Is there a cool, liberal, urban-like Western suburb near Metra? (Chicago: apartment, condo)

[human156]

Similar to Aztoga in another thread, we are considering a move to the Chicago area. If I get the job it will be in Schaumburg. We fantasized about living in a lakefront condo in Chicago, but the commute looks really bad. We would love Evanston, but the commute again is n.g. We are interested in one of the cool older neighborhoods along the Metra line, such as Park Ridge or Arlington Heights, walking distance from the train, but they look quite pricey and also may be politically too conservative. Can anyone recommend a cool, "happening" liberal area in the western burbs with older homes, shopping and along the Metra line? The kids are grown so we don't need to worry about school districts. Thanks!

[slow_nerve_action]

Home is where you make it. An area doesn't become hip and liberal until hip and liberal people move there. too many liberal people seek a bubble instead of breaking new soil. Get involved in the community, and you will fine people with like minded processes. We went though a similar "fight" in the suburb we moved into.

That said, with your political leanings, I would stay away from DuPage County.

[chet everett]

I completely agree with the first part of S-N-A's post and have NO FRIGGIN' idea where they come up with the second half.

I mean for cripes sakes I live in a really nice town in DuPage Co and it has two Whole Foods Markets, a butt load of mom's that are into everything from yoga to gluten-free to Tibetian philosophy, a pretty hard core "Green" scene so much so that the local schools district is putting solar panels and wind turbines on the middle school, and a pretty darned low impact emphasis on Metra commuting, curb side recycling and bicycling where ever you can.

So yeah live a sane distance from where you work. drive your hybrid with pride and make sure you are involved so that which ever county you live is not run by crooks but by folks that actually are responsive to the voters.

Sheesh...

[human156]

Thanks, Chet, that was very entertaining, and I do agree with both posters that you need to make your own mark in your own community. We live in Northern California and my wife drives a Prius (yikes I'm a caricature!) but truly we are more concerned with nice neighbors who have nice dogs than how they vote. Also, my wife is really into the N.Cal. fresh, local, seasonal food thing and whole foods usually doesn't hit the mark! She wants to know where she can find awesome produce .
Anyway, so what to you guys think of Park Ridge, Arlington Heights, Palatine etc?

[Doglover5]

I agree with Chet that it's silly to rule out an entire county!

SNA -- Would you mind elaborating on your specific experiences in DuPage County and how you came to the conclusion that it's not the right place for someone liberal-minded? I'm asking because my family is considering communities in DuPage and we consider ourselves to be very open-minded and generalizations like this just make me nervous... yet they seem to be all over these boards, and we often hear claims that certain places are "liberal" or "conservative" (often without explanations of what those labels even mean to the people making those claims, and they can mean different things)... If you could elaborate on your own specific experiences with DuPage, that might be more constructive... I'm truly very interested how your opinion was shaped because the sane part of me knows that there are good and bad people everywhere, open-minded and narrow-minded people everywhere, so on and so forth... But there's so much in the way of generalizing that goes on, that it really confuse those of us in the process of hunting for a suburb.

Thanks!

[oakparkdude]

Oak Park is the stereotypical cool, urban western burb, but the commute to Schaumburg would probably be painful.

[chet everett]

Even with one of the many "Community Supported Agriculture" subscriptions that yoga loving moms seem to be into you can't get the Alice Waters kind of produce in Illinois that you get in Sonoma or Berkely so I think the OP is going to have to compromise and decide if thirty pounds of organic root vegetables will be worth filling up the house / apartment.

The farmer's markets in even Evanston and Oak Park are sort of a joke, with the more honest "sellers" admitting that they are just getting rid of stuff that the high end restaurants wouldn't take off their hands. If you want fancy food you should make friends with folks that own a place like Vie or one the place in Chicago that makes a big deal over "sourcing" ... Personally I get some amazing deals on fresh produce at the supermarkets that cater to the more ethnic crowds, but I doubt they check into the "organic labeling standards" as thoroughly as either the foodie chef or the law dept at Whole Foods.

I know quite a few limousine / Lexus liberals that live in Park Ridge and I think that can be a nice compromise between access to Chicago and a good quality of life, like anyplace else you will run into some obnoxious types that have an in-your-face political view point, but there is no escaping that...

Palatine is cheaper and closer, but you might be able to afford a more "dog friendly" house as there are some semi-rural areas that adjoin the Forest Preserves, though drive by traffic and air plane noise can be issues...

AH is far more walkable and frankly more "hip" even if we are talking minor differences -- I mean on the Northern California scale even Oak Park and Evanston are mighty darned square.

[Chiguy1957]

Curmudgeon Alert!

How 'bout making this a "sticky"? If you want the "cool" burbs with the urban, oh-so-sophisticated vibe, and lots of folks who live the "Goode Family" life survey says:

Evanston on the North
Oak Park on the West

Stay away from anything South, because you will be killed if you go there, or be attacked by the "diversity police" if area happens to be too white. ;P

[human156]

Thanks Chet for the thoughtful reply. Obviously Chicago is not N.Cal. but as far as I am concerned that's not a bad thing. I grew up on the North Shore and am excited to get back to the "regular" people of the Chicago area. Park Ridge is attractive but the housing prices are high! We saw a place in AH we liked but it sold in the high 700's. ouch! I will check out further west near a forest preserve. The produce will be an adjustment ... what can I say ... but it will be a pleasure to eat a decent steak!

[kindrakindra]

Chet

Where did you learn that produce sold at farmers' markets are really stuff that restaurants won't buy? Is it only Evanston's and OP's farmers' markets, or all farmer's markets that sell stuff that restaurants won't buy?

To the OP, there are a bunch of CSAs or organic delivery services which provide in season local produce. The problem is that it's all root vegetables in the winter months, as mentioned by the previous posters. Tons of potatoes, celery root. We use www.freshpicks.com and used to use TCF Organics.
Angelic Organics is a popular CSA.

And, Oak Park is exactly what the OP is looking for, but . . . I can't speak to the commute. Does River Road help?