Evanston- I am getting a negative vibe- why? (Chicago, Wilmette: real estate, apartment)

[cattycat]

Evanston is a great suburb
1) there is not as much crime as I see other posts state

2) there is much more diversity in Evanston than other northshore suburbs

3) it is pretty urban in feel and lifestyle

4) we have the lake, northwestern and 85 restaurants

5) it's an active community in every sense of the word

6) the downtown area with condos and access to public transportation would be a great situation for a single person

Evanston is a great place to live
(there is not a lot of poverty and crime- I have lived here my whole life, save college and grad school)

[Lookout Kid]

Originally Posted by Joe107

Crime is very high in evanston compared to other suburbs in Chicago

Poverty seems very high

Median income seems very low $58,940

Bologna! There are a couple of pockets of poverty in Evanston. That and the fact that THOUSANDS of college students live there brings the median income lower (yes, they are counted in all census data!). Crime is a tiny bit higher than other suburbs, but it's still a very safe community if you stay away from the small pockets of poverty. Evanston's crime rate isn't really that much higher than Schaumburg's, for instance.

Evanston is a wonderful suburb. If you want an isolated enclave of prosperity, perhaps other North Shore suburbs will suit your sorry self better. But Evanston has much to offer several different lifestyles, from rich executives to college students to urban condo dwellers to a shrinking number of low-to-working class residents. I'd buy a house in Evanston right away if I could find anything I liked for under $500K! My issue is that I don't start liking the houses until you get into the $700K range, and that's just not in my budget.

[Ophidian14]

Originally Posted by Nysee53

Your roomate could take the Edens South and then get on the Kennedy and be in Elk Grove Village in a short amount of time when all the construction is done.

Ha!! I don't think so. That's an hour trip EASY, probably more like 1:15+ in rush hour.

Google Maps says to basically take Golf the whole way, and I tend to agree, but it's still going to be an hour ride...

[chet everett]

Finally, some one else who understands the reality of trying to commute WEST from Evanston... Elk Grove Village is a SOLID 18-25+ miles via any combination of surface streets/expressways/tollways. If there is NO other traffic it would be a blessing to make the trip in anything under an hour. Throw in typical summer traffic congestion/tie ups/road construction OR winter related snow slow downs and accidents that trip ZOOMS to something over 90 minutes.

btw there has NEVER been a direct route from southbound Edens to westbound Kennedy, even using the Cicero/Foster Ave exit is a questionable effort, as that is a well known "bottleneck" and exactly the kind of "we don't want you driving through here" sort of route that is common when trying to get from Evanston west...

[Steve-o]

Evanston? Who hates Evanston? Beautiful city in most spots, the lighthouse, the beaches, the lakefront, the architecture, the school, etc. I LOVE Evanston!

[ShampooBanana]

You'd honestly probably be better off in Park Ridge, Niles, Glenview, or Mt. Prospect since you'd have much better access to 90 or 294/94 and a much easier commute. They are all still pretty nice communities and you still wouldn't be too far from Chicago if and when you'd want to downtown or elsewhere.

[Lookout Kid]

Evanston is better for those who commute into the city.

[LakeShoreSoxGo]

Evantson has some sketchy area's compared to other north shore communities.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by Lookout Kid

Evanston is better for those who commute into the city.

There are still a fair amount of jobs in towns like Skokie, Niles, DesPlaines, Park Ridge, Rosemont and Evanston itself. Granted many of the firms that used to have offices in those towns have gone further north and/or west, but the commute via car into towns that are contiguous to Evanston is obviously going to be a lot more tolerable than something miles away. You try getting north of about Wilmette or much west of 294 and the pain really grows.

[Keith S]

Evanston is another North Shore dump. Parking is terrible, taxes are ridiculous and the crime is out of hand. If you're a mooch you'll love the area, they have all types of social programs for people to lazy to work, that's where your tax dollars go. The bonus you receive from having all these services is that the people that use them also like to commit crime, it's their right to take your stuff and damage your property, don't let anyone tell you other wise. Don't concern yourself with the high number of rapes or murders or the hand gun ban these are all a small price to pay to live in the North Shore's arm pit. If it comes as any consolation the whole State of Illinois has been going to hell for many years, it's not just Evanston, although for me Evanston would be one of the last places I would live again (I lived there for a while, dorm at NU).