The Future of Apartment Living

As reported in numerous publications, U.S. population trends will favor the apartment industry over the next couple of decades.

Not only is renting becoming an economic choice, but also a lifestyle choice.

Apartment living is considered by many to be the solution to a possible future housing crisis. Currently the U.S. home ownership rate stands at 67.5%, however it is more than a remote possibility that it could decline 6% to 8% over the next decade. For every single percentage point of declining home ownership, there will be created a potential demand for approximately one million rental units.

Prior to the Baby Boomer generation of buyers home ownership remained below 60%.

During the 3rd quarter of 2008 the number of renters who moved out in order to purchase their own homes were down almost 15% from a high in 2004. In 2009 less than 14% of renters left to buy homes and that number is expected to decline even further.

This year some 40.2 million Americans will be 65 or older. Furthermore, it is estimated that in 10 years, the number of senior U.S. residents will increase to 54.8 million. 72.1 million will have reached the age of 65 by year 2030 and 86.7 million by 2050.

The population group of 85 and above is projected to more than double, from 4.7 million in 2003 to 9.6 million in 2030. As life expectancy increases and with more accessible health care services and medical advances, new demands for senior housing will be created.

There is an increase in the likelihood of renting as the senior population grows older. Rental units simply fit the aging population better.

In 2000, there were 35.3 million Hispanics in the U.S. This ethnic group’s population is expected to increase to 49.7 million by 2010 and to 66.4 million by 2020. 54% of the U.S. population growth between 2000 and 2030 will be Hispanic. It is estimated that an additional 12 million Hispanics illegal residents. According to a recent Pew Research Center study, 36% of Hispanics fear that they may lose their homes to foreclosure.

It is estimated that 54% of Hispanics rent today and that number will increase.

Gen Y finds renting appealing and, at almost 85 million, the overall Generation Y population is larger today than the Baby Boomers. Many of them are at or close to the ages when they become renters. Generation Y prefers urban living to suburban living and do not have enough savings or income to buy a home.

Generation Y tends to put personal and professional development ahead of marriage.
It is a continuing and growing trend for those with college degrees to postpone marriage until they are more ready. Balancing work and personal life is very important and they are willing to pay more for housing in order to avoid time consuming commutes.

Today 57% of those under age 34 rent.

In conclusion, the future of apartment living is bright.

Corporate Housing vs. Extended Stay Hotels

Corporate housing is available to anyone, of course with or without "corporate" ties. Some people may wonder exactly what corporate housing is and how is it different from extended stay hotels.

In terms of cost, upscale extended stay hotels average about 20% to 50% higher than typical corporate apartments, based on a 30-day stay with monthly discount rates. Of course, the higher cost caused in part various services, including housekeeping, that extended stay hotels offer. However, if saving money, privacy and a peaceful existence is the most important consideration, then a quality corporate housing unit is usually the best option.

Furnished corporate housing benefits from being highly-customizable. But you need to remember that special requests will often increase the cost.

When you require housing for less than a month, extended stay hotels may realistically be your only option. But if you need a place to stay for more than a month, corporate housing will not provide some very useful services, such as a daily breakfast, but will normally provide much more comfortable and homelike living conditions.

The term corporate housing usually refers to a furnished apartment, but the term may also be used for a town house or detached house. Utilities, telephone service, and cable TV are usually included. Sometime weekly housekeeping service is provided, or it may be arranged at an additional cost.

Corporate housing apartments in suburban areas are frequently located in large complexes with many resort-style amenities, such as party room, swimming pools, tennis courts, and mini health clubs.

What Is Corporate Housing?

Corporate housing is a term used to describe fully furnished apartments, condos and houses available for lease for as short as a 30-day stay. This type of housing is available around the world, but is especially popular in the United States and Canada.

Fully furnished corporate apartments are available in all sizes from studios up to three bedrooms. Occasionally even 4 and 5 bedroom estate homes may be on the rental market.

So who are the guests who will use corporate housing?

Corporate travelers, contractors, government employees, relocating families waiting to find the just right permanent home or waiting for their new homes to be built, or it can be individuals or families who have lost their homes due to fires or natural disasters. It may even be vacationers or retired people who want to enjoy different climates for part of the year.

Corporate housing comes fully furnished with all linens and dishes that the occupants require and can usually be customized per the needs of the individual guest.

Corporate housing is the economical answer to extended stay traveler everywhere. The savings are normally up to half the cost of a typical hotel stay and, since the size may be more than twice the size of a standard hotel room, the stay will be much more comfortable and private.

Why stay in a small hotel room when you can relax in your own private corporate apartment home with all the amenities and comforts of home?

Does your future include an extended visit to the Mattoon-Charleston area in Illinois? If so, please visit the premier corporate housing provider in East Central Illinois.

Mattoon Weather

The Mattoon-Charleston area's historical tornado activity is slightly above the average in Illinois.

On 3/20/1976, a category 4 (max. wind speeds 207-260 mph) tornado 31.8 miles away from the Mattoon city center injured 18 people and caused between $500,000 and $5,000,000 in damages.

On 7/11/1958, a category 3 (max. wind speeds 158-206 mph) tornado 11.0 miles away from the city center injured 3 people and caused between $5000 and $50,000 in damages.

More tornado facts:

The deadliest tornado ever was the 'Tri-State' tornado that passed through Missouri, Illinois and Indiana on March 18, 1925. During 3½ hours this tornado killed 695 people over a distance of 219 miles.

There are approximately 750 tornadoes annually in the US and they are measured and rated using the Fujita scale.

The average life-span of a tornado is approximately 15 minutes. It is, however, possible to last much longer. In 1917 (May 26) the Mattoon-Charleston Tornado lasted 7 1/2 hours while travelling 293 miles.

Tornadoes can and will travel in any direction, however, the majority of tornadoes travel from south-west to north-east.

Tornadoes can occur at any time of the year, although there usually is a peak in the Tornado Alley, the flat stretch of land from West Texas to North Dakota, during May and June.

The inside of the funnel contains extremely low pressure equal to the pressure difference between ground level and an altitude of 4,900 feet, causing the huge suction power.

A bridge is not a safe place to seek shelter from a tornado! Generally the confined space will increase the overall wind speed. If you you should be caught out in the open by a tornado with no nearby buildings to shelter in, lie in a ditch or the lowest possible area and protect your head and neck with your arms.

Tornadoes are transparent and appear so also in the early stages of development, but color is added when dust and debris are picked up.

Only 2% of tornadoes are classed as violent (F4 and F5), but these account for 70% of all tornado deaths. 70% of all tornadoes are weak (F0 and F1), and account for less than 5% of all tornado deaths.

50% of all fatalities from tornadoes occur amongst residents of mobile homes.

Mattoon-area's historical earthquake activity is near Illinois state average. It is 79% smaller than the overall U.S. average.

If you are moving to Mattoon, Illinois there are many details to take care of before you can settle down and relax in your new community. To assist you in doing so we have compiled a list of resources that you may need.

Electricity / Natural Gas (Electricity within city limits)
AmerenCIPS
701 South 9th Street, Mattoon
1-888-789-2477

Coles-Moultrie Electric Cooperative (Electricity only outside city limits in the Coles-Moultrie surrounding area)
104 DeWitt Ave. East
Mattoon, IL 61938
Phone: (217) 235-0341
Fax: (217) 234-8342

Water / Sewer
Mattoon Water & Sewer Department
208 N. 19th St.
Mattoon, IL 61938
(217) 235-5483

Telephone Service
Consolidated Communications
121 South 17th Street, Mattoon
AND Cross County Mall, Mattoon
1-800-553-9981

Mediacom
West Route 16, P.O. Box 288, Charleston
From Mattoon: (217) 235-7181

Cable Television
Consolidated Communications
121 South 17th Street, Mattoon
AND Cross County Mall, Mattoon
1-800-553-9981

Mediacom
West Route 16, P.O. Box 288, Charleston
From Mattoon: (217) 235-7181

Garbage / Trash Removal Services
Veolia ES Waste Services
6351 W. State St., P.O. Box 137, Charleston
345-7404

Home Living for Executives

Logan Place Suites

217 Logan Street, Mattoon

217-234-7368

Newspaper
Journal Gazette
100 Broadway Avenue, Mattoon
(217) 235-5656
www.jg-tc.com

Postal Service
Mattoon Post Office
120 N. 15th St, Mattoon
(217) 234-8836

Illinois Drivers Exam Station
2020 Charleston Ave., Mattoon
(217) 234-4040

Furnished Apartments

Logan Place Suites

217 Logan Street, Mattoon

217-234-7368

Library

Mattoon Public Library
1600 Charleston Ave.
Mattoon, IL 61938
(217) 234-2621

Corporate Housing

Logan Place Suites

217 Logan Street, Mattoon

217-234-7368

City Hall

City Hall
208 N. 19th St.
City Clerks Office (217) 235-5654
Mayor's Office (217) 234-4633
City Administrators Office (217) 235-5511

Coles County Court House
7th & Jackson Streets
Charleston, IL
(217) 258-0516

Chamber of Commerce

Mattoon Chamber of Commerce
500 Broadway Avenue
Mattoon, IL 61938
Phone: (217) 235-5661
Fax: (217) 234-6544
matchamber@consolidated.net

Welcome Center

Mattoon, IL 61938
(217) 258-6471
(217) 258-6286
tourism@mattoonillinois.org

Mattoon's Largest Employers

There are six employers in the Mattoon area with 500 or more employees according to the Chamber of Commerce.

The largest ones are: Eastern Illinois University, RR Donnelly, Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Care Center, Consolidated Communications, General Electric Plant and Mattoon School District. For a complete list click here.

Lake Land College is a community college located just south of Mattoon, Illinois.

The college was founded in 1966. At present time it serves about 7,400 students. The majority of them come from the east-central Illinois area.

Lake Land students commonly use their degrees for immediate employment, but many use the education as a stepping stone to prepare for a university education. Because of its nearby location and excellent education, Eastern Illinois University is often the destination for the continued studies.

The average age of the students is 25 3/4 years. 54% of the students are male and 46% are female.

Lake Land's academic programs include Agriculture, Allied Health, Business, Humanities, Math & Science, Technology,Social Science, and Education. Other courses include the Cisco Networking Academy, Computer Troubleshooting, Desktop Publishing Graphic Design, Physical Therapist Assistant, Radio-TV Broadcasting, Raster Geographic Information Systems, and Psychiatric Rehabilitation.

The 308 acre campus has seven major buildings and eight supportive buildings, and a 160 acre agriculture land laboratory. Additionally, Lake Land College features a child care lab, a cosmetology clinic, and a library.

The major buildings have a circular design and the campus is also designed as a large circle. The buildings are located in the center, with parking lots and park areas surrounding them.

Additionally, there are more than 150 online courses offered.

The Mad Gasser of Mattoon

Mattoon was the site of the "Mad Gasser" attacks of the 1940s.

The Mad Gasser of Mattoon was the name given to the person(s) believed to be responsible for a series of apparent gas attacks that occurred in Botetourt County, Virginia, during the early 1930s, and also in Mattoon, Illinois, during the mid-1940s.

He was also called the Anesthetic Prowler, the Mad Anesthetist, the Phantom Anesthetist, and the Mad Gasser of Roanoke.

It is, however, debated whether the attacks were anything more than a case of mass hysteria and if the individual reports were connected. No one seems to have the ultimate explanation for the events to supposedly happened during this time.

Most contemporary descriptions of the Mad Gasser are based on the testimony of Mr. and Mrs. Bert Kearney of 1408 Marshall Avenue, the victims of the first Mattoon case to be reported by the media. They described the gasser as being a tall, thin man dressed in dark clothing and a cap.
Another report, made some weeks later, described the Gasser as being a female dressed as a man.

The Gasser had also been described as carrying a flit gun, an agricultural tool for spraying pesticide, which he purportedly used to expel the gas.

Police increased nighttime patrols,in an attempt to catch the gasser. Citizens began to keep nightly watch. The City brought in State and Federal authorities to assist in the case.
However, no law enforcement and vigilantes could catch the phantom gasser.

There are three primary theories about the Mattoon Mad Gasser incident: mass hysteria, industrial pollution, or an actual criminal assailant.

The events have also been written about by numerous authors, resulting in a wide variety of interesting stories.

FutureGen in Mattoon

It appears that most Americans are not even aware of the FutureGen Initiative that is very likely to greatly improve the economy in the Mattoon – Charleston area in Illinois. This initiative will allow for coal-fired power plants to capture the most emissions of carbon dioxide, making it possible to use our over-abundance natural coal resources near the surface of the earth to produce electricity and doing it without, as previous production did, polluting the environment.

Henry Henderson, Midwest program director of the Natural Resources Defense Council, has stated that it is impossible to make a pollution-free coal plant but also said that FutureGen should represent a great improvement and will demonstrate the economic viability of such processes.

This project has never gotten much publicity outside of certain areas in Illinois and Texas. While numerous communities across the country bid for the chance to be the site of FutureGen, with the promise of new jobs and investment, the list of potential candidates was eventually was narrowed down to four communities.

The FutureGen project was something that the Bush Administration had included in the 2007 budget.

In late 2007 officials settled on Mattoon. However, the Bush administration almost immediately expressed its displeasure and shortly thereafter yanked all funding.

Then in June 2009, with a new president from Illinois and with new and different national policies on global warming and energy development, federal officials and an alliance of energy companies announced they were ready to restart FutureGen.

The idea is that sometimes when the government works with private enterprise they are able to accomplish a lot more with a lot less. This particular initiative is a result of what happens when government and free enterprise private sector partnerships come together to work on solving a problem and improve our country.

FutureGen is a public-private partnership to build a first-of-its-kind coal-fueled, near-zero emissions power plant. The FutureGen plant will cost approximately $1.5 billion to build. By useing cutting-edge technologies it will generate electricity while capturing and permanently storing carbon dioxide deep underneath the surface of the earth. Additionally, the plant will produce hydrogen and certain byproducts for possible use by other industries.

The Alliance currently plans to have a visitor's or education center at the FutureGen facility.

Mattoon's History

Early settlers from the South lived in forested areas along the Little Wabash River to the southwest of the present city. They distrusted the prairie because they saw it as the source of devastating fevers.

The history of Mattoon is tied to that of local railroads. In 1853, railroad surveyors from the Illinois Central Railroad and Terre Haute and Alton Railroad discovered that their respective railroads would be crossing in the Mattoon area. This resulted in a burst of investment and land speculation in the area. The two railroads raced to the meeting point with the understanding that the first one to arrive would not have to pay to maintain the crossing.

Local settlers marked out the plots for sale with pegs, and the village was originally known as "Pegtown."

In 1861, the town was officially named after William B. Mattoon, the chief construction engineer working for the Terre Haute and Alton Railroad. The reason for this honor is unclear. It may have been that he won the naming rights because his rail crew arrived there first. One story is that he beat other claimants in a card game. Some people believe that Pegtown residents were hoping the wealthy Mattoon would invest in the town if they named it after him.

With its combination of excellent transportation and remarkably fertile prairie soils, Mattoon expanded rapidly. By the dawn of the 20th century, Mattoon's growing population and rail access resulted in manufacturing and industry being brought in.
On the night before the Lincoln-Douglas debate of September 18, 1858 at the Coles County Fairgrounds, both Lincoln and Douglas had slept in nearby Mattoon.
On June 17, 1861, General Ulysses S. Grant took his first post of the American Civil War when he assumed command of the 21st Illinois Infantry in Mattoon.

In 1865, Amish settlers moved to a community to the north of Mattoon, near Arthur. Even today Amish farmstands and horse-drawn buggies are not uncommon sights in the northern part of Mattoon.

In the 1890s, Mattoon led the successful campaign to have a proposed college in eastern Illinois located in Coles County. The citizens were chagrined when neighboring Charleston was chosen as the home of the future Eastern Illinois University instead.

On May 26, 1917, the town was devastated by a tornado, which killed 101 people.
In 1940, the discovery of petroleum reserves in the countryside immediately surrounding Mattoon led to a small "oil boom" in the 1940s and 1950s, bringing with it economic benefits and increased civic pride. Oil extraction continues to be an important economic activity.

In 1966, Lake Land College was built just south of the city. The community college offers 2-year degrees for immediate employment and pre-university education.

Mattoon was home to several minor-league teams in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The last stadium, with a capacity of approximately 2,000 seats, was torn down in the late 1950s, but the city maintains a strong baseball tradition. Mattoon still has a thriving junior league and hosted many junior league regionals and World Series.

Mattoon - Home of Burger King

Mattoon is also known as the home to the "original" Burger King. Burger King is a restaurant owned by the Hoots family who claims it is the "original" Burger King. It is not related to the fast food chain Burger King; the 1968 court case between this restaurant and the larger Burger King is a well-known case in United States trademark law.

The court ruled that, because of the federal trademark registration, and because the federal law indicated priority over state law, Florida's Burger King had rights to the name almost everywhere in the United States, including in Illinois, except in the Mattoon area, where the Hoots family had prior actual use.

As a result of the case, the Hootses cannot use the name "Burger King" outside of the Mattoon area, and the Florida chain cannot use the name in the Mattoon area.

Welcome to Mattoon

Mattoon is a city in Coles County in Central Illinois. The population was 18,291 as of the 2000 census. It is a principal city of the Charleston–Mattoon Micropolitan Statistical Area and the future home of the proposed FutureGen project.

Traditionally a stronghold of manufacturing, Mattoon has been hurt by the loss of some major plants over the last couple of decades.

On December 18, 2007, Mattoon was chosen to be the official site of the U.S. Department of Energy's FutureGen zero emission power plant after an intense competition with several other sites, particularly in Illinois (including nearby Effingham) and Texas. The project will build a near zero-emissions coal-fueled power plant that intends to produce hydrogen and electricity while using carbon capture and storage.

In 2009, the America’s Power Factuality Tour stopped at Mattoon, IL to report on its role in generating electricity in the United States and wrote on its blog that "coal-based electricity facilities have made great strides in reducing nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide and other pollutants from ever being emitted into the air. In fact, when it comes to all regulated pollutants, coal plants are 77 percent cleaner in terms of emissions currently regulated under existing Clean Air Act programs per unit of energy produced. But what about carbon dioxide and other emissions? One answer (there are many!) is FutureGen, a public-private partnership to build the world's first near-zero emissions coal-based power plant. Mattoon is the best site in the entire country to build the plant, according to the U.S. Department of Energy, due to the surrounding geology."

After the opening of the Lender's Bagels factory in 1986, Mattoon declared itself the "Bagel Capital of the World." Mattoon is also home to the world's largest bagel and an annual summer event called "Lenders Bagelfest."