Park Ridge, La Grange or Berwyn? (Chicago, Cicero: condo, crime rate, new home)

[ksmc]

We are moving to Chicago.

We want a safe neighborhood, a nice town center (shops/restaurants), to be within 30-40 mins of Chicago, safe neighborhood, 4 bedroom house, can spend around $500,000.
Our child will likely be going to elementary school there...but I imagine we'll move before she gets to middle/high school.

I realize Park Ridge is near O'Hare. How bad is the noise? I know it's somewhat expensive too.

Berwyn- I've heard mixed reviews...some say it's dangerous...

La Grange- actually, I've only heard good things about it.

Thanks in advance!

[domergurl]

Of the 3, I liked LaGrange the best. Transportation was great by train. Park Ridge is very expensive, but still lovely. Stay away from Berwyn.

[ChampWSox05]

LaGrange, for sure. It's an upper-middle class suburb that is in a very convienient location to the city. Check it out. You will be very pleased.

[MMoreira]

I love Park Ridge. It defiantely has that small town feel. It has great schools and a quaint little shopping district! Property taxes are rather high and so are home prices. Good Luck!

MMoreira

[karabiner]

Park Ridge Yes, La Grange maybe, Berwyn no

[dumpstermcnuggets]

but i feel no choice other than i should, since i see the truth about Berwyn continues to be ignored and smeared on here. anyway, Berwyn is NOWHERE near as bad as people exaggerate it to be. in fact, i bet a lot of people are only blindly dissing it, since they may've heard negative word of mouth and have never been(or visited) this suburb, unlike me(who has many times in my life, and still does a few times a year). in fact, a lot of people from other western suburbs to the north have been considering Berwyn in recent years, due to being priced out of suburbs such as Oak Park and River Forest.

anyway, there are actually some very nice music clubs in this town, plus the downtown, centered along Oak Park Ave. and Burlington, is nice(plus has a hospital right in downtown, which is something many suburbs can't claim to have, other than Oak Park and a few others). it may not have all the upscale shops that towns to the west and north may have(such as Elmhurst, La Grange, and Oak Park-River Forest-Forest Park area), but its improved in recent years. yes, it does have a sizable hispanic population(and that the neighboring suburb to the east, Cicero, does have mild gang problems, but it has greatly decreased in the last few years and not as bad now), but that's no reason to overlook this suburb at all(it doesn't have the crime problems that certain other west and south suburbs have, such as Riverdale, Maywood, and Harvey). in fact, you'd probably get a lot more house for your money if you considered living in Berwyn over nearby suburbs. i'd consider this suburb to be slowly on the rise, similar to what a poster in another thread said about Blue Island(as i can see several parallels between Berwyn and Blue Island are like, minus the heavy train congestion of Blue Island).

[Opinion]

This is not advertisement for Berwyn or any other suburban town but I will offer my opinion as a resident of South Berwyn. I am a professional business owner and a father of 6. I have lived in Berwyn for 6 years (grew up on Chicago North side) and have seen many good changes. Housing is more affordable than LaGrange and Park Ridge so your money will go farther if you are interested in being able to save money. The schools in South Berwyn are good with respect to having teachers that care and communicate for the sake of your children. My neighbors are very friendly and we look out for each other. Owners take care of their property and home values have been on the rise. Brand new condo developments are starting to creep up and South Berwyn is close to the Metra stations. Now I agree that North Berwyn is less desirable and Cicero issues are creeping into that area; however, after years of political management by the previous administration, the new mayor is an independent politician who is making some positive changes in the city that may change the minds of many about the city in the near future.

[berwyn resident]

I have lived in South Berwyn for 11 years, the past seven as a homeowner. In general, housing prices have doubled since I purchased. It is unlikely that new homeowners would be willing to gamble with a $400,000+ investment if they thought the community was not viable and improving. Houses on every block are being rehabbed by new homeowners. Currently, there are three major condo projects under construction in Berwyn. Two are in South Berwyn and one is in North Berwyn. All are selling well. South Berwyn has concerned and friendly neighbors, quiet streets and excellent access to downtown Chicago. The commuter rail has three stops in South Berwyn which will get you downtown in 20 minutes or less all day long. In the past two years, concerned citizens have created an arts council and a group working to unify Berwyn's elementary and high schools. Voters just approved a referendum to sell bonds to improve Berwyn's parks. Residents and business owners in Downtown Berwyn have created an organization that sponsors an annual Octoberfest and Festival of Lights at Christmas, and farmer's markets and vintage car shows during the summer. Cermak Road, which runs through the middle of the city, was just named by the state as a "Main Street", eligible for state assistance to improve its look and the quality of its businesses. Finally, our property taxes are generally half of what homeowners in neighboring suburbs, such as Oak Park and Riverside, pay. I plan to continue residing in South Berwyn to welcome the many young, educated, and professional newcomers.

[BRU67]

Originally Posted by ksmc

We are moving to Chicago.

We want a safe neighborhood, a nice town center (shops/restaurants), to be within 30-40 mins of Chicago, safe neighborhood, 4 bedroom house, can spend around $500,000.
Our child will likely be going to elementary school there...but I imagine we'll move before she gets to middle/high school.

I realize Park Ridge is near O'Hare. How bad is the noise? I know it's somewhat expensive too.

Berwyn- I've heard mixed reviews...some say it's dangerous...

La Grange- actually, I've only heard good things about it.

Thanks in advance!

I'll join in on the Berwyn love here. My wife and I moved to Berwyn from Oak Park three years ago and we love it. Great access to transportation (Chicago and I-294 corridor), really cool houses (bungalows, victorians, etc.), plenty of things to do, and a good mix of city and suburban vibes.

As to the "bad schools," that isn't even true insofar as the elementary and middle schools are concerned. H.S. District 201? Well, ok, it definitely could be better, but Morton West is certainly a couple of steps above either of the Proviso schools.

And better schools are coming. Instead of simply complaining about the high school (or moving), a group of citizens formed an organization called C.A.R.E.S. (Citizens Aligned to Renew Education for Students) which is focused on improving the Berwyn's schools. They have made strides. This is another thing I really like about Berwyn. There are a lot of young people moving here who want to see the community move forward and actually go out and do things to make it happen. You don't see that in a lot of communities.

As to Berwyn being "dangerous," the crime rate is relatively low and, during my three years, I've not had a single problem. I would say Berwyn is definitely safer than south and east Oak Park.

LaGrange is a fantastic community but quite expensive. $500k will definitely put you in the lower tier of their housing stock. I do not know anything about Park Ridge so I cannot help you there.

Anyway, just my $.02. Where ever you choose, good luck to you!

[Suburwynite]

Hello everyone, new to this forum, but had to step in on this one. My wife and I had moved to Berwyn a few years ago after living in Oak Park... This seems to be a very popular trend lately. We looked at several near West suburbs for the best value, convenience and potential for our investment... Berwyn hit the nail on the head. We have had less problems than when we were living in Oak Park and we love our neighborhood. We never had the level of neighborhood interaction in Oak Park that we have found here. A great new Berwyn-based website created by a couple of residents is:
http://www.berwyninformer.com
Take a look and you will see some of the housing stock and the types of people that are moving to Berwyn. You will see a great number of artists and musicians. The local martini bar was also just featured on CLTV's Metromix. There is a lot of good happening in Berwyn these days. Berwyn is on the up-swing... this is not to say that some areas still have issues, but when you look at Forest Park 10 years ago and Oak Park 20 years ago, they were some very shady places to live... and now they are some of the most popular Chicago suburbs. North-side Berwyn seems to have a bad rap as a whole... but we also have good friends that have moved to that side of town and have great neighborhoods. But there are also parts of the North-side that we have steered our friends away from buying in. But North Berwyn is also seeing a lot of change due to huge condo developments on Roosevelt Road on the Oak Park side. I would just say take a look at the website before you rule Berwyn out.