SIUE Location Ranks Third in Top 15 U.S. Safe and Affordable Communities
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is located in the city of Edwardsville that just received a high ranking for being most affordable and safe. As mentioned by both KMOV’s First Alert 4 news broadcast and the Belleville News-Democrat, the report in the finance publication GoBankingRates ranks the Midwestern city third in its list of top 15 safest and affordable in the United States.
The article published May 3 describes Edwardsville as having a population of more than 25,000 residents and low crime rates at 5.5 per 1,000 residents.
Bill Retzlaff, PhD, Vice Chancellor for Administration who supervises the SIUE Police Department, states: “As a member of the Edwardsville community, SIUE is committed to the safety of students, staff and employees as well as all visitors on campus. SIUE is proud to be part of a community that was just recognized as being affordable and safe.”
The report also claims citizens of Edwardsville have annual expenditures of $20,965 and shares, “You’ll pay only about $431 a month for groceries.”
The state of Illinois claimed three spots in the top 15. The study gathered data for its findings from multiple databases for crime rates and costs of living. A commonality in places to live among the lead contenders were Midwest locations with populations ranging from 20,000 to 40,000.
Sources for the reported data include Neighborhood Scout, Sperling’s Best Places, U.S. News and World Report and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
PHOTOS: SIUE Campus Police; Photos by Howard Ash