Possible relocation to Evanston

[skipcromer]

Originally Posted by Windy City John

Just curious Skip-- what is your impression of little five points and buckhead in Atlanta?

I haven't been around 5 points much, only once or twice. I live in buckhead and think it is a pretty good area. However it is being turned into all high end condos which is not my thing.

As far as your earlier posts regarding the size issue. I have no problem with the size of Atlanta. However, the city of Atlanta has no nucleus. There are not neighborhoods the way you would find in cities such as St. Louis and Chicago. The city just grew too quickly in my opinion. Mass transit is a joke. Combine that with poor road planning (no grid system) and you have horrendous traffic anywhere at anytime.

I have never been to Evanston but have been to Chicago many times and love it just as much as St. Louis. The brick buildings have a culture to them that you don't see in Atlanta. Also, I love the fact that I can hop on a train and go to most points in the city. One of my big concerns is parking. Even though I probably would not be driving it much, I would like to keep my jeep with me.

I appreciate all the info you guys have given me. Any additional advice would aso be appreciated.

Skip

[skipcromer]

Originally Posted by DonkeyTeeth

Evanston is definitely about as urban as you can get without actually being in the Chicago city limits. However, the downtown is compact and definitely caters to the college crowd. The nightlife mostly consists of loud, crowded watering holes. If you're looking for big high-energy dance clubs or more relaxed corner bars, you may be disappointed. The restaurant and shopping scenes are great. I won't be as harsh as the other posters, but if you truly hate sprawl of any kind Chicago may turn you off. The city and area are geographically huge, and even though many burbs have nice downtowns, many off them are also include seemingly endless retail strips. If your career or life put you in a situation where it won't be practical or affordable to live in Evanston or Chicago, you should really check out the area in general to see what you think.

I think i need to clarify my point of urban sprawl. While I do understand Chicagoland is huge, there is still a nucleus to it. I cant really explain what i mean. Does that make any sense?

[Don Vito]

I personally felt the nightlife in "E town" was, for lack of a better word "dull" for a college town. It reminded me of Princeton in New Jersey or Palo Alto (Stanford)in California.