Chicago Tribune
September 30, 2010
The median household income for Naperville residents has been steadily declining, according to data released this week by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Heartland Alliance Social Impact Research Center.
From Chicago Tribune:
The median household income for Naperville residents has been steadily declining for over a decade and dipped below $100,000 in 2009, according to data released this week by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Heartland Alliance Social Impact Research Center.
While the median household income in Naperville for 2009 was $98,488, which is still well above the state’s median household income of $59,975, it declined from its peak of $114,274 in 1999, according to the report.
The median household income in DuPage County was $77,033 in 2009. But since 2000, the DuPage median household income has declined by $10,690.
“Anytime someone experiences an income drop it can shake up their lives,” said Amy Terpstra, associate director at the Social Impact Research Center at the Heartland Alliance. “Sometimes people call them the working poor, those who have to make a choice of paying rent or putting food on the table.”
Terpstra blames a shift in the job market for the downward income trend in DuPage County and the Midwest region.
“A shift in the economy began long before the recession,” said Terpstra. “Many of the good-paying, manufacturing jobs are disappearing. Many people are now shifting into service industry jobs which pay less and offer fewer benefits. It’s this broader shift that has led to the erosion of income.”
Terpstra added that the cost of living is high in Naperville.
Charles McLimans, executive director of the Loaves & Fishes Community Pantry in Naperville, said the pantry started a program in 2008 that assists Naperville families with higher incomes.
“We had one family whose two family member income went down to one and only had enough money to pay the mortgage,” said McLimans. “Families with similar situations started coming to us. We didn’t want to turn people away.”
He said about 3 percent of the 1,600 people they serve are in the program.
The higher income food program is only open to Naperville residents.