Bolingbrook, Ill.
When Bolingbrook Mayor Roger Claar was first appointed in 1986, he promised to bring more jobs and economic opportunity to the area. He kept that vow. Claar took the town’s 115,000 square feet of industrial, office, and manufacturing space, and grew it into a whopping 32 million. Companies like West Liberty Foods and Southern Wine and Spirits now operate out of this Chicago suburb.
Bolingbrook has a notably diverse population--this is a place where mosques and cricket fields are in equal supply. Sports are big here: there are several major golf courses in the area, the girls’ basketball team has won four state high school championships, and the town’s Rocket Ice Arena draws youth hockey players from throughout the Chicago area.
The downside: while Bolingbrook has some strong schools, there are a few that don't rate as highly as those in neighboring suburbs.