Hazel Crest, Illinois

Template:Chicagoland municipality Hazel Crest is a village located in Cook County, Illinois. As of the 2000 census, the village had a total population of 14,816.

Geography

Hazel Crest is located at 41°34'23" North, 87°41'9" West (41.573084, -87.685870)Template:GR.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 8.8 km² (3.4 mi²). 8.8 km² (3.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.59% water.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there are 14,816 people, 5,067 households, and 3,729 families residing in the village. The population density is 1,692.5/km² (4,381.5/mi²). There are 5,303 housing units at an average density of 605.8/km² (1,568.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the village is 19.47% White, 76.32% African American, 0.12% Native American, 0.93% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.48% from other races, and 1.65% from two or more races. 3.33% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 5,067 households out of which 38.1% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.2% are married couples living together, 22.5% have a female householder with no husband present, and 26.4% are non-families. 22.6% of all households are made up of individuals and 9.9% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.89 and the average family size is 3.39.

In the village the population is spread out with 30.3% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 27.9% from 25 to 44, 23.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.6% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 35 years. For every 100 females there are 84.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 79.3 males.

The median income for a household in the village is $50,576, and the median income for a family is $54,049. Males have a median income of $40,482 versus $33,243 for females. The per capita income for the village is $19,908. 8.4% of the population and 5.9% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 11.7% of those under the age of 18 and 9.8% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

/*Politics*/ The Village of Hazel Crest has had an unusual sense of politics lately. Since the Consolidated Elections of 1997, the change in demographics, from a majority white community to a majority black community, have affected the municipal elections. In 1997, Village President Sol J. Rocke was running for re-election along with then, former Village Trustee, Robert B. Donaldson, and, at the time, current Village Trustee William A. Browne.

Since the 1980's Hazel Crest had begun to face a deterioration economically, as other places had at the time, and a need for change was arising. The 1997 elections, amongst all three were close. President Rocke and Trustee Browne were seen as "buddies," while former Trustee Donaldson was associated with the former Village President, also the longest lasting in Hazel Crest history, and whom the Municipal Center is named after, who served the village for twenty years Martin J. Kauchak.

The elections were close and nearly 30 votes between Rocke and Donaldson gave the election to the incumbent. Four years later, President Rocke was ready to retire after eight years of service. The election went down to two people, Trustee Bill Browne who was also the president of Prairie-Hills School District 144, and Bob Donaldson who is a professor at local Governors State University and serves on the City of Chicago Building Commission.

This time, in 2001, the election was decided by four votes in a village of nearly 15,000 residents. This election also brought with it the first black president of Hazel Crest. President Rocke endorsed Trustee Browne and Congressman Jesse L. Jackson, Jr. endorsed Donaldson. During the next four year period, as predicted by 49.9% of the village, Hazel Crest underwent a drought of economic depression with a $200,000+ budget deficit in a village that only has revenues of $10,000,000-. In the winter of 2005, President Browne met the challenges of a familiar rival...Dr. Robert "Bob" Donaldson.

This time, the village saw political parties, the Focus Party of then President Browne, and the Vision Party of Dr. Bob Donaldson. Throughout the next six months, the residents witnessed stale-matted debates and a community pool controversy, in which the Park District, headed by President Browne's wife, Rhonda Browne, wanted to demolish the pool, which many residents opposed. In a community such as Hazel Crest, the two parties were almost equal to the Democrats and Republicans.

High taxes and a growing low-income residential base were plauging the village. While many things were accomplished during Browne's tenure such as a new school, Mae Jemison Elementery School, a $10 Million project, and a $3 Million medical office building was built, many other problems began to occur, mainly the deterioration of the Village of Hazel Crest with the falling of housing values. Hazel Crest began to witness the typical activity of what happens to a municipality during the process of "white flight."

The elections were tight and residents also saw a change in the village's newspaper, "The Villager." President Browne began to print personal messages promoting his campaign for re-election. In April of 2005 though, these tactics did not work. As the results were tallied, in both Vision Party and Focus Party headquarters, tension grew. The results showed that there was almost a tie with President Browne leading the way after seeing results from his area of Stonebridge.

The last results to come in were those of Dynasty Lakes, the newest subdivision added to the village. With Lee Fantroy, a candidate for trustee on the Vision Party's side, also serving as the President of the Dynasty Lakes Homeowners Association, Mr. Fantroy brought in the winning results for the Vision Party. The total tally for Village President in Dynasty Lakes was about 200 votes for Donaldson and about 36 for Browne, making the total 1,119 (46.30%) votes for Browne, and 1,298 (53.70%) for Donaldson.

A man that had run for this office two other times had finally won, the first black person to run for Cook County Commissioner under the Democratic Party and the second black President of Hazel Crest. The future now holds what will come in the 2007 Consolidated Elections for trustee.