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Nationwide Recognition

In addition to being known as the community that has transformed from a quiet summer resort town to a bustling Chicago metropolitan area suburb, Lake Zurich has earned another distinction: award-winner.

In recent years, the community has garnered a number of national honors, the most recent being named one of “BusinessWeek’s 25 Best Affordable Suburbs in the U.S.”

It’s not as if Lake Zurich is trying to be competitive, village officials say. The BusinessWeek honor, as well as other awards, has come without any solicitation by the town.

In naming Lake Zurich as one of its top 25 suburbs, BusinessWeek cited several amenities about the community: its affordability of housing, quality school systems, low crime rates, strong police and fire facilities, and inviting community cultural attractions.

Specifically, BusinessWeek explained how the 25 suburbs placed on a national average: “These suburbs may not have the greatest schools in the country, or the lowest crime rates, but most of them do better than average in these categories,” the publication said. “The average secondary test scores index among our featured suburbs is 114, and the average violent crime index is 54 (with 100 being the state and national averages, respectively).”

Lake Zurich was the only Illinois town named on the BusinessWeek list and joined such towns as Columbia, Maryland; Sharon, Massachusetts; Castle Rock, Colorado and Sugarland, Texas.

The publication also acknowledged that Lake Zurich and the other top suburbs were “located within an hour’s drive of a major U.S. city, and many have a vibrant downtown scene, with fine restaurants, sophisticated shopping, and seasonal festivals.”

BusinessWeek recognized Lake Zurich’s median home price of $411,000, its Cost of Living Index of 155.8, its Violent Crime Index of 29 and its Secondary School Test Scores Index of 112.

The national publication worked with the Portland, Oregon-based Website, Sperling’s Best Places, to produce the list of premier suburbs.

Lake Zurich also recently had the noteworthy distinction of being included in the list of 100 top affordable community in the U.S., in “Best Places to Raise Your Family,” a book released in 2006 and authored by Peter Sander and Bert Sperling, founder and president of Sperling’s Best Places.

Lake Zurich was one of two Illinois communities listed in the book (the other being Oak Park), published by Frommer’s.

The authors chose Lake Zurich as a “best place” because of “its unique heritage, appearance, community resources, and overall ‘family’ feel.” They also highlighted a census demographic about Lake Zurich: that the town has “married with children” percentage of 45, one of the highest of all the towns that the book reviewed.

The authors also cited Lake Zurich’s commitment to its residents. “Suburban growth has caught up, but a legacy remains: The lake and its shore are used as a community center, and an outstanding park and recreation system provides 27 parks that are used year-round by local residents,” the authors wrote.

The authors also recognized the 41-acre Paulus Park and its Kids Kingdom playground as well as the many programs provided by the new Foglia YMCA.

As with the BusinessWeek report, the book also touted Lake Zurich’s home prices. “Home prices start in the mid $300Ks, with a ‘sweet spot’ in the $400K to $450K range, which is high but not unreasonable considering the area and the available amenities,” the authors wrote.

Sperling and Sander also recognized Lake Zurich’s proximity to Chicago and its many offerings. “As for arts, culture and entertainment, few places beat the Chicago assortment,” they wrote.

Lake Zurich has also been the recipient of several other honors in recent years: the town has received numerous Tree City USA awards from the Arbor Day Foundation, A Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting Program from the Government Finance Officers Association, a Clean Air Counts Silver Level Award from the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus, and the Lake Zurich Police Department’s first time ever accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, a national organization.