Areas to stay out of in Berwyn, Forest Park, Oak Park

[mstengle]

Go Forest Park!! It is not regular suburbia as has been mentioned- and is really an extension of the city in alot of ways. I just moved from Circle near Madison - only because of commute to work. I never had any problems, of any type, great commute to the loop or west suburbs. I will tell you that I-290 --will become the headache of your lifetime and also Harlem Ave. -- they are always jammed up and slow.

Great neighbors, places to eat and shop--on Madison and also in River Forest & Oak Park. There are alot of festivals throughout the year. I am sure you can get alot of house for the money compared to Oak Park. Not sure about Berwyn--but Berwyn and FP have a completely different vibe, as does Oak Park. If you can afford OP - go for it -- great investment. If you can get a great deal in FP - you will enjoy it - if you are looking for "the city lifestyle"--not suburbia.

Other areas mentioned- LaGrange for example-- now you are clearly in the suburbs - which are nice too. Just depends on what you want -- the towns change dramatically one from another in short distances. Good Luck.

[BRU67]

Originally Posted by roxy68

Looking to buy a house in one of these suburbs...can anyone tell me areas to avoid within them? My husband and I have been driving the 'hoods but before we hire an agent we'd like to be informed. We currently live in the city and want a close by suburb to the west...husband works in Oak Brook, I work in the Loop.

I don't think there's any areas to avoid in Berwyn, though areas in Berwyn south of Cermak Road will put you closer to the Metra. The nicest area in South Berwyn, IMHO, is near Proksa Park (generally 26th to the north, Stanley to the south, Harlem to the west and Oak Park Ave. to the east). It is also served by the city's best elementary school (Emerson). The Victorians between Harlem and Oak Park and Windsor and Ogden are also very nice.

As to other rules of thumb, homes tend to get more modest as you get east of Oak Park Ave. and there are some large concentrations of apartments in north Berwyn between 16th and 22nd. Not saying to necessarily avoid it though you will be primarily surrounded by renters if you live in one of those areas.

As to Oak Park, the old rule of thumb was to avoid anything east of Ridgeland and south of the Eisenhower. I don't think that's necessarily true anymore as those areas have improved drastically over the past 10 years. Still though, spillover crime from Austin is still an issue in east Oak Park. $300-400k would get you a nice house in one of these areas most likely.

Forest Park and Brookfield are nice communities also. Forest Park obviously has Madison St. as its most desirable area at least for entertainment and public transit access. I do not know enough about living in them to comment on particular areas to live/avoid however.

[adele115]

Originally Posted by johnm68

Briefly, in Oak Park, the closer you are to Austin the worse it gets. This doesn't mean the neighborhood is bad, just that the crime problems of the City's west side are closer. FOrest Park I'm not too sure about. Berwyn's least desireable neighborhood is probably it's northeast corner--maybe east of Ridgeland and North of Cermak.

With that said, let me make one more suggestion--LaGrange Park. FOr the price you are talking, you could get a pretty nice place there. I suggest this a lot (and no, I don't live there), but I really think this is an undervalued and underappreciated suburb with great amenities.

Yes, that is truer generally, however we live in the Arts District and LOVE it. It is bordered by the park on the east side of austin so less spill over stuff I believe. The area has gentrified incredibly the last few years, and with new restaurants (Trattoria and Briejo) within walking distance, lots of young families, etc., it's a great place for kids and adults and still rather affordable. Just my counterpoint to the "closer to austin" philosophy!

[BigLake]

Originally Posted by adele115

Yes, that is truer generally, however we live in the Arts District and LOVE it. It is bordered by the park on the east side of austin so less spill over stuff I believe. The area has gentrified incredibly the last few years, and with new restaurants (Trattoria and Briejo) within walking distance, lots of young families, etc., it's a great place for kids and adults and still rather affordable. Just my counterpoint to the "closer to austin" philosophy!

True. I'm fairly new to Oak Park, but one of the selling points the city is recently using to promote the city is the Harrison St. Arts District. Good restaurants, hip-ish stores, solid housing stock, good parks nearby.

I've always heard the same mantra for Oak Park... five blocks nearest to Austin could bring problems. I know there is a bit more crime, however, with the Harrison St. Arts District, and related gentrication, you can't make a blanket statement about east OP. In fact, some of the nicest housing stock is on the east part of the village.

BTW: South Forest Park (by the park and rec. center) is fine. I wouldn't stray too far west though. North of the Eisenhower in FP is pretty nice as well w/ homes maybe about $20K more than S of the Ike. You can find a very solid house for $325-350K in FP. Your selection will drop precipitously if you try Oak Park, but it can be done.

[Lookout Kid]

I'm still trying to find a block in Forest Park that makes my heart pitter patter. Nothing. I want to like this town because of it's location, "L" access, and the great things happening on Madison Street--but just can find the residential blocks that have that certain something.

Brookfield is a sensible place that is probably underrated. Close to the city? Check. Metra access? check. Good schools? Check. Safe? Check. What's wrong with it? Many parts of Brookfield (not all) lack charm, and it's a pretty dull, yet sensible suburb. There are a lot of small ranches and Cape Cods that are typical of the post-war GI housing boom. It is about 90% automobile-oriented, which is a detriment to a growing number of buyers. Another disadvantage of Brookfield when compared to Berwyn, Oak Park, and Forest Park is that there are no CTA trains--which may or may not be a big deal to you.

[roxy68]

I just wanted to say thanks to all of you who have responded. You not only gave practical and thoughtful information but you also helped ease my mind and knock my stress level down a bit. Thank you.

[frstprkr]

[SIZE=3]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oap8QE1UGf8[/SIZE]



While he continues to claim to not have any money (he owes us alone approximately $45,000 in cash and work to be completed - just to our unit) he is throwing a three day festival in our parking lot.

And worst of all, the Village allowed it to happen!

JUST SAY NO!!!!

<DIV>Yeah watcher, we have done plenty of autopsies - here is how we got where we are:
1. We closed when we shouldn't have
2. An agreement was signed at closing assuring us that work would be completed - assurances came from Marani, his lawyer, and the realtor - at this time, we didn't know what a snake he was
3. Initial engineering report, which we didn't know even existed or would be part of this, was completed by someone not licensed by the state of illinois and there is no seal or license number on report - initial permits for building issued on this basis
4. Certificates of compliance were signed by Village with all kinds of code violations in the building, which we weren't aware of - the ones we did know about were included on our punch list items, and those were part of what was agreed to be fixed - we trusted the village was doing their job so when they signed off, we thought we were all good not knowing the full extent of damage done to the building
5. Residents continually ask the Village for help in getting the work done - in the mean time, two residents that were going to close walk from contracts
6. A stop work order is put into effect October 2007 due to safety concerns with the roof and joists cut in said roof for roof decks that we paid for. Turns out no plans or permits had been issued for roof decks, even though when we asked the realtor if there were plans and they had permits to the work, we were told those were in place (back in April 2007, again when we didn't have reason to doubt things) Also, multiple units deviated from the plans submitted to the village for work - why wasn't this stopped in inspections?
7. A structural engineering review is required by the village for the roof before October 26 - it is not delivered until December 4 2007 and there are questionable results related to snow and wind loads
8. Marani continue to work through stop work order, but not on the closed units that he still owes multiple punch list items on (now 3 months after signed agreement)
9. Boyle writes a letter to then village administrator Mike Sturino requesting that marani's licenses are pulled and work stops at this building immediately - myriad of reasons is given including but not limited to working without permits, working through stop work orders, etc.
10. Architects come in feb 2008 to re-do all the plans and re-submit them - so certificates of compliance are issued on units that don't match plans submitted and approved
11. No work is done on units through all of 2008
12. In july 2008 an independent structural engineer does an assessment on the roof and points out many issues that of major concern - the report is shared with the village and nothing is done - residents continue to sustain severe water damage in all units
13. Lawsuit is filed against marani and realtor in august 2008
14. Marani fails to pay taxes from 2007 owed through closing for all closed units - this causes a huge escrow shortage for each unit owner and causes mortgage payments to double
15. settlement agreement is reached in 2009 and none of it is met to date with claims that marani has no money while he continues to run a restaurant, perform work on unsold units, litigate the village, and throw a three day party in our face.
16. marani sues the village, boyle mysteriously resigns with a gag order and severance package, work resumes so that marani can complete units for auction (which he is slapping together), the shotty work continues and severe water damage continues in multiple units (the following is from briolette yesterday):
<DIV>
<SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10.5pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'">
[SIZE=3]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oap8QE1UGf8[/SIZE]

[frstprkr]

Forest Park Web Boards: BOYCOTT OysterPalooza

[ihynes]

If you do look at Brookfield, you might want to check out the Hollywood neighborhood, which is next to Riverside, very pretty houses. And like others have said, LaGrange Park is very nice, too, although it looks like it's in a mid-1960s time warp.