Iowa vs a suburb (Chicago, Naperville: for sale, real estate, apartments)

[knat_2]

I am graduating from Iowa State University and have an offer to either stay at the University or go to Argonne NL in Chicago (so a southwest burb).

I was wondering if anyone had moved from a rural area to a chicago burb and if they could list some pros and cons for me.

I mean is the traffic and all that, THAT bad? Is cost of living, that much more?

What are some good things?

Nate

[myrc60]

I would think working at Argonne would be a definite plus for your resume. COL is generally 40-50% higher in Chicago than many rural areas. If the salary you've been offered is near the same I'd stay in Iowa but I would expect Argonne to pay better. If you don't have a family yet Chicago may be just your style. I lived 6 blocks from Argonne as a teenager and didn't leave Chicago until I was over 40. I've lived in Iowa too; it is a different life than what you would experience in Chicago.

[alwaystraveling25]

Originally Posted by knat_2

I am graduating from Iowa State University and have an offer to either stay at the University or go to Argonne NL in Chicago (so a southwest burb).

I was wondering if anyone had moved from a rural area to a chicago burb and if they could list some pros and cons for me.

I mean is the traffic and all that, THAT bad? Is cost of living, that much more?

What are some good things?

Nate

Nate, I am a 26 yo living in the City of Chicago that grew up in Metro Detroit and lived in Kansas City before living here. I spent a lot of time in Des Moines, IA, (I reported to that office for about 6 months in my old job), so I hope I can provide some advice from you.

First of all, COL is a lot more then you will be used to in Iowa and traffic will be a lot worse. Period. Think of the worst rush hour from West Des Moines into downtown on I-235 during construction, and that is what traffic is like in and out of the city. I think the traffic here is manageable, given the size of the Metro area. Des Moines has around 600,000 in the Metro area, and Chicagoland has 8 million. Of course traffic will seem much worse. I spent a lot of time in rural areas of Iowa like Orange City, Le Mars, Atlantic, Clarinda, Red Oak, and you cannot remotely compare traffic like that to Chicago.

Also, COL is a lot more then the most expensive area of Iowa, just because it IS Chicago, the third largest city in the US. Expect to pay double, or a little less then double, what your rent in Ames is, whether you move to the suburbs or the city. I went from paying 700 a month for a 1BR in Kansas City to 1200 for one in the City of Chicago.

What are the Pros? I wish I had all the time to mention the pros of living in the Chicagoland area. There are a limitless supply of shopping, dining, nightlife, and entertainment options. Your only limit is your wallet. Traveling to other places in the country can be affordable, due the close proximity of two major airports. Chicago is a melting pot of people from all over the country, and world, but most people I encounter in my neighborhood are from the Midwest (Iowa, Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, Ohio, Illinois). It's the big city but friendly, at least IMO.

So yes, the COL and traffic will be much worse, but the benefits of living near or in a world-class city in a great metropolitan area far outweigh the negative of that.

[chet everett]

Nate:

ANL is still one of the premier DOE labs, with truly "fore front" type work at their Advanced Photon Source, Leadership Computing Facility, Nuclear Engineering, and Advanced Energy Transmission Grid.

I know that ISU has some nice research opportunities, especially in Genomics, but I think you'd really be exposed to a broader range of work and potential career paths at any DOE lab than by remaining at all but the most prestigous of research Universities.

ANL is about 25 miles southwest of Chicago's central business core. It is really inside a Forest Preserve and the traffic to get to the Lab from the surrounding suburbs is pretty easy. If you were to live in Chicago itself you would face a commute that is much worse than anything in Ames, but still not bad at all compared to other metro areas like Washington DC, LA, SanFran, NYC, or other areas with high percentages of R&D employment. Additionally, though the cost of living is much higher than in rural Iowa there is not doubt that there are far more opportunities socially, academically, and professionally. Many of the new college hires at ANL gain a terrific path into UofC, Northwestern (especially material science), UIC, UIUC(among the top grad schools in hard core CompSci),as well as other prominent Universities around the globe. Of course you would also have the opportunity to work with researchers from basically every drug company on the planet, as th APS is the single most powerful device to determine the crystilline structure of pharamalogically important compounds. And don't forget the cultural / social benefits of living in an area with a much larger, more diverse and economically broader place than anywhere in Iowa.

I enjoy Iowa, and my dad grew up near Dubuque, so I don't mean to be down on the state, but realistically a job at ANL would be a HUGE thing to pass up.

I know several employees at ANL, some who are DOE employees, others who get paid directly by UofC, and others that are employed directly by the ANL consortium. Without exception they feel that ANL is one of the best places to work on really important science.

Good Luck!

[jdiddy]

Originally Posted by chet everett

Nate:

ANL is still one of the premier DOE labs, with truly "fore front" type work at their Advanced Photon Source, Leadership Computing Facility, Nuclear Engineering, and Advanced Energy Transmission Grid.

I know that ISU has some nice research opportunities, especially in Genomics, but I think you'd really be exposed to a broader range of work and potential career paths at any DOE lab than by remaining at all but the most prestigous of research Universities.

ANL is about 25 miles southwest of Chicago's central business core. It is really inside a Forest Preserve and the traffic to get to the Lab from the surrounding suburbs is pretty easy. If you were to live in Chicago itself you would face a commute that is much worse than anything in Ames, but still not bad at all compared to other metro areas like Washington DC, LA, SanFran, NYC, or other areas with high percentages of R&D employment. Additionally, though the cost of living is much higher than in rural Iowa there is not doubt that there are far more opportunities socially, academically, and professionally. Many of the new college hires at ANL gain a terrific path into UofC, Northwestern (especially material science), UIC, UIUC(among the top grad schools in hard core CompSci),as well as other prominent Universities around the globe. Of course you would also have the opportunity to work with researchers from basically every drug company on the planet, as th APS is the single most powerful device to determine the crystilline structure of pharamalogically important compounds. And don't forget the cultural / social benefits of living in an area with a much larger, more diverse and economically broader place than anywhere in Iowa.

I enjoy Iowa, and my dad grew up near Dubuque, so I don't mean to be down on the state, but realistically a job at ANL would be a HUGE thing to pass up.

I know several employees at ANL, some who are DOE employees, others who get paid directly by UofC, and others that are employed directly by the ANL consortium. Without exception they feel that ANL is one of the best places to work on really important science.

Good Luck!

I'm continually amazed at the amount of knowledge you have on such a wide array of subjects.

[chet everett]

When you are old enough to remember all the people you meet, but not so old you forget you can share a mountain of info...

In addition to my work as a teacher, real estate agent, investor, and office /information worker I talk to LOTS of people. Between clients, tenants and neighbors I would guess I have had conversations with enough people to fill the United Center if not Soldier Field...

The whole "facebook" thing would've been handy as way to keep track of all these people, but I sorta like trying to remember things on my own. Keeps the brain from going mushy.

[jdiddy]

Originally Posted by chet everett

When you are old enough to remember all the people you meet, but not so old you forget you can share a mountain of info...

In addition to my work as a teacher, real estate agent, investor, and office /information worker I talk to LOTS of people. Between clients, tenants and neighbors I would guess I have had conversations with enough people to fill the United Center if not Soldier Field...

The whole "facebook" thing would've been handy as way to keep track of all these people, but I sorta like trying to remember things on my own. Keeps the brain from going mushy.

I think Malcolm Gladwell would classify you as one of the "connectors".

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by jdiddy

I think Malcolm Gladwell would classify you as one of the "connectors".

...I've talked with him. Yet. But you never know...

[knat_2]

Thanks for the advice so far. I am pretty excited about the opportunity, however I believe in quality of life over quality of work.

I had a couple other questions no one has seemed to touch on yet.

1) Crime? I am guessing crime is a little worse in Chicago, but am I going to have to worry about my wife (a high school teacher), etc?

2) Places to live and/or recommendation for areas close to Argonne? Would you buy or Rent? I was leaning towards the suburbs around LaGrange Drive such as Orland Park/Hills and Tinley or even New Lenox (seems like an easy drive up LaGrange and over to the lab). People have warned me against the northern burbs such as Bolingbrook, Naperville, etc. Can anyone recommend a good realtor or some good apartments?

3) I was hoping you could touch more on the nightlife idea that was mentioned earlier. In ames I can go to Movies, clubs (which I rarely do), golfing, bowling, etc. What does Chicago have in addition?

4) Can you walk around town in any of these burbs (like on sidewalks)? Or are they very commercial?

Nate

[chet everett]

Fair questions. I think that you need a realistic price and time frame before you decide to rent vs buy. LaGrange is a lovely town to live in, homes are not cheap and rentals are not plentiful. You will however find it VERY safe and VERY walkable, with a very small town feel in most areas with well maintained sidewalks and everything else that so people find attractive. A similar feel can be had in parts of Downers Grove and other towns along the BNSF.

Safety is pretty much a non-issue, and there are some opening for high school teachers in the desirable areas, though these generally get more applicants and needs vary by certficate / specialty.

If you look futher south the pattern of development is, for the most part, more car-oriented. The trade off is that you may get some more land for the money and/or get a home that is in a wooded area, as there are more Forest Preserve areas in that direction.

Moving further to the SW you would get a newer less established development pattern, though affordabiliy might be better.

The commercial development in really all these areas is pretty well segregated to high traffic corridors that does not impact the residential areas.

In addition to a much broader variety of movies and sports there is a lot of opportunity to see live music, theater, dining and connect with people interested in any hobby. Quality of life is not lacking at all.

There is a great variety of housing available near ANL, from inexpensive rentals that may attract a certain transient group of tenants to multi-million dollar homes. Some of the town names you should look for include Willow Springs, Lemont, Darien, Woodridge, Downers Grove, Burr Ridge, Westmont, Hinsdale, Western Springs, Clarendon Hills, Indian Head Park, Willowbrook, Palos Hills/Park : Willow Springs IL - Google Maps

Willow Springs Single-Family Homes For Sale — Trulia.com