Resource & Relocation Guide

Transcription

1 S t. Clair County - Illinois Resource & Relocation Guide

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3 2 Table Of Contents Newcomer Information 20 Home Buyer Information 6 Help Hotlines 23 Buyer Mistakes 7 Health & Hospitals 25 How Much Can You Afford 8 Local Education 11 Things To Do 14 State Information 15 County History St. Clair County Map Belleville City Map 28 Tips to Selling Your Home 30 Packing Tips 31 Moving Checklist 32 Homefinder Notepad Skyline Publishing Project Coordinator: Dustin Doerr Ad Designer: Jeremy Newell Book Designer: Asha Bohannon

4 4 5 Newcomer Information Post Offices US Post Office 1111 S. Lincoln Ave. O'Fallon, IL (618) US Post Office 5731 Mount Pleasant Ln. (618) US Post Office 801 Range Ln. Cahokia, IL (618) Police St. Clair County Sheriff N. 5th St. - (618) Fire US Post Office 120 W. Washington St. (618) Courthouse US Post Office Lincoln Trail Fairview Heights, IL (618) St. Clair County Courthouse 10 Public Square (618) Belleville Police 101 N. Illinois 159 (618) Belleville Police 8800 W. Main St. (618) Caseyville Police 10 W. Morris St. Caseyville, IL (618) Freesburg Police 14 Southgate Center Freeburg, IL (618) Swansea Police 1400 N. Illinois St. Swansea, IL (618) State Police 1100 Eastport Plaza Dr. Collinsville, IL (618) Belleville Fire 1125 S. Illinois (618) Belleville Fire 2200 W. Washington St. (618) Boyer Fire 2425 Amann Dr. (618) Fairview Fire 626 Lincoln Hwy. Fairview Heights, IL (618) Millstadt Fire 114 S. Jefferson St. Millstadt, IL (618) Signal Hill Fire 329 Hazel Ave. (618) Utilities Illinois American Water (800) Ameren Illinois (618) AT&T (618) East Saint Louis Police 301 Riverpark Dr. #3 East St Louis, IL (618) Cahokia Volunteer Fire 1400 Doris Ave. Cahokia, IL (618) Swansea Fire 144 Huntwood Rd. Swansea, IL (618) Southwest Electric (800) Charter Communications (888) Fairview Heights Police Bunkum Rd. Fairview Heights, IL (618) East Side Volunteer Fire 1723 N. Belt E. (618) Villa Hills Fire 100 Conniston Dr. (618)

5 6 7 Health & Hospitals St. Clair County Health Department 19 Public Square Suite 150 (618) Dial 911for Emergencies Anderson Hospital Express Care 1103 Belt Line Rd. Collinsville, IL (618) Memorial Hospital 4500 Memorial Dr. (618) St. Elizabeth s Hospital 211 S. 3rd St. (618) Touchette Regional Hospital 5900 Bond Ave. Centreville, IL (618)

6 Local School Districts When Registering Your Children For School, Please Remember To Bring: Current Immunization Record & Birth Certificate Name & Address Of Last School Attended Last Report Card & Any Scores Obtained From Standardized Tests Colleges & Universities Lindenwood University 2600 W. Main St. (618) St. Clair County Regional Office of Education 1000 S. Illinois St. (618) St. Clair ROE Alternative Education Center 1722 W. Main St. (618) Vatterott College 110 Commerce Ln. Fairview Heights, IL (618) McKendree University 701 College Rd. Lebanon, IL (800) Webster University 404 W. Martin St. Scott AFB, IL (618) McKendree University The Center at Scott AFB 404 W. Martin St., Bldg Scott AFB, IL (618)

7 St. Clair County Art on the Square 30 Public Square (800) Lincoln Theatre 103 E. Main St. (618) The House of Fine Arts 901 W. Main St. (618) Belle-Clair Speedway 200 S. Belt E. (314) Lumiere Place Casino & Hotel 999 N. 2nd St. St. Louis, MO (314) Victorian House Museum 701 E. Washington St. (618) Busch Stadium 700 Clark Ave. St. Louis, MO (314) Main Library 121 E. Washington St. (618) Wax Museum 720 N. Second St. St. Louis, MO (314) Cahokia Mounds State Park 30 Ramey St. Collinsville, IL (618) Eckert s Belleville Farm 951 Green Mount Rd. (618) Elmwood Golf Course 1400 Eiler Rd. (618) Gateway Arch & Old Courthouse 11 N. 4th St. St. Louis, MO (314) National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows 442 S. Demazenod Dr. (618) O Fallon Public Library 120 Civic Plaza O'Fallon, IL (618) Old Cathedral 209 Walnut St. St. Louis, MO (314) Sky-View Drive-In 5700 N. Belt W. (618) West Branch Library 3414 W. Main St. (618) William & Florence Schmidt Art Center & Sculpture Gardens 2500 Carlyle Ave. (800) World's Largest Catsup Bottle 800 S. Morrison Ave. Collinsville, IL (618) and so much more! 10 Hey Guys Comedy Club 5225 N. Illinois St. Fairview Heights, IL (618) Labor & Industry Musuem 123 N. Church St. (618) St. Clair Square Shopping Center 134 St. Clair Sq. Fairview Heights, IL (618)

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9 14 Illinois I llinois, the Prairie State, gets its popular name from having a broad, level landscape. Located in the heart of the Midwest, the fertile soil and long growing season make it an important agricultural state. Its the leading producer of soybeans and corn. Also grown in large quantities are wheat, oats, barley, rye and sorghum. Important to Illinois economy are hogs, pigs and cattle. Because manufacturing is more important than farming to the state, Illinois is also a major industrial state, and their products include electronic equipment and chemicals. Chicago, the largest city in Illinois, is a major center for rail and truck transportation, as well as for the Great Lakes shipping traffic. It is also home of O Hare Airport. During the 1800 s and early 1900 s Illinois factories and stockyards were the workplaces where many of America s labor unions were first formed. The Mississippi forms the western border of the state from Galena to Cairo in the south. Prehistoric inhabitants have left evidence that there have been dwellers on the plains since 4000 B.C. A period of burial mound buildings were formed after 1000 B.C. One of the largest Native American mounds in the country, Monk s Mound, is located in the southwest near St. Louis. The name Illinois comes from the tribe that called themselves Illiniwek or superior men, which once resided in the area. In the early 1600 s, French fur traders were the first Europeans. Springfield, which is located near the center of the state, was the home of a young lawyer, congressman and finally president, Abraham Lincoln. His remains lay in a tomb in the town cemetery. A state park in the village of New Salem honors FUN FACTS Capital Springfield Area 57,914 sq. mi. (149,986 sq. km) Population 12,653,554 (2004) Largest Cities Chicago (9,333,511) Peoria (365,995) Statehood December 3, 1818 Rank: 21st Principal Rivers Mississippi, Ohio, Illinois, Wabash Highest Point Charles Mound Motto State Sovereignty, National Union his time there as a storekeeper, law student and surveyor. he Chicago skyline is a sight to see, as its skyscrapers give Tdimension to the vast night sky. Birthplace of the skyscrapers, Chicago is the third-largest city in the United States. This city is widely known for having some of the tallest buildings, which include The Willis Tower, as well as The John Hancock Building, The Ion Tower, and the The Trump International Hotel and Tower, all of which rank in the top 10 in the world. State Symbols White Oak Cardinal Illinois Native Violet St. Clair County History St. Clair County once stretched from Fort Massac on the Ohio River in a line northwest to the present site of Peoria, followed the Illinois River to the banks of the Mighty Mississippi and continued on to the Ohio River at Fort Massac. The area was part of the Northwest Territory which was established by Congress in Arthur St. Clair, became the Governor of the Northwest Territory. Two years later, St. Clair paid a visit to what is now called southern Illinois. On April 27, 1790 Governor St. Clair laid out the boundaries for the county which now bears his name. He established the county seat in Cahokia. The Church of the Holy Family in Cahokia is the oldest church west of the Allegheny Mountains. The church was established in 1699 by Catholic missionaries from the seminary of Quebec. By 1820, St. Clair County had more than 5,000 residents; its population did not reach 10,000 until around After the Civil War, there were more than 50,000 citizens in St. Clair County. Today, St. Clair County is home to 270,056 people, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. St. Clair County is home to Scott Air Force. Scott Air Force Base pumps about $2 billion a year into the region's economy. With more than 13,000 employees, Scott is one of the top five employers in the St. Louis region. St. Clair County is surrounded by several major tourist attractions including the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows, Gateway International Raceway and Cahokia Mounds. 15

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14 24 25 How much House Can You Afford? How much you can afford is determined by a relatively simple formula. Lenders generally figure that no more than 28 percent of your income should be for total housing costs. In addition, they require that your total monthly debt be less than 36 percent of your income. (Note: These are general numbers. Other loan programs may allow higher percentages.) For example, if you make $48,000 a year, divided by 12 months, your monthly income is $4,000. (Remember, that s $48,000 in gross pay, before federal and state taxes are removed.) Twenty-eight percent of $4,000 is $1,120. That is the most you can make in a monthly mortgage, taxes, and insurance payments. Generally, to qualify, the self-employed buyer must have been self-employed in the same line of work for at least 24 months before applying for a loan. Lenders use your net income, the figure at the bottom of schedule C of your federal income tax form, to decide how large a mortgage you can carry. But they don t look at what you earn now or what you made last year. Rather lenders figure the monthly average of your income over the past 24 months. Also, overtime pay & bonuses sometimes may not be figured into your average income. Don t forget that points, closing costs & other out-of-the-pocket expenses probably will come out to about one percent of the mortgage amount.

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17 Packing Strategies Supplies: Preparing to move: A strategy for packing: Packing for efficiency:

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