Is buying a piece of land a good investment?

[Stephen Jones]

I currently live in an up and coming area in Illinois. It's about 20 minutes outside of St. Louis. There is a piece of land that I am interested in and I can get it for about 15k-17k lower than the initial asking price. Is this a reasonable purchase? My plan would be to buy, pay it off and either build on it or sell it down the road. Is this a reasonable purchase? Obviously taxes in Illinois scare me, so that is a bit of a downfall. Also, during the time we are currently in, cash flow is king. So maybe I should be thinking about investing my money elsewhere? Any feedback would be great. Thanks!