Wheaton's Town Square offers a wide variety of shopping opportunities. Wheaton is in the Money.
Not only did it rank 54th in the popular financial magazine’s 2008 list of the top small cities in America to live in, but its median family income of $110,448 was $17,000 more than the average of the cities on the list.
But neither attribute completely defines this city of 57,000 that is the county seat of DuPage County. To many, such as the city’s mayor, Wheaton “feels like your hometown.”
City of Wheaton
City of Wheaton
But neither attribute completely defines this city of 57,000 that is the county seat of DuPage County. To many, such as the city’s mayor, Wheaton “feels like your hometown.”
“If you don’t know the name of the person when you’re walking down the street, you’ll recognize their face from church, shopping, or from the PTA at school,” said Mayor Michael J. Gresk, who has lived in Wheaton, on and off, for 40 years. “It’s a tight-knit community where people actually know each other. I think that’s a big selling point.”
Wheaton has many key attributes, including:
• Plenty of places to enjoy the outdoors: There are more than 800 acres of park district space, including a great kid-sized zoo that offers free admission, and a golf club. DuPage County Forest Preserve areas, such as the Danada preserve on the south, are also close for residents. And the Prairie Path — a 61-mile regional trail that used to be railroad tracks — cuts through town.
The award-winning park district also offers a water park and community center. It’s little wonder Chicago Magazine called Wheaton the healthiest Chicago suburb (over 50,000 population) a few years ago.
• Strong schools: School District 200 ranks very well among Chicago suburban districts, with statistics that easily surpass the state averages.
• Health and safety: A low crime rate combined with access to healthcare options — such as Central DuPage Hospital in nearby Winfield and Marianjoy Rehabilitation Hospital — are an ideal combination.
• Business and shopping: The Danada area and downtown have a variety of shops and there is easy access to other west suburban shopping centers.
• Intangibles: There are many. Wheaton residents have easy access to the Metra commuter trains that go into Chicago and west. The city’s public library is rated among the top in the nation and recently expanded. Wheaton College, which has notable alums such as evangelist Billy Graham and former House Speaker Dennis Hastert, is located near the center of town. Residents also don’t have to travel far to visit their county government leaders, who work in a complex on the west side of the city. It also is the national headquarters of the Theosophical Society in America.
All this adds up to a city so attractive to families that kids who grew up in Wheaton want to move back when they get older.
“It’s a very welcoming environment we have here,” Gresk said.
One of the current highlights for the town is the 150th anniversary of its incorporation. The yearlong Sesquicentennial celebration will run through July 4, 2009, and include activities at festivals and through Wheaton College and the park district.
Like most towns in the western suburbs, growth has brought a lot of change to Wheaton over the years. But the mayor, who moved into town in the mid-1960s, says its “strong and measured growth over the years” has been for the better.
“We’re pretty much stabilized. Our challenge as a city is to manage it for the mature city that it is” as opposed to when it was a growing city 30 to 40 years ago, Gresk said. “It’s grown, improved for the better. Our challenge is to manage that quality of life to make sure we strike a balance between what we need and how to pay for it.”
In the first half of 2008, the typical rent for a single-family home was about $2,300 a month for up to four bedrooms and up to $4,800 for newer, large teardown homes, said Jackie Gibson of Prudential Spengel in Wheaton.
The average home purchase price was about $400,000. Two-bedroom homes could be found for about $225,000; three bedrooms around $300,000; four bedrooms for $472,000; and five bedrooms for $719,000.
Townhomes or condos were about $180,000 for two bedrooms or less; $320,000 for three bedrooms; and $525,000 for four bedrooms.
What residents say
"It's a really wholesome community that offers a wonderful park district and an excellent school system. They prepare the children for the future. It's a nice, stable community with a lot of events."
--Jackie Gibson, who has lived in Wheaton for 19 years and worked as a Realtor in Wheaton for 15
"It's a very nice place to live. It's a nice community to raise a family. I grew up here, raised my kids here, and my grandchildren are being raised here."
--Rosemary Herbert, a 53-year resident and city employee
City of Wheaton
303 W. Wesley St.
630-260-2000
Official Web site: http://www.wheaton.il.us/
Natural gas: NICOR, 888-642-6748
Electricity: ComEd, 800-334-7661
Water Billing: Village of Wheaton, 630-260-2024
Phone: AT&T, 888-824-8314
Cable: Comcast, 866-594-1234
Wheaton Chamber of Commerce
http://www.wheatonchamber.com/
630-668-6464
Population: 55,416
Median household income: $73,385
Median house price: $222,100
- Hispanic origin (any race): 4%
- 91%
- 3%
- 5%
- 1%
- White
- Black
- Asian
- Other
- 6%
- 24%
- 48%
- 22%
- No diploma
- High school
- Bachelor's
- Master's & above
- 3%
- 13%
- 15%
- 11%
- 11%
- 4%
- 10%
- 2%
- 4%
- 8%
- 10%
- 3%
- 5%
- <5
- 5-9
- 10-14
- 15-19
- 20-24
- 25-29
- 30-34
- 35-39
- 40-44
- 45-59
- 60-89
- 90+
- Work@home
