Tag Archives: suburbs

A New Jersey suburb with the country’s oldest mayor at age 100

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Suburban mayors can help guide community decisions and care for a community. But how many could do it at age 100?

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Vito Perillo, the mayor of Tinton Falls, Monmouth County, died over the weekend at the age of 100. According to Governor Phil Murphy, Perillo was the country’s oldest mayor.

According to the borough’s website, Perillo had served for 8 years. He started serving as mayor at age 93.

We sometimes see stories of young mayors, perhaps a college student or young adult who is elected. They are at the start of adult life and may be perceived as not having the life experience that could help in leading a community.

On the other hand, being elected mayor at 93 could mean the community benefits from the wisdom of many years lived. That person could have decades of relationships and experiences in the community. They could have a sense of what the community was and how it understands itself.

In some suburbs, the mayoral role is less involved than the city manager role. Mayors are elected by residents while managers are professionals who take care of day-to-day operations. Mayors may be the ones who show up at community events, vote in local council meetings, and cheerlead for local happenings.

At what age would suburban residents say someone is generally too old to be mayor? At least in this suburb outside New York City, residents elected Perillo twice to lead the community.

Evangelicals and suburbanites: individualistic and “populist, pragmatic, and utilitarian”

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Historian Mark Noll described the cultural ethos of American evangelicals in his 1994 book The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind:

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To put it most simply, the evangelical ethos is activistic, populist, pragmatic, and utilitarian. It allows little space for broader or deeper intellectual effort because it is dominated by the urgencies of the moment. (12)

Does this cultural approach to life among American evangelicals match the cultural life in American suburbs?

I make the argument in Sanctifying Suburbia that there is significant overlap in the cultural toolkits of evangelicals and American suburbs. Suburbanites might not always be activistic – or might rally to a few particular causes that threaten their way of life – but the description above generally holds. Suburbanites often want to know what works to achieve the American Dream where they can own their own home, ensure a good life for their kids, and control their surroundings. They do not need experts or intellectuals to tell them about loftier goals or long-term projects; they want a good life for themselves and their households.

One important element I would add to Noll’s description above is “individualistic.” Suburbanites and evangelicals both privilege their standing before considering the collective fate of their neighborhoods, communities, and country. They envision social change starting with the efforts of themselves and a few others around them. They spend much of their energy focused locally. They think less about larger social structures.

Evangelist Billy Graham adopted this approach when considering the world’s ills. In his messages across decades, he often started with the issues facing the world. Crime, communism, war, unrest. And the answer Graham provided to all this was not to listen to experts and scholars talk about social factors that provoke bad activity but rather to address the issue of sin in every person and for people to turn to Jesus. By transforming individual hearts, Christians could then positively influence society and address the social ills Graham started with. I discuss this in more detail in Chapter 8 of the book.

Thus, evangelicals found suburban settings to be welcoming or comfortable as their approach to the world complemented and was influenced by suburban settings.

Searching for wild turkeys in suburbia

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Stories about wild animals in suburbia are all over the place. Bears. Coyotes. Bison. Bald eagles. How about adding turkeys to the list?

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I began to see the birds walking on the streets of Wheaton in small groups. I had never seen wild turkeys in a residential area before. I quizzed people about the birds and nobody in the area was surprised by their presence.

I asked people from out of the area about the birds and they thought I was insane. I carried photos I had taken in my neighborhood to prove my sanity. People could not believe the Wheaton turkeys truly existed.

The reason this story caught my eye was because of my own encounter years ago with a rafter of turkeys along the Prairie Path. Because I came upon the turkeys quickly and then passed through them, I did not have much time then – nor have devoted attention since – to considering where the turkeys came from or where they went. The county has a lot of forest preserve land; perhaps there are turkeys all over the place in those spaces?

The sight of wild creatures in the suburbs may astound but I would guess many suburbanites would be hard pressed to show where animals live in the suburbs. They might be able to find the rabbits that live under their deck but where did that fox come from? Or where do those Canadian geese go at night? Does that circling hawk live nearby? And so on. The suburbs may offer their residents proximity to nature but that nature can be elusive.

A home with an “Anytown, USA” sign

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I recently saw a real estate listing for a suburban house that had an interesting sign in the kitchen. Above the sink was a sign for “Anytown, USA.”

It is a nice enough kitchen but why have such a sign? Is it meant to appeal to buyers from anywhere? Is it a comment on the placelessness of the suburbs? Was it a gift to the resident and they needed to display it somewhere?

In contrast, a homeowner might display markers of their local community. Instead of “Anytown,” there could be hints of the specific place in which the home is located. Perhaps a map or a poster for a local event or group or an object that could only be acquired or experienced in that community.

Perhaps the sign is in reference to some cultural work? Maybe there is a connection to a 2005 documentary about a New Jersey community or a 2009 film about the Iraq War or a 2021 children’s music album.

Another option: the sign is an AI generated image to provide some decoration for the home.

Now I am intrigued: how many people display “Anytown, USA” signs in their homes? Where can I buy home? Can someone outfit an entire home with a phrase used as a placeholder?

Two Chicago suburbs: one reinforcing its “welcoming city” status, one “reaffirmed…it is not a sanctuary city” and would work with ICE

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How will different suburbs respond to the current situation in the United States regarding immigration? Two Chicago area suburbs are pursuing different approaches. Start with Skokie:

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Village of Skokie officials indicated at last week’s Village Board meeting that they will strengthen the village’s “Welcoming City” ordinance.

Trustee Khem Khoeun asked Mayor George Van Dusen if the village needed to update its welcoming village ordinance given recent immigration enforcement raids and the anxiety that some people in Skokie’s immigrant community are dealing with…

Van Dusen said Skokie’s existing ordinance was established during Trump’s first term in office, when the administration attempted enacting a travel ban for seven Muslim majority countries. The ban was ultimately blocked, but the effort apparently impacted Skokie residents.

Van Dusen recalled an incident in 2017 when a personal friend of his said her daughter in grade school was concerned she could be deported because she was Muslim, despite being born in the United States.

And then Orland Park:

Orland Park says its police will work with federal immigration agents on cases involving undocumented immigrants charged with or convicted of criminal offenses.

The Village Board recently adopted a resolution that also supports Senate Bill 1313 that would undo provisions of existing state law concerning law enforcement coordination with federal agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Trustees also reaffirmed Orland Park is not a sanctuary city, citing an ordinance approved by the board in January 2024…

The village said copies of the approved resolution would be sent to Gov. JB Pritzker and leaders in the Illinois General Assembly as well as Orland Park’s representatives in Springfield.

These suburbs could represent two opposite ends of a spectrum. They are different places with different locations in comparison to Chicago, different histories, and different residents. It is hard to know how many suburbs would have views similar to either one. There are hundreds of suburbs in the Chicago area and thousands across the United States. There will likely be a wide range of municipal reactions to immigration, including not making any resolution at all for a variety of reasons.

Will these resolutions be influential in the suburbs and in the state? Would businesses and residents make decisions to move to or stay in these suburbs when they pass these resolutions?

Another factor to consider: many immigrants to the United States move to and live in suburbs. They move to these two suburbs and suburbs like them. How much do these resolutions affect long-term patterns in the character of these suburbs?

An NFL team owner living in a suburban subdivision

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Virginia McCaskey, long-time owner of the Chicago Bears, lived for many years in a suburban subdivision:

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She and her husband raised a family of 11 — the logical number for a huddle in the home — in a modest house in Des Plaines. Tim, a Bears vice president, died in 2011 and Michael died in 2020, both of cancer. In 1994, the McCaskeys moved to a ranch home one block away. Daughter Anne Catron moved into the old house.

“I probably live in the smallest house of any NFL executive, but that’s what Ed and I were comfortable doing,” McCaskey said. “That was our lifestyle and now I’m able to stay in that house by myself with wonderful neighbors and Anne is a block away.”

Imagine you are moving into a suburban neighborhood. As you meet the neighbors over time, you get a sense of what they do. One neighbor says they “own an NFL team.” Wait, what? What are the odds of this happening? There are only 32 NFL teams so there are a limited number of owners. And how many owners live in a “modest house” in the suburbs?

Two additional thoughts:

  1. This may point to a different era of ownership of pro sports teams. Franchises today are worth billions. This was not always the case. McCaskey’s father helped found the NFL when college football was more popular. Even in 1979, when McCaskey took over ownership, the Bears were not worth over $6 billion (their value now).
  2. The owner of the Chicago Bears, a team associated with the third largest city in the country, lives in the suburbs. How many pro sports team owners live in the suburbs (where a majority of Americans live)? (See this earlier post on how many baseball teams have stadiums in downtowns.)

The Chicago Tribune on the side of suburban commuters

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An editorial in the Chicago Tribune details some of the issues commuters to Chicago face:

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But hope and optimism have their limits, even among the heartiest suburbanite, who likely saw the news about the Kennedy construction delay debacle and felt put upon and frustrated — but not surprised. After all, suburban commuters are just supposed to take it. Still, this one stings…

It’s not just the roads where suburban commuters get a rough deal — they’re constantly on guard against Metra fare hikes. Fares increased last year, and now Metra is threatening fare hikes again — plus service cuts — as the agency stares down the proverbial fiscal cliff. 

So the suburban commuter faces tortuous traffic on the highways, higher prices and worse service on the trains — yet the city wants them back downtown to buy their $20 lunches and restore the Loop’s economy. Businesses want the suburban commuter back downtown to occupy vast commercial office spaces to justify the rent. And everyone wants them to boost foot traffic, creating safety in numbers and making everyone feel a little safer walking to the office…

But the city often lacks warmth for the people trekking downtown. Not too long ago, the mayor of Chicago floated weaponizing taxes on suburbanites to extract more tax revenue via a Metra “city surcharge” and a “commuter tax” as a way to “make the suburbs … pay their fair share.” See above — they’re already paying a lot to get downtown. 

A hostile relationship between the city and the suburbs is no good. Suburban willingness to come to work downtown is a direct reflection on the city’s health. Is it safe? Is it clean? Is the restaurant scene thriving? If so, people will hop on the Metra and gladly make the trip. The more suburbanites, the better.

Four thoughts in response:

  1. What exactly would “warmth” for suburbanites look like?
  2. What about the many commuters in the region who go suburb to suburb? Are their trips easier?
  3. Do suburbanites need the city more or does the city need suburbanites more?
  4. Contrary to the zero-sum game assumption in #2 above, would it be better to think of suburban commuters and city residents as part of a larger metropolitan area? Better transportation options could be good for city and suburbs as could economic opportunities for both cities and suburbs.

Record high office vacancies in Chicago suburbs

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More suburban Chicago office buildings were empty in 2024:

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Meanwhile, 2024 brought an increase in suburban office vacancies — an all-time high of 26.3%, up from 25.4% a year earlier.

The suburbs are job centers. For example, the article notes, “Schaumburg is Illinois’ largest hub of economic activity outside of Chicago.” So to have a lot of empty office space is not a good thing. Owners of these buildings would prefer to have full offices as would municipalities who gain tax revenues.

Will upgrades to the buildings make a big difference? That is what the rest of the article suggests as workers and companies seek certain amenities to enhance the workspace and compete well against work from home options.

Also interesting to note is the redevelopment options if there is too much office space. For example:

Schaumburg officials hope to assist the office market by reducing its obsolete properties. This includes buying a 204,000-square-foot building to demolish for the village’s next police station and nearing approval to convert a 45-year-old Class B office building across from Woodfield into a 98-unit high-end apartment complex.

How many suburban communities would be willing to pull the plug on decent office space and go through all the effort it takes to redevelop the same land? If there is not demand for high quality office space, will other land uses bring in similar revenues and have similar levels of prestige? I would guess edge cities are not interested in losing that status but finding the right balance of offices, residences, and other uses could take time.

“Music for the ‘burbs” = what music genre or format?

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If a radio station near you said they featured “music for the ‘burbs,” what do you think they would play?

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I do not know of a genre of music that would exclusively identify with the suburbs. As Americans moved to the suburbs in large numbers in the twentieth century for numerous reasons, music changed in the United States as well. This included new genres, new methods for playing and hearing music, and new audiences. And all of this happened on a mass scale; music could be produced, played, and listened to for and by millions of people.

Turning back to this particular station, would it be a surprise that they are a hot adult contemporary station? Here is how Wikipedia describes this subset of adult contemporary:

Hot adult contemporary (hot AC) radio stations play a wide range of popular music that appeals towards the 18–54 age group;[43] it serves as a middle ground between the youth-oriented contemporary hit radio (CHR) format, and adult contemporary formats (such as “mainstream” and soft AC) that are typically targeted towards a more mature demographic. They generally feature uptempo hit music from the last 25 years with wide appeal, such as pop and pop rock songs, while excluding more youth-oriented music such as hip-hop.[42][41] Older music featured on hot AC stations usually reflects familiar and youthful music that adults had grown up with.[44][41] Likewise, material from legacy pop acts such as the Backstreet Boys, Jason Mraz, John Mayer, and Pink is prominent within the format.[41][40]f

Pop music of the last few decades for 18 to 54 year olds is suburban music? Maybe more so than some other formats.

(The other part of this station’s tag line is that they broadcast from the ‘burbs. This contrasts with the majority of the radio stations in the area that identify with the big city.)

Immigration enforcement operations taking place in cities – and suburbs

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It is easy to find headlines regarding cities and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids. But, reading a number of these stories shows these are also happening in suburbs. This one story detailing locations across the United States includes these suburbs:

Dallas, Texas, its eastern suburbs, and Lake Ray Hubbard by NASA Johnson is licensed under CC-BY-NC-ND 2.0

-Tucker, Georgia

-Irving, Arlington, and Collin County in Texas

-Federal Way, Washington

-Wilsonville, Oregon

Or see this story of operations in Chicago area suburbs.

These are suburbs of major metropolitan areas. Cities may be the target of particular political ire but there is less recognition that many people who come to the United States live in suburbs (or rural areas).

And how will suburbs respond to these federal efforts? When migrants were sent to suburbs of Chicago in 2023 from other locations in the United States, few suburban communities were interested in having them stay (see posts here, here, and here). A number of big cities have announced how they will respond but there are thousands of suburbs in the United States.