Moving to Chicago and clueless!! Advice on picking a Neighborhood please!! (Lincoln: apartment, rent)

[MDandBP]

I'll try to keep it short and sweet!

I am a 25 year old female, hoping to find part time work AND attend community college full time. I am going to be doing this with out a car and hoping to depend on the public transportation as I hear Chicago has pretty good public transport. I am also hoping to keep my commuting time as low as possible.

My significant other is 28, attending University of Chicago Grad program and that's all. He also will be dependent on public transport. He does have a car but doesn't want to use it for day to day, just for emergencies and trips to the parents house etc..

We are hoping to find a place in which we can walk to a good coffee shop, lunch place, and grocery store pretty easily.

We are home bodies, love shopping and aren't big drinkers so we aren't really looking for nightlife.

We are looking for safety of course.

We are currently thinking about Hyde Park because it is close to his school. But it seems kinda isolated, so we aren't sure.

We are seeking a 2 bedroom apartment with parking as an option as we do have 1 old car.

We have a budget of max $2000 a month rent (including the parking spot)

Any recommendations for neighborhoods? WE ARE SO CLUELESS AND SCARED! lol

[chet everett]

The "community colleges" inside Chicago (technically 'City Colleges of Chicago'...) are kind of notoriously awful -- very poorly run, mostly remedial type GED stuff with a handful of useful vocational offerings. It is too weird to imagine any couple where one is attending grad school at UofC, one of the globe's premier PhD granting Universities, and the other had to deal with the dysfunctional City Colleges. It might make more sense to aim for a school like Northestern Illinois or Governor's State. Both are nearly as affordable as City Colleges, but at least have some standards. Northeastern is on the near NW side while Governor's State is accessible via the Metra line that runs through Hyde Park...

Hyde Park is not "isolated" as in way outside the city but just that it is not as well served by CTA rail lines as north side neighborhoods. Getting around Hyde Park by WALKING or CTA bus is easy! It would be a mistake to pick Pilsen or Bridgeport with your budget and desires, nor would it make sense to really consider north side neighborhoods until / unless one has a better handle on what sort schedule Grad School will require.

Focus on Hyde Park makes most sense initially, and Governor's State over City Colleges --
http://www.govst.edu/Admissions/Admi...cess/Transfer/

[NealIRC]

Your best bet is probably Daley College, it is pretty mixed.

(Out of the 7 City Colleges, you pick your campus, and you can take courses from multiple campuses.).

[chet everett]

I believe the above post is from a user of the forums that takes pride in being a squatter in abandoned buildings, that may be useful to assess the level of safety one is comfortable with...

The City Colleges are being re-organized and no longer offer a full complement of courses at every campus -- Chicago's City College Students Decry Money-Saving Policies In Packed Town Hall: Chicagoist

Daley College is located at 75th St and Pulaski, though not the worst neighborhood in Chicago it is a solid 30 minute drive from UofC through some increasingly frightful areas of gang violence. I would not recommend an out of towner taking public transit between those two points without assurances that there are police on the the route, which does not happen.

[OyCrumbler]

How about widely accredited online courses?

[LakeCountyBang]

Sure, Hyde Park is a pretty good neighborhood. I would also recommend Lincoln Park, but it is expensive and sort of far north, which should be okay with public transport. Some of the best areas of Lincoln Park, since you are shoppers, are probably close to North Ave.

Also, might want to check out Lincoln Park by Fullerton Ave, it is a bit cheaper, however there is less shopping, which shouldn't be a concern since North Ave shopping is probably around 30 mins to walk.

[COMKitty]

Check the city colleges for online courses and talk to four year institutions about what classes will transfer over.

[carnelian]

I agree that the city colleges can be questionable and not up to your standards. However, it depends on what you plan on studying there. Malcolm X is building a new building in a slum area but it emphasizes the health sciences. I don't recommend anything else there in this racial mixed college.

Wilbur Wright College is in a better neighborhood at 6400 west, much further west than UC. You will need a train and bus to get there. Mostly white and Latino. Again, it depends on your major. The area is safe,
with a coffee shop and shopping area south and east of there.They have many dedicated professors there, mostly part-time.
I do NOT recommend Southside colleges and universities, except UC of course.

[christianstad]

I must disagree with an above comment - the CIty Colleges are great. Top teachers and very reasonably priced. I worked as a librarian at one of the them and it was excellent.
A neighborhood I would recommend to you is Buena Park. Its where I live. Really pretty old buildings, walk to the el and the famous 15 bus, a gorgeous old church if you are Catholic, walk to the Cubs, I would say it was very safe indeed. Many, many young people on my block - tons of them in fact, young professionals, artists, actors, etc.
Anything else you need to know?
A City College is about a mile away now around there (WIlson Ave) it is a tad dicey. Probably good to drive or take a bus to the door - daytime.

[ToriaT]

I recommend Hyde Park or University Village by the University of Illinois (UIC). These places to live will be closer to the UofC. While University Village is not really close to Hyde Park where U of C is located, it is safe and is minutes from the loop and connections to Hyde Park. I would encourage you to look into attending UIC instead of a junior college. If that is not an option I recommend Harold Washington college (one of the city colleges) because it is in the loop. It, and Wilbur Wright college (maybe Truman also) are the only ones located in safe neighborhoods. Wright college is not at all bad, my son took a few classes there and it was fine. It is located in the far northwest area of Chicago so its way away from the Uof C where your SO will be going. So it all depends on where you are going to live. If you live in Hyde Park, you can take the "L" to Harold Washington College and your SO can maybe even walk to UofC. If you live in University Village you can both take the "L" to your respective schools and you can transfer to the UIC after completing your gen ed courses at the City Colleges. With easy access to the loop, you will probably find it easy to find employment there also. Other areas to live to explore might be Bridgeport, Pilsen, Ukrainian Village, etc.