Old vs. New - Algonquin/LITH: Small-town charm appeals to residents
By JENN WIANT – jwiant@nwherald.com
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| Algonquin resident Joann Roberts, who moved from California in July, poses for a portrait at her home in Algonquin, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009. (Justin Edmonds - jedmonds@nwherald.com ) |
ALGONQUIN – Bruce Zange’s family came to Algonquin in 1834; Joann Roberts moved to town in 2008. But they both appreciate that the town feels like a community and not a Chicago suburb.
“To me, this is good,” said Roberts, 52. She lived in New York, New Jersey, and the Los Angeles area before moving to Schaumburg to be near her ailing parents, she said. After three years in Schaumburg, she relocated to Algonquin in July.
“I was born in the city, and cities are nice to visit, but I don’t want to live in them,” she said. “There was nothing to do [in Schaumburg]; my life needs a little pizazz.”
Roberts had no family connections to Algonquin, she said, but just “stumbled upon” the condo where she now lives on Longwood Drive.
Zange grew up in a house on South River Drive, along the Fox River. After he got married, he moved about a block-and-a-half away and has been there ever since, he said. His home sits among oak trees with a view of the Fox River. He described it as quiet, comfortable, and beautiful.
“I love this town,” he said. “When we were growing up, everybody knew everybody. You shopped in town, you had the same friends. You could walk just about anywhere you wanted to.”
Algonquin has grown and changed since Zange was born in 1940, when about 1,200 people lived in the village and the Randall Road shopping district was only a gravel road through scattered farms, he said.
Now the town’s population is more than 30,000 and still growing. Algonquin has kept its small-town charm, but also has the shopping and dining conveniences of larger cities, Roberts said.
“For a place that used to be just country, it’s urban,” she said. “It’s definitely a growing community, and I do like that.”
Roberts said she loves to cook and enjoys shopping for ingredients at Joe Caputo & Sons at Randall and Algonquin roads. She still is trying out the local restaurants, but enjoys sipping a cup of coffee at Java Bar on South Main Street.
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| Bruce Zange has lived in Algonquin since 1940 and has been involved with the Algonquin Historical Commission. (Lauren M. Anderson - landerson@nwherald.com) |
Zange enjoys eating at Port Edward restaurant, Wine & Roses in downtown Algonquin, and Biaggi’s Ristorante Italiano on Randall Road. His wife, Patricia, shops at Kohl’s, and they do their grocery shopping at Butera Market and Jewel-Osco, he said.
Every year, Zange and his wife go to the Memorial Day parade and service and the Founders’ Day parade.
“You generally run into people you know,” he said. “You take your grandkids down. It’s just kind of a fun thing to do.”
Before he retired in 2002 from his family’s painting business, Zange Modern Decorating, Zange was involved with the Jaycees and the Lions Club. He also was a village trustee for 15 years in the 1960s and ‘70s. Now, he serves on the Historic Commission and interviews other longtime residents to help preserve their memories for future generations.
Roberts, a residential leasing agent, still is getting to know Algonquin, but so far she likes what she sees. She does not always enjoy the traffic on Route 62 that makes it difficult to drive in and out of her neighborhood, but she likes the people.
“From the time I drove out to look at the place, the people were really nice,” she said, recalling the friendly people she met at a convenience store where she had stopped to ask directions on her first trips to Algonquin.
For Zange, Algonquin always has been home, and he can’t imagine leaving.
“To me, it’s always been just a very friendly town,” he said. “I went to high school in Dundee, and that was a nice community, but I still prefer Algonquin. I’ll die here.”
