Is the North Shore still regarded prestigious? (Chicago, Waukegan: how much, townhomes)

[reppin_the_847]

Part of one's decision of where to live may revolve around commute time. Like some people mentioned here, there are upscale homes in ALL of these regions (whether North Shore, Northwest suburbs, or Western suburbs/DuPage, etc.). If I was a doctor and I practiced medicine in Aurora, I sure as hell wouldn't want to be commuting from Lake Forest. I'd probably get a home in one of Naperville's upscale areas or Hinsdale/Oak Brook/Burr Ridge. If I needed a quick commute to Hoffman Estates, I'd try to stick close to the Barringtons. If I worked in the Loop and wanted a suburban locale (not the city, so no Lincoln Park or Gold Coast, etc.), well yeah I'm biased towards the North Shore, so I'd probably take Wilmette or something near it (ie. northeast Evanston near Central St or Winnetka). If I worked along Lake-Cook Road (and had a lot of money to spend on a home), I'd probably look anywhere in the North Shore, or north/northwest suburbs. Glencoe, Highland Park, Lake Forest, Northbrook, Riverwoods, Glenview, etc. all could be fair game. If I worked in Waukegan, I'd probably look in Lake Forest or Lake Bluff.

[BUalumni]

Originally Posted by rgb123

wow....you have to be pretty insecure about your location if you have to compare the wealthy suburbs in dupage to the poorest ones of lake county, deliberatley leaving the wealthier ones off your very subjective list....

anyway, the word "prestigious" means something different to a lot of people (apparently) and frankly, some of them seem to be attracted to personal rock climbing walls in big, newer suburbs (dare I say new money) and some are attracted to the more .....traditional, older addresses where you can live next door to a poor person (probably the old workmans quarters) and try to blend in, while bragging about your wealth only at charity functions with your rich friends.

Or something along those lines.....

I think one side has a hard time understanding the other...anyway....and the more that times change the more these two groups blend.

Noticed that too. The heavy hitters in the NS aren't even listed, and I question the validity of some of those numbers from the WB.

[Joe107]

Originally Posted by BUalumni

When did I ever hint at the fact that Peoria is better than Naperville?! There isn't even a valid comparision. And yes Naperville does have more incommon with Peoria and Bloomington than the North Shore suburbs. Income is not the only determining factor when comparing cities. I was speaking in terms of size, and attractions. Most North Shore towns are very small compared to Naperville, and offer far less. Yes Peoria is not gaining in terms of population, but that is why Peoria has a metro area, which if you include Bloomington/Normal and the small towns around it, is well over 500K, which is bigger than some of the biggest cities in the midwest. Yes, Peoria might not pack a big punch when it comes down to personal income. But take a look at towns like Germantown Hills, Morton, Dunlap, Washington, Tremont, Normal, and Bloomington. These are very well to do areas that can hold their own against the suburbs anyday when it comes down to the things that the suburbs hold dear. Also, remember that Peoria is a very interesting place in the sense that it is a city that big buisness look at to see what it happening in America. As we all have heard America is loosing the middle class in almost every major city. Peoria mirrors this prefectly and has been predicting this for the past twenty years. The middle class is shrinking in Peoria, and as a result you see many areas that hold million dollar homes, just down the road from ghetto. Not to be rude, but where do the western burbs get off attacking Peoria. Have you heard of cities like Elgin, Aurora, and Joliet?! Talk about cities that would be dumps if Chicago wasn't right next door.

Where do you get off thinking that I am trying to pump Peoria up either? Do you feel that way because I said that Naperville tends to be a running joke down here? Well, I'm sorry, but that is just the way it is. Peoria and Bloomington are actual cities that have a long Illinois history, and well, act like cities. Naperville is a suburb. Nothing more! It doesn't even have anything close to a skyline. Heck, it doesn't even have a mall! It has grown because of Chicago and not because the city itself has had to really try very hard to bring people in. Look at Plainfield, Illinois. What has that town done to attract people? Peoria, and Bloomington still has plenty of room to grow. Naperville does not. In fact, the reasons behind Bloomington's growth have past. But people are still flocking to the city. When you say that the western suburbs are growing, I assume that you are speaking that towns like Plainfield and Joliet. Plainfield is nothing but cookie-cutter sprawl that is more than likely the overflow from Naperville, and Joliet is one of the junkiest cities in the state. If you are speaking of those towns like Wasco and Elburn than I wouldn't be proud of that fact. It is sad to think that Chicago has become so bad that people now have to live almost two hours from downtown. Hope this can clear some misconceptions up.

Not to be rude, but where do the western burbs get off attacking Peoria. Have you heard of cities like Elgin, Aurora, and Joliet?!

Why do you keep referring to towns that aren't in the western suburbs??

Elgin -northwest suburb
Aurora-southwest suburb
Joliet far southwest suburb

[Joe107]

According to the 2000 US Census, poverty rates of the largest counties from least poverty to most are

Dupage 5.90%
Lake 6.90%
Cook 14.50%.

[BUalumni]

Originally Posted by Joe107

According to the 2000 US Census, poverty rates of the largest counties from least poverty to most are

Dupage 5.90%
Lake 6.90%
Cook 14.50%.

You are so far off the mark if you are trying to say that the NS has poverty because it may lie in Cook County. Have you taken a trip through Chicago? That is why Cook County is poverty stricken. Cook County residents should be happy to have some of the NS in its boundaries. If it didn't that number would be much higher.

[Joe107]

One weakness of Dupage is lack of diversity

%White
78.70% Dupage
73.40% Lake
47.60% Cook

Unemployment Rate

Dupage 4.90%
Lake 5.50%
Cook 6.60%

Median Income

Dupage $70,560.00
Lake $68,744.00
Cook $48,950.00

People 25 or older with bachelor's degree or higher

Dupage 41.70%
Lake 38.60%
Cook 28%

[Windy City John]

closer to the lake the bigger your wallet should be-- 20-30% higer than western suburbs in general.

[BUalumni]

Interesting! A thread in the general forum section, combined a list of what they believed were the most "glamorous" (aka prestigious) places in the nation. The North Shore was listed of course. This person does not appear to be from Chicago, and only knows of the North Shore because of it's known title. This is why the North Shore still regarded as pretigious. The title of presitgious, a title that by the way followes the queen of Enlgand, is something that comes with age, time, and extreme positive character. Someone that has never even been there, listed it above Chicago's West Burbs. Why? Because the general public doesn't hold it to the same standard as the North Shore. Most have never heard of Bolingbrook and St. Charles, Illinois. Cities like St. Charles are too new for this title. Yes they may have houses that rival Lake Forest's. Great! So don't places I have seen around every metro area! I wonder if people that are posting here have ever been to other cities. St. Charles, regardless of everything that it has, is duplicated over and over again in New York, LA, Atlanta, Houston, San Francisco, Seattle, and so forth. There are few places that have the old extensive neighborhoods that are in the North Shore and aren't havens for the citie's crime lords.

[Steve-o]

Originally Posted by BUalumni

Cities like St. Charles are too new for this title

The city was started in 1839 for Petes sake, how is that "new"? Money has been in St. Charles for a looooong time. Whats funny is that, wealthy as most of St. Charles is, its hardly near the top of the wealthy west burb list.

[BUalumni]

Originally Posted by Steve-o

The city was started in 1839 for Petes sake, how is that "new"? Money has been in St. Charles for a looooong time. Whats funny is that, wealthy as most of St. Charles is, its hardly near the top of the wealthy west burb list.

The growth that St. Charles has seen is indeed "new." A huge portion of that city are homes that have been built within the last ten years. Compare that to the old estates in North Shore, and you see what I mean. I choose to use St. Charles because it is smaller than some of the other, more populated burbs, therefore, has a greater chance of being compared to the North Shore burbs. Wouldn't that make sense?? Would you really want me using Aurora as the definition of West Burb success story? At the same time, a large portion of St. Charles, along Randall Rd., is nothing but hideous strip mall heaven and cookie cutter townhouses. You took the pictures, you should know. That is not something that you find in the North Shore. Only further making my argument more solid that St. Charles could fit into any major metro, while Kenilworth and its counterparts are very different and singular to the upscale Chicago experience.