St. Charles (Chicago, Naperville, Schaumburg: sales, assessor, home)

[shamrock847]

I'm not convinced the east side commute is so much better. I think a lot of people are assuming a west side commute would involve driving across town which would certainly add a lot of time and pain to the commute.

In reality, a commute from the newer subdivisions on the NW side of St. Charles would involve heading north on Randall and then E on I-90. They would not have to deal with as many lights or slower side streets as an east side commuter would, so if they are able to make decent speed on this route it very well could be faster.

It depends on the specific times and locations the OP is commuting though.

[chet everett]

...then they should also be taking a look at South Elgin, Long Grove, Barrington, Inverness, Lake Zurich, Deer Park, Kildeer and other towns that would be just as far. Of course very few large lots in any of those areas are convenient to any of the traditional features that makes the core of Barrington or St. Charles attractive and it is vanishingly impossible to find a full acre that would be in the OP's budget -- throw in the dissatisfaction with older / non-updated homes and this sort of search goes from "needle in a haystack" to "unicorn hunt"...


I mean in all seriousness if someone wants an acre +/- lot and people suggest suggest something that is only 15,000 sq ft that is a BIG difference -- like a missing 2/3 of acre!! 43,560 sq ft is a whole bunch of land. Heck 21,780 is awfully hard to find dedicated to a single home within a reasonable distance of Schaumburg. There are a multitude of people perfectly happy to have a well laid out quarter acre and they routinely buy homes far above the OP's price point so realistic perspective is needed.

Originally Posted by shamrock847

I'm not convinced the east side commute is so much better. I think a lot of people are assuming a west side commute would involve driving across town which would certainly add a lot of time and pain to the commute.

In reality, a commute from the newer subdivisions on the NW side of St. Charles would involve heading north on Randall and then E on I-90. They would not have to deal with as many lights or slower side streets as an east side commuter would, so if they are able to make decent speed on this route it very well could be faster.

It depends on the specific times and locations the OP is commuting though.

[cubssoxfan]

Nothing against St. Charles or Fox Valley. VERY pretty area. I am biased against long commutes. I feel they are unneccesary, wasteful and under-estimated. Then if the job shifts and OP needs to commute into the Loop or elsewhere, they are not situated very well and a "45" minute commute becomes an hour and 15 minutes, or longer. That's a lot of wasted time. There are so many desirable communities with good schools and family facilities, that it is just questionable in my mind.

[greytones]

OP - I don't mean to hijack this thread, but what you are looking for is exactly what I am looking for, except only on the west side of the river. Can anyone recommend a good subdivision/neighborhood on the west side of the river? I work in the Geneva area and we too noticed how much more we could get in St. Charles, along with the acreage on the west side. Does anyone have any suggestions? How far west is too far?
Heck, this may help OP as well.

[gardener34]

OP: I just drove past this subdivision off of route 31 called The reserve of St. Charles. North of Crane Rd. Looked pretty nice to me, it is right by St. Charles North. Also if you are looking acreage, there is some stuff off of Crane rd west of 31... but that is getting to be a farther commute into Schaumburg now. If you need acreage, and like horses, Wayne is always a good bet. I like that town a lot. It is also in Dupage county.

greytones: If you work in Geneva, you could go into campton hills too. Can you always plan to be in Geneva? Or could you get laid off and not be working in Geneva at some point? Geneva does have a train, as do Lafox and Elburn directly west of there. If you need train access.

[ProgMichael]

Also, commute from west side of STC will probably be a lot easier once the Red Gate Road bridge is completed (mid-December). Also, taking IL-31 up to Stearns Road is an option as well. So I wouldn't rule out the west side.

[gardener34]

yeah, that red gate bridge may make it easier. The stearns bridge has definitely improved things esp getting over to 59.

[madpaddy]

Originally Posted by ProgMichael

Also, commute from west side of STC will probably be a lot easier once the Red Gate Road bridge is completed (mid-December). Also, taking IL-31 up to Stearns Road is an option as well. So I wouldn't rule out the west side.

Yeah, commute to Shaumburg would seem to be pretty reasonable from the northwest side, even more so after the new bridge. Get to Bartlett via Sterns, then catch the Elgin/Ohare expressway.

[chet everett]

While I agree that currently traffic volumes between the "start" of the Elgin-O'Hare and it's end are not too bad I would worry that the hassles of dealing with its expansion will really add to traffic headaches -- when the work is done I fear that the total volume of traffic will increase and travel times may not really be all that much better that in current configuration. The directness of having an alternative to surface streets is not a bad thing, but I would not really bank on it be a time savings...

I also have to really question what sorts of trade-offs folks like the OP are really willing to accept -- the charming core of St. Charles (which I agree is quite lovely and even fairly bustling with entertainment options for residents...) is not really convenient if you're on the NW edge of town, and even the Randall corridor is a notorious traffic mess that is far away from any bridge and unlikely to get better...

To the poster that does work in the Fox River Valley the decision about where they'll be most able to balance work and other demands is MUCH easier though traffic pinch points even along 31 are a pretty long standing reason that the kinds of highway improvements like the Elgin-O'Hare (or even the outer ring bypass highway) are still hoped for -- there just is no room to improve the riverside traffic flow.

Originally Posted by madpaddy

Yeah, commute to Shaumburg would seem to be pretty reasonable from the northwest side, even more so after the new bridge. Get to Bartlett via Sterns, then catch the Elgin/Ohare expressway.

[madpaddy]

Originally Posted by chet everett

even the Randall corridor is a notorious traffic mess that is far away from any bridge and unlikely to get better...

Huh? Red Gate bridge will be just a bit over a mile from Randall road. And the traffic's not that bad between 64 and South Elgin. South of 64 it gets worse in a hurry.