Tell me about Cicero (Berwyn, Oak Park: affordable houses, schools, to live)

[City4less]

Cicero has affordable housing but is not showing any signs of up and coming. It is know for its poor local government and petty scandals. Oak Park is well established and pricey and has lots of development. It is not all that safe though...... Between the 2 in terms of price is Berwyn which is generally safe, But I would stay west, away from Cicero. Berwyn might be a good choice since you can take advantage of what Oak Park and Forest Park have to offer for a better price. Plus, unlike Forest Park, and to a lesser degree Oak Park, Berwyn has excellent all brick housing stock. Also, Berwyn's government is strong and responsive. The roads are in good shape and the city is investing in building for the future. Once word of caution: Stay from old stucco housing.... lots of headaches! There is lots of that in Forest Park and Soith Oak Park... Berwyn's housing stock is mostly brink and they have lots of homes with pretty leaded glass windows. It is Berwyn that is up and coming (again, it's been around for years)..... berwyn is resilent and re-invents herself... you can't beat the location...compare to the City--- Northwest side.... try western Berwyn's it's the best--close to Harlem ave, easy in and out of town

[gardener34]

And Berwyn has a hospital - Mcneal.

[gardener34]

Just heard that there is a plan to tear down sportsman's park and there is going to be a strip mall with 3 big box retailers in there now. We used to live a stone's throw from there. I think sportsman's has been closed for several years now.

[dazimon]

Just curious to find out more. You live near Cermak Plaza and take the Lake Street 'L' ("Green" line - as it is known in this homogenized globalizing age) downtown? I presume your destination is north of the Loop and too far from the "Blue" line (i.e. the Congress-Milwaukee/O'Hare or Douglas-Milwaukee/O'Hare). Do you take the bus up Harlem to get to the "Murder Express" (as the Lake Street 'L' is known on the West Side?)

Originally Posted by chalet

I live in berwyn and find it better than cicero. it's just the next town over. i live near cermak, which is close to I-290 and also to I-55. The mall is also very near. I work in downtown chicago and take the green line "L" to work. It's about less than 20 min on the "L"

The area I live in has a lot of 3 flats. rent i think is average 700-1200.

[bobsmith319]

Don't move to Cicero! It has tons of crime and gangs. It isn't safe to live there. However, Oak Park is ver nice, and very safe. Homes and taxes can be expensive there. Any more questions, please feel free to ask.

[BRU67]

"Tons of crime" and "isn't safe to live there" is overstating things slightly. Per City-Data.com, Cicero's 2005 crime index was 362.7. Nothing to brag about given that the U.S. average is 325.2 but keep in mind that in 2004, Oak Park's crime index was 368.5 (dropping to 297.3 in 2005), and Chicago's was 610 in 2005. I wouldn't move to Cicero either, for a variety of reasons, but let's not make it sound like Englewood here, because it isn't.

[Chicagoan07]

My mom grew up in Cicero in the 50s and 60s and I lived in Cicero from 91' to 97' and I'll tell you something, the statistics don't tell the whole story. You're reading into this way too much. As the population is way understated due to Illegals not wanting to get deported, the crime statistics are way underreported due to corruption and the desire to present Cicero with a more polished, cleaned up image. Cicero has been since the 20s the most corrupt part of Chicago area. Al Capone setup shop in Cicero and it was the breeding ground and headquarters of the Chicago Outfit. Modern day Cicero continues to be corrupt and gang infested. Betty Loren Maltese the town president was just thrown in Jail a few years ago for corruption and racketeering. There are shootings regularly and gang bangers run the streets. Some of the cops are gang bangers. Go walk around, at nighttime, through NE Cicero and tell me how safe you feel. The Grant Works neighborhood is full of dilapidated homes, gang infested streets, and corrupt cops and politicians. Cicero is the hoody hood, especially the eastern sections. I live on the north side of Chicago right now after stints in Uptown, Albany Park, Logan Square, Humboldt Park, and Irving Park. Cicero is just as bad or worse than any of these areas with respect to crime and corruption (not that they're all that bad)...

did I mention that I'm moving back in less than a year?

[thepizzaguy]

I live in Oak Park, SE corner, and there aren't many apartments, and actually it's not that unsafe. It used to be fairly dangerous, but there was a major federal cleanup that blocked access except for residents. Of course I was one of those residents. Most of the apartments in the area are along Garfield and Harrison in the SE corner.

As for Cicero, That's where I was delivering pizza and I never had any problem , but there was one time when I was at the door making a delivery and a gunfight broke out across the street. I took cover along the side of a house.

I lived in Berwyn near 26th and Ridgeland and I had issues with several of the teenagers, I even had a 400 dollar Alpine Radio stolen from my car.

Your best bet for convience is to live between the 290 and Lake street in Oak Park. This will give you the Red and Blue lines with in walking distance from just about anywhere.

For Cicero, you either want to live near 54th and 22nd, near the Pink line, or by Austin and Roosevelt for the Blue Line.

But Forest Park near Madison is where all the fun is.....

[HOWELL_STREET]

Dear Friends:

In talking about Oak Park, Cicero and Berwyn Illinois, Chicago's "L" (Elevated / subway) system has been mentioned. So please permit me to talk a little technology. Both the elevated ("L") and the subway systems obtain power from a third rail. Now I mention this because I assume that a reader or two have never been around a third rail system. That third rail is the electric power rail for the 'L' trains. Also, that third rail has an electric voltage of approximately 660 volts. You get across that rail or even touch it, they will bury you in some cemetery.
When a boy in Oak Park, Illinois (circa 1944), there was an "L" system right at Austin Blvd. and what is now the Eisenhower Expressway. A young girl on her bicycle lost control and rode right onto that third rail. And that was the end of her. So PLEASE be very careful when standing on an 'L' platform or somewhere in proximity of that third rail.

Best Regards,

CARTER GLASS

[BRU67]

Originally Posted by HOWELL_STREET

Dear Friends:

In talking about Oak Park, Cicero and Berwyn Illinois, Chicago's "L" (Elevated / subway) system has been mentioned. So please permit me to talk a little technology. Both the elevated ("L") and the subway systems obtain power from a third rail. Now I mention this because I assume that a reader or two have never been around a third rail system. That third rail is the electric power rail for the 'L' trains. Also, that third rail has an electric voltage of approximately 660 volts. You get across that rail or even touch it, they will bury you in some cemetery.
When a boy in Oak Park, Illinois (circa 1944), there was an "L" system right at Austin Blvd. and what is now the Eisenhower Expressway. A young girl on her bicycle lost control and rode right onto that third rail. And that was the end of her. So PLEASE be very careful when standing on an 'L' platform or somewhere in proximity of that third rail.

Best Regards,

CARTER GLASS

Ouch! A few frat boys have been killed over the years peeing on the third rail in the Lincoln Park area too. Not a pleasant way to go. Thanks Carter! Wise words of caution to keep in mind as we go about our daily business.