evanston's college town appeal with a wide range of restaurants, parks and entertainment.

But NU students who live off campus said Evanston is only livablefor those who can afford high property taxes and other expenses.

"Evanston is livable for people who have stable jobs and income," said SESP senior Karissa Fehler. "But from a student's perspective, I would say it's not one of the most livable suburbs in regards to how much it costs. I don't like talking to my friends from other areas in Illinois about how much their rent is because it's literally a third of mine."

Communication junior Kelly Brown, who works at Pete Miller's steakhouse, said none of her co-workers live in Evanston because it's too expensive. People have to be wealthy to live in Evanston, so restaurants and shopping centers cater to high-income residents, she said.

"If you don't have a car, you're stuck with CVS, Whole Foods and Jewel-Osco, and their prices are so much more inflated," Brown said.

Ald. Cheryl Wollin (1st) said a continuing strategic goal of the Evanston City Council is to improve livability in the city. She agreed with its ranking as one of the best suburbs.

"I think it's such a dynamic city with such a diverse and talented population," Wollin said. "We have so many wonderful attributes. We have the lake, we have great transportation, we have entertainment in town, and new stores and activity."

While students expressed appreciation for Evanston's amenities, they said they perceived the police force, which was analyzed in the Forbes.com survey, as more concerned with breaking up parties than focusing on more serious crimes.

"Evanston has all the luxuries a college town should have, but there's a lot of crime that is disproportionately high for how nice the area is," McCormick Kozberg said.

McCormick junior Daniel Arnold said Forbes.com may have only taken into account the nicer parts of Evanston. The areas of the city with commerce, parks and restaurants differ drastically from other parts of town, he said.

"It surprises me that Evanston is on the list...I believe they're not imagining (other parts) of Evanston when they're talking about the most livable suburbs." Arnold said.



kirstinmaguire2007@u.northwestern.edu

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