Recent thoughts on Chicago burbs

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would look in the city except:

I’m really not at all familiar with Chicago so don’t know what blocks to avoid.

We need the public schools.

Spouse wants a backyard and parking.

In that case, and with your budget, I would look at Lincoln Square, Roscoe Village, and parts of Lakeview and Lincoln Park. All would have backyard and parking. If you mean large backyard, then yeah, go to the burbs.

Chicago safety and schools go by neighborhood. You can research which school triangles will work. There are a lot of good public elementary options (goes k-8) and I understand it’s pretty feasible to get into selective enrollment public high schools, which are excellent. NPN is a similar listserv but for Chicagoland, although a subscription is required.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I grew up in Wilmette. No one moves there for vibrant nightlife or a bustling dining/retail scene. West Wilmette is ugly, but people disregard the ugliness because they want to be in the New Trier school district. People move to the east side because it is walkable to the train for an easy commute downtown, the houses are beautiful and spacious, it's right by the lake, and there are restaurants and shops to walk to in downtown Wilmette. You won't find shopping malls or big box stores like Target or Home Depot there -- that's part of the appeal.

Evanston- yes, there are seedy and dumpy parts. But there are ugly parts of TKPK and Arlington, too. Evanston can be rather stratified. Dumpy apartments just a mile down the road from $2 million dollar homes by the lake.

Oak Park- yes, the closer you are to Austin the scarier it gets. The best neighborhoods are west of Ridgeland and north of the train tracks. Taxes are outrageous there, yes.

It sounds like the city may be more your speed.

+1. I grew up there too - in West Wilmette. My parents grew up poor in not great neighborhoods. By the time I came along, my grandparents lived in better neighborhoods. My parents wanted us to go to NT and as pp said, that is pretty much why everyone bought in our neighborhood which was safe, happy and friendly. Some people had more money than others but no one really cared. I had an awesome childhood there. Some of my parents friends lived in newer bigger houses but I loved growing up in Wilmette. If we hadn’t moved out of state, I would have sent my kids to NT in a heartbeat. Check out Glencoe - not sure what your budget is but there are some homes on the west side that weren’t outrageous (granted, I haven’t lived there for years). They do have a west Wilmette vibe though. You also may want to check out homes in the Stevenson high school district although property taxes will be a lot higher (Lake County) and (if you are working downtown) your commute will be much longer).

[Anonymous]

Hi OP - former lincoln square (not park, right off the Montrose brown line stop) 5 year resident, but grew up in Arlington and live in Westover now (and the other option for buying we looked at was FCC) so I think I like a similar vibe and understand what you're looking for. I loved living in Chicago and in many ways it's a way better city than DC in my opinion (food is way better, public transport better, folks more laid back, it's a great place minus the weather in the winter). That being said, I always found the suburbs pretty meh too and I spent a good deal of time in them for my work.

Evanston is probably the most like Arlington, but there isn't really a small part that has that more homey westover feel and I agree it takes a long time to get to downtown. Oak park might align a little more with takoma park and I think it's easier to get into the city. I think that's what I'd recommend if you're definitely thinking suburbs. Yes it's very close to neighborhoods that have been historically marginalized, under funded etc so that is a reality. Schools are good, it has a little downtown that has some character, people generally seemed nice and easy commute. I guess this isn't that helpful as you already knew of these areas, but just providing my opinion.

If you start to delve into the city I definitely think the Lincoln square general area (can expand a little from there not just the exact definition of lincoln square but those brown line stops up there from irving to rockwell) would be a sweet spot for you. Easy to get downtown, great restaurants, low key, yards and parking. But prices are high and you're definitely looking at figuring out high school through magnet programs etc from what I understand in most places which can be stressful though I think there are good options (I didn't have kids then so not helpful on that front).

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks for all the opinions and advice. I really know next to nothing about Chicago, so it’s weird making long term life choices based on so little. Interesting so many mention Lincoln Park, I early on honed in on that area as one I might be interested in if we lived in the city itself. I ruled it out because as I understand it:

-Chicago Public Schools aren’t based on geography alone, and we would have to roll the dice on a lottery system... Is that right?
-The commute is actually longer to downtown than it would be from Oak Park. Seems weird because Oak Park is further away... This info is based on Google and reading that the brown line is apparently terribly slow. Please tell me if I’m wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for all the opinions and advice. I really know next to nothing about Chicago, so it’s weird making long term life choices based on so little. Interesting so many mention Lincoln Park, I early on honed in on that area as one I might be interested in if we lived in the city itself. I ruled it out because as I understand it:

-Chicago Public Schools aren’t based on geography alone, and we would have to roll the dice on a lottery system... Is that right?
-The commute is actually longer to downtown than it would be from Oak Park. Seems weird because Oak Park is further away... This info is based on Google and reading that the brown line is apparently terribly slow. Please tell me if I’m wrong.

Yes you are wrong about CPS being lottery. It is very much neighborhood based. I live in Chicago and buying in the city. There are many neighborhoods with good elementary/ middle options including lincoln square, lakeview, north center, andersonville, logon square. You can also live in River North, Streeterville, and South/ West Loop.

Brown line isn't too bad. My husband used it to commute and people actually like it more than the red line, which is def creepier.

[Anonymous]

I’m a little bit confused because what you say you’re looking for doesn’t line up with your comments on what you didn’t like. It sounds like you’re looking for racial diversity (Evanston, Oak Park, Takoma Park), but are turned off by socioeconomic diversity (seedy, undesirable neighborhoods). But those two are generally a package deal - you’re not going to get one without the other, in DC or Chicago.

If you want a less residential neighborhood, parts of the city may be a better bet. I second the folks who recommended Lincoln Square (which is not the same as Lincoln Park). Just know that there is definitely a housing premium on the “good” city school districts, so expect to pay for it. While you will find good schools in the city, other family friendly public services like libraries and park districts will be infinitely better in the suburbs.

If you want to be close in and have actual diversity, Evanston and Oak Park are your best bets. It sounds like that’s not really what you want, though. I grew up in Evanston in an area that was not really walkable to anything. I agree that Wilmette’s tiny downtown is not where you’ll go to shop for anything, but when we lived in Wilmette, our kids could walk or bike to school, the library, the beach, the pool, the skating rink, and several restaurants, including bakeries and ice cream shops. It was a great place to raise independent kids.

[Anonymous]

Ditto LaGrange or Elmhurst -- and take the Metra to work. If you like Oak Park look at River Forest too. All awesome towns to live in. The Chicagoland area has Metra from the suburbs (and express Metra trains to downtown are fast and easy from these towns), and the El within the city. If you work in the Loop (main downtown area) you'd mostly walk from the train station to your office.

[Anonymous]

Chicago has a unique system of "selective admissions schools" that start right from kindergarten. If you are fortunate enough to get your kids into such a program it may not be necessary to utilize private schools BUT there are very large numbers of applicants for a relatively tiny number of slots, together with a narrow window of application, and criteria including where you live and what you earn, so it is far from easy to plan on this option.

Depending on the kind of school your kids go to, and how many kids you have, it can be exhausting dealing with the need to get your kids to schools on opposite sides of the city. For people lucky enough to get their kids into top public schools in Chicago the payoff might include a very real shot at a scholarship to a highly selective school.

The downside is that for folks that do make it into the selective admissions CPS options the city high schools are notoriously undesirable. Private school can cost nearly as much as college, if you have two or more kids that are in private high school it is an insane budget buster!

Funny thing, with excellent rail transportation there are many nice suburbs that make it just as fast to get to a job in the Loop as you would face commuting via CTA from many parts of the city. The relatively compact layout of the whole region means it is pretty easy to take advantage of museums and cultural opportunities in Chicago from any well located suburb. In most suburbs your housing dollar will go farther, especially when you factor in things like an actual backyard kids can play in, park districts that offer sports and after school programs, very high level of safety and excellent quality of life.

There are several suburbs with highly walkable layout where kids can and do walk to local shops, restaurants, parks and schools with far less concern for their safety than they do in even the nicest parts of the city. The number of city neighborhoods where any school aged child could be expected to make it unaccompanied around a similar radius is quite small.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Chicago has a unique system of "selective admissions schools" that start right from kindergarten. If you are fortunate enough to get your kids into such a program it may not be necessary to utilize private schools BUT there are very large numbers of applicants for a relatively tiny number of slots, together with a narrow window of application, and criteria including where you live and what you earn, so it is far from easy to plan on this option.

Depending on the kind of school your kids go to, and how many kids you have, it can be exhausting dealing with the need to get your kids to schools on opposite sides of the city. For people lucky enough to get their kids into top public schools in Chicago the payoff might include a very real shot at a scholarship to a highly selective school.

The downside is that for folks that do make it into the selective admissions CPS options the city high schools are notoriously undesirable. Private school can cost nearly as much as college, if you have two or more kids that are in private high school it is an insane budget buster!

Funny thing, with excellent rail transportation there are many nice suburbs that make it just as fast to get to a job in the Loop as you would face commuting via CTA from many parts of the city. The relatively compact layout of the whole region means it is pretty easy to take advantage of museums and cultural opportunities in Chicago from any well located suburb. In most suburbs your housing dollar will go farther, especially when you factor in things like an actual backyard kids can play in, park districts that offer sports and after school programs, very high level of safety and excellent quality of life.

There are several suburbs with highly walkable layout where kids can and do walk to local shops, restaurants, parks and schools with far less concern for their safety than they do in even the nicest parts of the city. The number of city neighborhoods where any school aged child could be expected to make it unaccompanied around a similar radius is quite small.

This is true about "selective enrollment" schools K-12 in chicago. Many are gifted magnets and you have to test in and they are excellent. But, there are also really good K-8 neighborhood public schools you have a right to attend if you live in boundary. Lincoln, Blaine, Bell, Burley, Ogden to name a few. Then there are quite a few selective enrollment / magnet high schools. My friends who have remained in the city have largely done neighborhood k-8 and selective enrollment HS. We moved to the burbs. There are so many great burbs with great schools, total neighborhood feel with tons walkable or bike able for kids which is great for their independence, and nice people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I grew up in Chicagoland and Oak Park is the only place I’d consider living too if I wasn’t in the city. The property taxes are CRAZY. And houses are on the market because Illinois as a state is a complete dumpster fire and people are leaving to move to Indiana. Indiana? Yes, Indiana.

+1 Former Oak Park Resident and overall really enjoyed living there but yes, taxes are nuts. We paid more than $12k a year with a 400k condo. You'd probably make out better just renting!

[Anonymous]

M

[Anonymous]

LaGrange.

Or River Forest.

The nicer parts that of the burbs you discount in your OP are completely equivalent to Takoma Park. With Evanston, add in an awesome
College town and the lake. I moved to DC from Chicago (fancier suburb than Arlington or TP or any of the Chi ones you mentioned), then years living in the city of Chicago n Lincoln Park and Old Town) and, ironically, I thought TP and Arlington were seedy!

[Anonymous]

PP here. The chicago suburbs are so much better than the DC burbs. You should be able to find something you like. If not on an el line, look at the Metra schedule. Express trains get you to the loop in record time. Commuting here is way easier from further out.

[Anonymous]

Wimette isn't seedy...

[Anonymous]

We just moved to the north shore from Alexandria. We have family here. But so far it’s SO much nicer than any DC suburbs I’ve seen (lived in DC metro for 15 years). Plus public schools are great more consistently across the suburban Chicago area unlike the DC suburbs. We chose a suburb on the north shore further out than Wilmette but with the express metra trains, I’m in the center of the city in 30 minutes. If you want that mix of urban suburban, Evanston is probably your best bet. It has diversity which is what O guess you are calling ‘seedy’. But you can’t really have that urban fee if you don’t like the seedy diversity...