any other new york transplants? (Chicago, Anna: best city, apartments, movers)

[amy_cate]

i'm moving to chicago at end of august from brooklyn, ny. i've lived in ny all my life and i'm getting all kinds of beef from fellow new yorkers. is it that bizarre to up and leave nyc (arguably best city in the world, etc etc) for chicago? my friend matt was baffled and like "who goes to chicago from ny - it's usually the other way around..."

hmm...anyone else?

amy

[manderson]

This is one of my main gripes about NYC's (and some of the surrounding East Coast states') mentality. It amazes me how they don't acknowledge the value other major cities like Chicago, nevermind the rest of the country. I feel like people I've met during my stay in NYC are aware of Los Angeles but really have no concept of the USA beyond that. Granted, NYC has a lot going for it, but there's as much going against it. Peronally, I think Chicago is more biased towards the positive aspects of a metropolitan city: people are more amiable, there's great arts/entertainment/food, it's more affordable, it's cleaner, it's certainly has better architecture - I could go on!

I'm glad I experienced a slice of life out here and I think it helped me grow as an individual, but more than anything, it made me appreciate Chicago more. When I overhear someone complaining about how NYC has changed and that they've been here for 40 years, I think "Wow, you really haven't grown as a person, have you?" I appreciate the loyalty, but geez, there's life outside of the 5 boroughs!

One of the best parts of Chicago? Even in the least affluent areas (Humbodlt Park, Rogers Park, etc), the apartments & neighborhoods still have charm - they're not filled with ugly aluminum siding covered generic boxes and piles of garbage on the sidewalk.

Anyhoo - Amy: When are you moving again? Labor Day weekend? That's when we're headed out as well. Do you have a moving company picked yet? Would love to hear your thoughts!!!

[amy_cate]

hi there,

we are moving that weekend. i'm a little overwhelmed with a move of such distance never having done it before. i've been in brooklyn for the most part and the moves have been pretty short distance - biggest move was from astoria to williamsburg in 03.

where are you currently living? are you apartment hunting in chicago now or buying? send me a private note if you want to discuss these logistics further. basically my husband and i are fed up with ny and sick of feeling ripped off on a daily basis. the cost of living is absurd, and we both make pretty decent salaries, but of course there is no middle class in ny. hell, we elected mike bloomberg for mayor. i'm sick of how dirty it is and in my opinion, i love ny and always will, but it's overrated. there is life outside of the tri-state area. my brother moved to urbana, il for grad school 13 years ago and has lived there ever since. honestly, the main thing he misses (and i imagine mine as well) are pizza and sports teams (ny rangers and ny yankees).

i agree with you on many counts though. chicago is a more attractive city, cleaner, more affordable. i am so sick of hearing it from people as if nyc is THE city, so cosmopolitan, etc etc. i'm sick of the arrogance. it will always hold a special place in my heart, but the places i will miss most will still be here when i come back to visit - most of my family and lots of friends here so it's a given. i can always hit up the neighborhoods i'll miss when i come visit - park slope, carroll gardens, williamsburg, les, soho...

i'm a little daunted by a distance job search, but i've done the job search so many times in nyc and i feel it is more difficult here than anywhere, so i'm not really worried. ok, i am, but i'll deal. i need to find movers. i had found some, but i'm not too sure. i would love recommendations!!

[Chicago60614]

I've noticed this as well. Many Americans pass Chicago up because they think it's "a small version of NYC". It couldn't be farther from the truth. They're both old, large cities, but Chicago and NYC really don't have much in common when you dig down into them. I find Chicago much cleaner, greener, and tamer than NYC. I love them both though, but don't go off what people's opinions of places are - try them for yourself!

[Guerita]

I grew up on the NW Side of Chicago and lived there for over 20 yrs (currently 32). I have been in NYC for the last 4 and I honestly feel now that it is time for me to go elsewhere and am considering moving back to Chicago (family is also still there). As one of your posts discussed, I too am fed up with the middle class not being able to afford Manhattan (I have an MBA from a top tier school and while I do not do I-Banking, have a good job). I just don't think it is worth it anymore. I know TONS of people that first lived in NYC than Chicago and said they would never move back to NYC as they prefer Chicago. From my exp though, this is the feeling from people that only lived in NYC for a few yrs; die hard NYers who never lived elsewhere can't pry themselves away from the city)

But anyway, the things I will miss about NYC compared to Chicago (all more or less superficial):

- Chicago and the midwest is flat - bumps in CP are higher than the land in Chicago

- Once you leave Chicago, not many interesting cities to visit (vs here in NYC you have Baltimore, Philly, DC, Annapolis, Cape Cod, Boston, Montreal, etc all within a few hours drive)

- When there is a big snow storm in NYC, that doesn't stop people from being out and about - Chicago tended to shut down more

- Chicago is more depressing and gray in the fall/winter once the leaves fall off the trees and you are left with twigs

- Taxi system at O'Hare is messed up (much better system at EWR, LGA, JFK)

- Smoking ban a mess in Chicago (at least still was when I was back there mid-April)

- Delis/bodegas - Chicago doesn't have those like in NYC

- CP (parks in Chicago just don't compare)

On the positive side though:

- Taxes a lot cheaper

- Housing - no comment there (newspaper today states 0.8% vacancy rate for apts -wish I was a landlord)

- People are a lot more laid back and not in such a rush (I have problems adjusting now to the "slower pace of life" there - ha ha)

- I prefer the architecture of Chicago anyday to it in NYC
Drive down LSD on a beautiful sunny day

- Miss all the street fairs in Chicago - those cheesy block parties in Manhattan with the generic street vendors suck

- I don't care much for baseball but a Chicago Cubs game during the workday with a hot dog and beer doesn't compare to a Yankee game, even if playing the Red Sox's.

- The different neighborhoods and their different vibes

Overall, while I LOVE NYC, for the cost of living here these days and if you want any kind of future savings (I mean, if you can't enjoy what the city offers, why bother living there) I really don't think it is worth it.


Good luck with your move - I am just starting to look for a job and than my move would follow!


-

[preppyboyofIL]

Having lived in Lynbrook just outside Brooklyn off Merrick and Atlantic, I can tell you that you will need to be prepared for a much slower pace of life in Chicago. As all midwest cities, Chicago will seemingly and in most cases truthfully move much slower than what you are used to from everything such as driving and even talking with someone else, to lines at the grocery store. You will notice that people here are more patient with eachother, and to a New Yorker, it can be rather irritating at times as people are more prone to pause between things to offer someone a chance to answer... VERY slowly, or sit at a green light MUCH longer without honking or even saying to yourself... GO! It will be a bit of shell shock, however you will get used to it and may even grow to like it.

[amy_cate]

i like the slower pace! i'm all in favor of that. i hate driving here - the BQE is how i picture hell. even late at night coming home from playing a show, still a mess - 2, 3am doesnt matter. i can't stand all the honking here too - i had a bus driver with a bus full of kids give me the finger and some guy who double parked and blocked ME in throw coffee all over my car. in the same day, within 5 mins of each other. i can't take it - i'll surely die of a heart attack.

i think the slower pace will be a very very good thing.

i'm honestly so sick of not being able to save. and with bloomberg talking about all these new tolls, forget it. to see my family in nj i really resent paying so much to take the verrazano both ways. i usually prefer to sit on the BQE, add at least an hour to my travel time, just to save the $ based on principle. it is ridiculous. and the BQE (as are most roads in brooklyn/queens) is so cut up - huge holes everywhere, bumps. my poor car. my poor poor car.

i will miss CP and also places like carnegie hall, lincoln center, battery park, wall street - seeing law and order tapings - prospect park, brooklyn botanic gardens, etc.

i will miss yankee games ALTHOUGH...i was so excited to see them play (and beat the pants off of) the white sox two weeks ago and got tons of food/beer for practically nothing. yankee stadium is ridiculous, but i guess a-rod's salary needs to be paid somehow.

[Guerita]

If you will be driving in Chicago (really no need to unless you are living/commuting to some of the burbs) the pot holes in Chicago are far worse I think than on the BQE. In the winter huge craters in the streets due to the snow ploughs, etc.

[amy_cate]

ah. well we don't drive that much as it is. it's not just the bqe though - all of brooklyn is a mess. my car is so banged up from it. super deep craters which because of traffic cannot be avoided.

at least they plow the snow. ny doesn't know what to do anymore when it snows. i remember driving to nj via staten island and seeing the plows just plugging along and not doing anything but make pretty little lines in the snow. and they really forget how to plow where i live and when they do they plow your car in and still expect you to move your car for alternate side. argh.

i guess every place has its pros/cons. at this point ny has more cons...

[INeedAChange]

boy can I relate to this--some of the recruiters and headhunters here are just the slimiest

Originally Posted by amy_cate

hi there,

i'm a little daunted by a distance job search, but i've done the job search so many times in nyc and i feel it is more difficult here than anywhere