Live the Dream!

Catch the Spirit...

Our mission to be a city of and for

progress.

 We welcome residents, business, and visitors into our community with open arms.

We strive to be a great place to live, work and worship.

 With approximately 22,000 vehicles passing through daily, we hope to give reason for more of them to stop and enjoy everything we have to offer.

 We are a city for positive change.

 Catch the Spirit! Live the Dream!

Mission Statement

Economic Development

learn more about newton...

The City of Newton, Illinois is located at the junction of Illinois Routes 130 and 33. Each of these state routes carries over 8,000 vehicles through the community each day (Traffic Count Map). The City of Newton is located 20 miles north of Olney, Illinois; 23 miles east of Effingham, Illinois; 19 miles south of Greenup, Illinois; and 24 miles west of Robinson, Illinois.

Newton had an estimated 2012 population of 2,863 and an estimated 1,226 households. However, the City of Newton businesses and service providers are frequented by a much larger population. Through the use of Reilly’s Law of Retail Gravitation and local information on consumer shopping patterns, the determined Primary Trade Area (Primary Trade Area Map) includes consumers residing within a 12-mile radius from the center of the downtown area (which includes the majority of Jasper County). This larger population included an estimated 9,557 people within 3,857 households in 2012. The median age of this population was 43.1 years and per capita income was $20,983. Nearly 75% of households owned their homes with a median home value of $120,256. 

The local economy is driven largely by agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting (NAICS 11), which is not surprising due to the three state recreation areas, several privately-owned fishing/hunting businesses and large agricultural-base found in Jasper County. This sector accounts for 7.49% of all employment in the county, which makes Jasper County unique when comparing it to other neighboring counties and to the State of Illinois. Two hundred and thirty-two businesses are classified in this industry sector, employing over 400 people (in the Primary Trade Area: 218 businesses; 405 employees).

In 2012, over 2,447 full and part time jobs were available in the county. The average yearly earnings per job (at a median wage) were $35,993. In comparing wages paid to workers in Jasper County to those paid to workers in the East Central Illinois nonmetropolitan area (includes Clark,Clay, Coles, Crawford, Cumberland, Douglas, Edgar, Effingham, Fayette, Iroquois, Jasper, Lawrence, Marian and Richland counties), Jasper County has a higher average median wage than the region as a whole.

The largest employer in the City of Newton is Jasper County Unit #1 Schools. The local manufacturers and utility companies also provide a large number of jobs within the community. The majority of the businesses found in Newton, and within the TIF District, are locally-owned businesses or “mom-and-pop” shops. Some of these thriving businesses have been a part of Newton for more than 100 years and serve as the lifeblood of the community.

Franchises and/or nationally-branded stores are present in the City as well. The City has been successful in sustaining three automotive dealerships (Dodge-Chrysler, Ford, and Chevrolet-Buick) and three implement dealerships (Case International, John Deere, and New Holland).  This cluster of dealerships makes Newton a
regional hub for auto and implement purchases and services that benefits not
only these businesses but all others as well. Consumers travel greater
distances to have access to the variety and selection this provides them. The
City also has nationally/regionally recognized stores including Dollar General,
IGA, ALCO, Hardee’s, Dairy Queen and Subway. 

Currently the State of Illinois includes several types of taxes within its tax structure, but the majority of its collections come from income and sales tax. The State currently imposes a 6.25% tax on the sale and use of tangible personal property. Of this, 5% is the share that supports state programs and 1.25% is collected for and distributed back to local governments. Besides sales tax revenue, local government’s biggest revenue source is from local property tax. In the fiscal year ending on April 30, 2013, the City of Newton had property tax revenue of $594,075 and sales & use tax revenue of $712,373. According to the Illinois Department of Revenue’s records, 293 entities pay sales tax to the City of Newton. Newton had a steadily increasing growth in sales tax collections until 2010,when it hit a decline which was caused by the national financial crisis. The economy has recovered from the decline and is projected for continual growth. The projected sales tax revenue for 2014 is $725,000.