Prospect Heights, Illinois

Geobox|Settlement
name = Prospect Heights
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category = City
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country = United States
state = Illinois
region = Cook
region_type = County
district =
district_type = Township
municipality =
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lat_d = 42
lat_m = 6
lat_s = 20
lat_NS = N
long_d = 87
long_m = 55
long_s = 41
long_EW = W
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area_imperial = 4.3
area_land_imperial = 4.3
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population = 17081
population_date = 2000
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leader_type = Mayor
timezone = CST
utc_offset = -6
timezone_DST = CDT
utc_offset_DST = -5
postal_code = 60070
area_code = 847
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map_caption = Location of Prospect Heights within Illinois
map_background = Illinois - background map.png map_locator = Illinois2
commons = Prospect Heights, Illinois
statistics =
website =
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Prospect Heights is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 17,081 at the 2000 census.

Geography

Prospect Heights is located at coor dms|42|6|20|N|87|55|41|W|city (42.105576, -87.928168)GR|1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.3 square miles (11.1 km²), of which, 4.3 square miles (11.0 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.47%) is water.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 17,081 people, 6,379 households, and 4,433 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,011.1 people per square mile (1,548.1/km²). There were 6,573 housing units at an average density of 1,543.5/sq mi (595.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 77.41% White, 1.76% African American, 0.25% Native American, 4.37% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 13.82% from other races, and 2.35% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 27.58% of the population.

There were 6,379 households out of which 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.1% were married couples living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.5% were non-families. 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.68 and the average family size was 3.21.

In the city the population was spread out with 24.2% under the age of 18, 9.2% from 18 to 24, 33.4% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 103.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $55,641, and the median income for a family was $63,382. Males had a median income of $40,317 versus $32,455 for females. The per capita income for the city was $28,200. About 3.7% of families and 4.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.9% of those under age 18 and 1.4% of those age 65 or over.

Government

In recent years, a scandal has erupted concerning the issuance of TIFs to out-of-state entities to develop land, according to Northwest Tax Watch. As a result the city has incurred large debts. Before the TIFs were issued however, the proposal was put before the town for a vote, and it was struck down. The ex-mayor of Prospect Heights, Rodney Pace, who abruptly resigned in 2007, was under fire for his association with various unscrupulous land developers. Under Pace's administration, a strip club opened up on land that was supposed to be reserved for legitimate business development under a tax free zoning plan. Pace was described by city alderman Patrick Ludvigsen as possessing a temper which was problematic. [http://www.dailyherald.com/story/print/?id=38553] The Prospect Heights police department has been a focal point of controversey. Recently however, officers have been involved in a series of questionable and unethical activities. While media investigations are pending, the department has denied the claims and has refused to address community concerns, calling it a benevolent dictatorship.

Education

Most of Prospect Heights is served by the Prospect Heights School District 23 [http://www.d23.org] , which contains four schools:

*Dwight D. Eisenhower Elementary (K-5)
*Betsy Ross Elementary (K-2)
*Anne Sullivan Elementary (3-5)
*MacArthur Middle School (6-8)

Other districts that serve portions of Prospect Heights include:
* Wheeling Community Consolidated School District 21
* Arlington Heights School District 25
* River Trails School District 26

Township High School District 214 serves Prospect Heights.

Some students attend Wheeling High School while others attend John Hersey High School.

A small portion of the city limits is in West Norfield School District 31 and Northfield High School District 225, but that portion has no residents.

A good portion of private education in Prospect Heights is St. Alphonsus Liguori Parish and St. Viator High School in Arlington Heights.

Entertainment

There are many activities and places to visit in Prospect Heights. There are several parks stretched along the river appropriate for biking and jogging. There is a nature center with various captive animals near the park entrance on Euclid.
Fiddler's on Wolf road is great place for cheap drinks.
24 hour gentlemen's club on Palatine Rd near Milwaukee Ave.
Old Orchard, an 18-hole golf course and country club sprawls across Camp McDonald and is a local favorite.
Randhurst Mall, with an AMC Theatre and Border's bookstore are also nearby.
There is a train station with regular trips in and out of the city located near the intersection of Camp McDonald and Wolf Road.

Transportation

Prospect Heights has a station on Metra's North Central Service, which provides daily rail service between Antioch, Illinois and Chicago, Illinois (at Union Station).

Events

Prospect Heights is the home of several small plane crashes coming from Palwaukee airport. Most recently, on Sept 17, 2006, a small plane crashed in a back yard injuring 2 passengers. Earlier that year, on January 30th, a plane crashed near Camp McDonald and Wolf road killing 4 passengers including Kenneth Knudson, the founder of Sybaris Clubs International Inc.

This section as well as the mention of the plane crashes had previously been removed and was marked "unsourced, dubious notoriety".

Prospect Heights is also home to legendary running instructor Greg Fedyski. Fedyski's Prospect Heights Running Club most recently won the National Championship in the Youth Boys division in December 2003. Team members included: Kevin Havel, Billy Wisser, Robbie Eckardt, Mike Greenwood, Curtis Wissenberger, Matt Smith, Eric Maher and Erik Solberg.

References

External links