Aurora

Aurora is a city in the Chicago metropolitan area located partially in DuPage, Kane, Kendall, and Will counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. The population was 197,899 at the 2010 census, and was 180,542 as of the 2020 Census. Aurora was one of the first cities in the United States to implement an all-electric street lighting system. The Hollywood Casino Aurora, a dockside gaming facility with 53,000 square feet (4,900 m2) and 1,200 gaming positions, is located along the river in downtown Aurora. The Aurora area has some significant architecture, including structures by Frank Lloyd Wright, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Bruce Goff and George Grant Elmslie. The city is divided into three regions, the West Side, on the west side of the Fox River, the East Side, between the eastern bank of theFox River and the Kane/DuPage County line, and the Far East Side/Fox Valley, which is from the County Line to the city's eastern border with Naperville. Aurora began as two villages: East Aurora, incorporated in 1845 on the east side ofthe river, and West Aurora, formally organized in 1854. In 1857, the two towns joined, incorporating as the city of Aurora. From 2000 to 2009, the city was ranked the 46th fastest growing city with a population of over 100,000. It is the second most populous city in Illinois, after Chicago.

History

Aurora began as two villages: East Aurora, incorporated in 1845 on the east side of the river, and West Aurora, formally organized on the west side in 1854. In 1857, the two towns joined, incorporating as the city of Aurora. The city developed as a manufacturing powerhouse which lasted until the early 1970s, when the railroad shops closed. By 1980, there were few industrial areas operating in the city, and unemployment soared to 16%. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, development began in the Far East side along the Eola Road and Route 59 areas. In 1993, the Hollywood Casino was built downtown, which helped bring the first redevelopment to the downtown area in nearly twenty years. In the late 1990s, more development started in the rural areas and towns outside Aurora. Subdivisions sprouted up around the city and Aurora's population soared.Today, Aurora is an ethnically diverse city of nearly 200,000 residents. Historic areas downtown are being redeveloped, and new developments are being built across the city. The first free public school district in Illinois was established in 1851 here and the city established a high school for girls in 1855. Aurora openly supported abolitionism before the American Civil War. Mexican migrants began arriving after the Mexican Revolution of 1910. Aurora became the economic center of the Fox Valley region. The Latino population grew rapidly in the the city during the 1980s. The town has a large Latino population, which grew rapidly during the late 1980s and the early 1990s.

Geography

Aurora is located at 41°4550N 88°1724W (41.7637855, 88.2901352) It has an area of 45.799 square miles (118.62 km²) Aurora is one of only three cities in Illinois that span four counties. Politically, the city is divided into 10 wards. Large portions of Aurora can be described as being within three regions: The West Side, which is west of the Fox River, the East Side, and the Far East Side. Aurora was hit with one of the strongest earthquakes ever to strike Illinois, a M 5.1, on May 26, 1909. In 1990, the supercell thunderstorm that produced the deadly Plainfield Tornado passed over the city, dropping golf ball sized hail and causing wind damage. In 1906, a tornado went through the Aurora Driving Park, a large recreation/amusement park and race track where the Riddle Highlands neighborhood and Northgate shopping center is today. The tornado hit during the afternoon performance of the Ringling Brothers "Greatest Show on Earth" circus, when the park was crowded. It killed 2 people and injured 22, but the grandstand was still filled for the evening performance. In 1954, 1958, 1960, and 1991, weak tornadoes struck the city. In 1996, a major flood struck Aurora, with 16.9 inches (430 mm) of rain in a 24-hour period. The annual precipitation for Aurora is about 40 inches. The average high temperature for Aurora in July is 83.5 °F (28.6 °C), the average January low is 12.6°F (10.8 °C).

Demographics

As of the American Community Survey of 2016, there were 200,907 people, 61,831 households, and 46,131 families residing in the city. There were 66,447 housing units at an average density of 1,451.8 per square mile (560.5/km²) The racial makeup of the city was 56.5% White, 10.2% African American, 0.4% Native American, 7.7% Asian American, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 22.4%. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 42.7%. The city's population breakdown in the 2010 census by age was as follows. The median income for a household in theCity was $63,967, and the medianincome for a family was $72,696. For full-time workers, males had a median income of $48,296 versus $37,823 for females. The per capita income for the City was $26,989. About 11.1%. of families and 14.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.6% of those under age 18 and 8.8%. of those age 65 or over. The city had a population of 200,000 as of the 2010 US Census. The US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of anyrace.

Economy

Aurora is on the edge of the Illinois Technology and Research Corridor. The city has a long tradition of manufacturing as does much of Chicago metropolitan area. The Aurora Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (AACVB) is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to aggressively promoting and marketing the area as a premier overnight destination. The AACVB'S goal is to enhance the economic and environmental well-being of a region comprising ten communities: Aurora, Batavia, Big Rock, Hinckley, Montgomery, North Aurora, Oswego, Plano, Sugar Grove, and Yorkville. The most prominent employer and industry was the Chicago Burlington and Quincy Railroad (later Burlington Northern) which was headquartered in Aurora. The CB&Q Roundhouse is still standing, and is now the popular restaurant originally called Walter Payton's Roundhouse. After the Payton estate ended its involvement in 2009 it became known as America's Historic Roundhouse, and after a 2011 change in ownership, it is now known as Two Brothers Roundhouses. According to the city's 2019 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the city’s largest employers are: Caterpillar Inc., Western Electric, Allsteel Metals, National Metalwares, and Western Wheeled Scraper Works (later Austin-Western Inc.). The Aurora Silverplate Manufacturing Company, Barber-Greene Company, the Chicago Corset Company, Stephens-Adamson Company, and The Aurora Brewing Company are all headquartered in the city. The largest employer in Aurora is Western Electric.

Arts and culture

Aurora's downtown is full of architectural landmarks and historic places. It includes a major Hindu temple, the Sri Venkateswara Swami Temple of Greater Chicago. Aurora also has its own zoo, Phillips Park Zoo, in Phillips Park.Wayne's World (1992) is a buddy film set in Aurora, with characters developed from a skit on the television show Saturday Night Live. Most of the movie was filmed elsewhere, but some small sections were filmed on location in Aurora. One scene shows the local White Castle. The film's sequel, Wayne's World 2, is also set in aurora. The main building of Aurora Public Library and a branch campus of Waubonsee Community College are also located downtown. The Riverfront Playhouse is a not-for-profit theater that has held a storefront location in downtown Aurora since 1978. A new and greatly expanded campus was built on the western banks of the river, between the river and IL Route 31. The construction of the campus was part of a larger plan to redevelop the Downtown area, putting in parks and new walking paths, and making the area more inviting. Also in the works is a plan to modify or reconstruct the bridges to Stolp Island, which have not been maintained for nearly 60 years. The plan also included a pedestrian bridge to connect the Banks of the River to the banks of Aurora. The Aurora Public Arts Commission runs the Aurora Public Fire Museum and the Grand Army of the Republic Hall of Fame.

Sports

Aurora Islanders/Blues/Foxes, a minor league baseball franchise, played from 1910 to 1915 in the Wisconsin-Illinois League. Casey Stengel, who played one season with the team before being bought by the Brooklyn Dodgers, was the batting champion of the league for 1911. The Stonebridge Country Club, on Aurora's far northeast side, was home to the LPGA Tour's Kellogg-Keebler Classic from 2002 to 2004. East and West Aurora High Schools have been rivals in all sports for over 100 years. The Aurora Sealmasters Men's team finished fifth in the nation in 1950. The Sealmasters won National Championships in 1959, 1961, 1965, and 1967, and World Championships in 1966 and 1968. There were many different and competitive men's leagues in Aurora from the 1960s through the mid-1990s. Aurora University has Men's and Women's basketball, golf, tennis, track and field and cross country, men's and women's lacrosse. It also has a men's football and baseball team, as well as women's softball and volleyball teams. In 2007, the Waubonsie Valley High School girls' team won the state championship; it was ranked #1 of all high school girls' soccer teams in the United States after finishing with an undefeated season. Several youth soccer players from Aurora have received college scholarships to major college soccer programs throughout the U.S. Several have played for the Brazil national team, and for the Argentina national team.

Infrastructure

Aurora has two hospitals, one on the west side, Presence Mercy Medical Center, and one in Fox Valley, RushCopley Medical Center. There are other area hospitals, including Edward Hospital in Naperville, Delnor Hospital in Geneva, Central DuPage in Winfield and a Level 1 Trauma center at Good Samaritan in Downers Grove. The Aurora Municipal Airport is a general aviation airport in Sugar Grove, Illinois, just outside Aurora. The city of Aurora recently demolished the old smokestacks from the hospital, as they were starting to crumble. Aurora also had an extensive streetcar system, operated by the Aurora, Elgin and Fox River Electric Company, that served most neighborhoods. Aurora was served by a number of interurban lines, the most prominent of which was the Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad which provided service into Chicago. Aurora does not have a stop for Amtrak trains, as the old station closed in the 1980s. The closest Amtrak station is in Napville. The City of Aurora is home to the Chicago Air Route Traffic Control Center, which is located on the city's west side. It is also home to a variety of independent clinics and medical groups, including Provena Mercy and Dreyer Medical Clinic. Aurora has two major highways, the Illinois Turnpike and the Illinois State Toll Road. It also has the Chicago-Illinois Toll Road, which connects the city to Chicago and the Chicago suburb of Naperville. It has the U.S. Post Office, a post office, a store, a bank, and a bank.

Education

Aurora is home to Aurora University, two branches of Waubonsee Community College, and a branch of Rasmussen College. According to the census of Aurora's population over the age of twenty-five, 26% hold a bachelor's degree. As of 2005, there were at least forty public schools within Aurora city limits, serving residents of Aurora and neighboring communities. The Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA) is a state-funded residential magnet school for grades 10 to 12. Four of the schools in Oswego CUSD 308, Wheatlands Elementary, Homestead Elementary, Wolf's Crossing Elementary, and Bednarcik Junior High are within Aurora's limits. Aurora is also home to Fox Valley Montessori School, one of the first MontessorI schools established in Illinois in 1969. The library operations budget is $10 million and the staff numbers 85 full-time and 89 part-time employees. The Santori Public Library, the main library, was opened in June 2015, and offers a 3D printer and a digital media lab in addition to standard book and media services. There are three Roman Catholic High Schools, Aurora Central Catholic, Rosary, and Marmion Academy (Order of St. Benedict), and seven Catholic elementary schools operated by the Diocese of Rockford. Along with these three schools, there is Aurora Christian High School and Elementary School and Resurrection Lutheran School, a Pre-K-8 grade school of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Aurora, DuPage County, Illinois = 46.3. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 60. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 71. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Aurora = 3.5 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 180,542 individuals with a median age of 30.7 age the population grows by 25.15% in Aurora, DuPage County, Illinois population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 4,014.81 residents per square mile of area (1,550.13/km²). There are average 3.13 people per household in the 45,471 households with an average household income of $49,006 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is of the available work force and has dropped -4.37% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 21.16%. The number of physicians in Aurora per 100,000 population = 132.5.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Aurora = 35.3 inches and the annual snowfall = 29.2 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 106. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 189. 85 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 13.4 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 45, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Aurora, DuPage County, Illinois which are owned by the occupant = 62.08%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 40 years with median home cost = $145,330 and home appreciation of -10.46%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $19.77 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $4,872 per student. There are 18.6 students for each teacher in the school, 1138 students for each Librarian and 1122 students for each Counselor. 4.94% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 11.19% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 5.03% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).