Park Ridge, La Grange or Berwyn? (Chicago, Cicero: house, neighborhood, to buy)

[Paxtonian]

Berwyn??????????????????

[OakBrookMom]

Park Ridge is really convenient with the Metra, L, expressways and O'Hare. The older sections are really beautiful. LaGrange is a very nice town with express trains that take 17 minutes to get to the city and a really nice downtown. Both LaGrange and Park Ridge have very highly regarded schools, unfortunately I cannot say the same for Berwyn despite how hard they are working to change that and I know there are many people who are and who really care about the town. I'm not a pioneer when it comes to my kids' education, I like a good track record. So I would choose LaGrange or Park Ridge. I think you need to see what you can get for your money in each town and then decide if you really want to live in either place, you might wind up further out if you want a bigger or more updated home.

[ertie]

People tend to forget about LaGrange Park, so I'll give it a shout out. Less expensive than LaGrange, still very safe & quiet, great access to everything, plus a portion of it (east of LaGrange Rd / North of 31st) is in the RB high school district, which was just rated in the top 100 public schools in the country.

Plus you're right down the street from the zoo!

[Paige65]

Either LaGrange or Park Ridge. I think you may (but am not entirely sure) get a little more for your money in LaGrange. Both are nice suburbs with good schools. I'd check them both out. I don't know enough about Berwyn to make an informed comment, so I'm not dissing Berwyn by not mentioning it.

[NSH]

do lagrange or park ridge have this though?


6 car pileup at 22nd and harlem

[Suburwynite]

Hey NSH,
Do LaGrange or Park Ridge have this though, for the prices you find in Berwyn? I would find it hard to believe. Berwyn is a town that fell stagnant back in the 80's and is now being re-discovered by a great number of artists, musicians, and young professionals from Buck Town, Wicker Park, Logan Square, Rogers Park, Lincoln Square, Andersonville, etc., that love living in their vintage homes only 13 minutes from the Loop by train, or 20 minutes by car. Berwyn also has the 3rd highest concentration of Gays and Lesbians in the State of Illinois... I have two couples on my block alone. If you don't like that sort of thing, Berwyn is not for you. Berwyn also has the highest concentration of Chicago Style Brick Bungalows in the Country. If you don't like the style of house... Berwyn might not be for you. Take a look at this Spring's issue of American Bungalow magazine and notice the home of James Bond and what he has done with the home he recently bought in Berwyn. This guy is one of the top sound engineers in the country... and he bought a place in Berwyn? All I have to say is that many of these other towns have already "Boomed", and Berwyn is still in the Boom stage. My wife and I have lived here for less than 4 years, and we have seen the value of our home increase over $80,000. Not a bad return on an investment. Most people that tend to throw a bad name on Berwyn have never even been here... they just judge on what they heard about it 20 years ago. Hell, I grew up in Downers Grove... Do you really think it's that same it was 20 years ago?! BerwynInformer.com can give you a better idea of what is happening in Berwyn these days.

[Vanessa Sue]

Originally Posted by karabiner

Park Ridge Yes, La Grange maybe, Berwyn no

I completely agree ~ lived in PR and Berwyn, just moved to New Mexico, and I have to say that out of the three Park Ridge is by far the best (in my opinion). It is a bit pricier, but worth it. Also it is very close to the city and O'Hare airport.

Good luck to you!

[NSH]

Hey Suburwynite
Are you ashamed of your public art in Berwyn? How is posting a picture of the six car pile up constitute a defense rant against your hometown. I heart Berwyn you can usually catch me at the Berwyn Cicero Elks club munching on some fish and chips on fridays. but y'all should be a little more friendly.

[Suburwynite]

Hey NSH,
Sorry if the response came as a rant... But most often when people refer to the Spindle as "Six Car Pile Up"... It is not in a flattering way. I apologize if you truly did not know its name. Am I ashamed of our public art? Quite the contrary, I think it is totally under-appreciated by the masses. That mall has 3 pieces by world famous artist Dustin Shuler alone, the Spindle (6 car pile up), the Pinto Pelt, and Albatross. There are also pieces by George Rhoads, Clyde Lynds, Steve Gerberich, and until recently we had an outstanding display of work by James Wines, Floating McDonalds. Architects used to travel from all over the country to see this building... and now it has been grounded. A sore spot for myself and MANY architects.

Sorry again, didn't mean to come off as hostile. Next time you are by the Elks, there is a great little "hole in the wall" Mexican restaurant just two doors East of East Ave called Tacos y Salsa. Give it a try, they have a Salsa con Chile de Arbol that will knock your socks off.

[BRU67]

As a newer Berwynite, I'm not a huge fan of the Spindle or the Cermak Plaza on the whole. Am I embarassed of it? No. Do I wish an AH-64 A/D Apache attack helicopter would come along and blow it to smithereens? Yes, sometimes. Revitalization of the Plaza is a community priority, and I suspect the Spindle will be restored along with it and be with us for some time to come. That it draws such polarizing opinions is indicative of good artwork and, whatever side you come down on, you cannot deny that it draws people to the area and is instantly recognizable. In this era of vanilla shopping malls in vanilla suburbs, that's not such a bad thing.