Chicago Area Local News

CHICAGO (Sun-Times Media Wire) ― Tinley Park Mayor Ed Zabrocki had a big secret to keep. He knew the village had been named the best place in the country to raise kids by BusinessWeek magazine, but couldn't tell anyone.

"I was on pins and needles all weekend," Zabrocki said.

But the honor was official Tuesday when the magazine's annual ranking was released, the SouthtownStar is reporting..

The magazine analyzed more than 800 communities' school test scores, crime rates and affordability and Tinley Park came out on top, BusinessWeek.com reporter Prashant Gopal said.

"Tinley Park, with its top-rated schools, low crime, beautiful parks, relatively affordable houses and easy access to jobs, is the winner of BusinessWeek's Best Places in America to Raise Kids," according to the article.

"It's a great compliment to the entire community," Zabrocki said.

He, and other village leaders, attributed Tinley Park's top spot to the entire community working together. "Tinley Park is a mosaic made up of little pieces of colored glass ... that's what makes up our community," Zabrocki said.

And it's all done for the good of residents, park district director John Curran said. "The different bodies of government aren't worried about who gets credit for what," he said.

And though the BusinessWeek recognition came as a shock, the magazine's findings isn't new to village leaders.

"I'm really not surprised," Kirby School District 140 Supt. Mike Byrne said. "It validates what we already know."

Andrew High School Principal Robert Nolting points to the families who have been moving to Tinley Park to raise their children. "It affirms a lot of people's desire to move to Tinley Park," he said.

As for the future, Zabrocki said this national honor will help the village attract businesses - and families - to the community.

"This establishes Tinley Park as a leader in the area, in the state and in the nation," he said. "I see this as a tool that we'll use for our economic development."

And the schools and the park district expect to see people more interested in the community.

"If you didn't know about Tinley Park before, you'll know about it now," Tinley Park Community Consolidated School District 146 Supt. Marion Hoyda said.

BusinessWeek magazine ranked Tinley Park the top community to raise a family out of 865 nationwide, said reporter Prashant Gopal.

The magazine selected those communities because they had at least 45,000 residents and a median income of between $40,000 and $125,000, he said.

Then data on test scores, air quality, crime rate, job growth, affordability and community amenities were analyzed.

This year, the analysis gave greater weight to affordability and test scores, Gopal said. "It's easy to find a place with great schools and a low crime rate, but the key is people are looking for a bargain," he said.

Tinley Park wasn't on his radar until it popped up at the top of the analysis.
Now the south suburban community has taken the top spot -- beating out the wealthier north suburbs.

While Tinley Park took first place nationwide, a city in each state gets ranked as the best place to raise a family in that state.

Tinley Park is this state's top spot, but there are two runner-ups -- Arlington Heights and Schaumburg.

This isn't the first time in the past few years that a Chicago suburb has taken the nationwide top spot in this survey.

Last year, Mount Prospect was ranked as the best place in the country to raise a family.

--Southtown Star

(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2009. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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