Single women: Do you feel safe in Oak Park? (Chicago: crime rate, chapel)

[AmoreLeo]

I am considering a move to OP from Chapel Hill, NC, where there is virtually no crime. I feel safe all the time, even though I am from Chicago originally and always have my senses tuned to the hilt wherever I go.

I'm just curious, are there parts of Oak Park that I should not live in as a single female?

Do you feel safe walking alone, during the day and evening?

What about the Oak Park blue line stop? Would a trip after dark compare to the Howard red line?

Thanks so much for filling me in!

[Doglover5]

Personally, I'm not sure I'd take the blue line alone at night from Oak Park. I recommend obtaining one of the weekly police blotters to get a sense of the crime that occurs.

[kindrakindra]

To answer your first question, there are many single women living in various housing types in Oak Park. There are also a ton of women who aren't single but whose husbands travel for weeks at a time or work long hours. These women, including me, feel safe in Oak Park.

Oak Park Police Department publishes all of its crime via map on a daily basis. Previous months' crime are compiled on one large map.

I know many people that take the blue or green line at 7 or 8 at night into Chicago and then return to Oak Park via cab (around $20-23). I also have friends that take the el from Chicago to Oak Park until 8 or 9.

As for neighborhood, if I were single in Oak Park I would live west of Ridgeland on or near Lake Street or in south Oak Park around the Expressway and OP Ave. These areas have restaurants, bars and other services.

[Hatchetman]

Well, I'm not a single woman BUT I know the area pretty well. Around normal rush hours I would not be concerned. However, I wouldn't really want my wife to be traveling on the Blue Line late at night.

Are you concerned about commuting or enjoying the night life? I much prefer Metra, but that has scheduling limitations.

[chitownperson]

My wife feels perfectly safe in Oak Park. Just to give some perspective, Lincoln Park has a higher crime rate than Oak Park, and there are lots of single females there that feel perfectly fine. Much of the crimes here are crimes of opportunity, people leaving their garage doors unlocked etc...

The above posters have given good insight already, and I think that if you follow some common sense, such as not taking the EL too late at night, or not taking strolls down Austin Blvd at 11pm etc... it will go a long way.

[AmoreLeo]

All of your posts are very helpful. I was wondering about which stops/streets were more dense with businesses and which were more remote, and some of you really helped by pointing those out. Reading your recommendations for which areas might be considered "more safe" was enlightening.

And I do agree that there is a lot of crime in areas on Chicago's north side, and women walk around alone without thinking twice, which I think is a huge mistake. I check out the police blotter and compare the areas I'm looking at.

Thanks again!

[mooter]

I lived a few blocks from the Oak Park blue line stop until recently and felt extremely, extremely safe walking around there in the daytime and any time before 10:30 or so. After that I'd prefer to have someone with me (but this is true in general). Overall, I felt a bit safer there than at the Howard red line stop at night. It is less dense and less populated, but it is still a suburban neighborhood. I would recommend living near the business districts at the green line Harlem or Oak Park stops if you are looking for an area more likely to have people walking down the street at night. I'd steer clear of the blocks near Austin if you foresee a lot of solo night trips. The bigger issue with the el is the ride itself--you'll be going through some rough areas. I've had friends have minor run-ins at 10 am on that route and personally, always tried to ride in the front car with the conductor.

[sfcambridge]

I am a single woman and feel quite safe in Oak Park. Having lived in cities or this "urban suburb" for all of my life, I am always alert/savvy when walking alone at night - as I would not feel 100% comfortable alone at night in most places. You use common sense, avoid dark streets/alleys, be aware of people walking around you.

And as others have posted, this is the suburbs. It doesn't surprise me if Lincoln Park has more crime. Here it is mostly nuisance crime. Bikes stolen, stuff stolen out of cars/garages if you leave them unlocked, shoplifting etc...

Both the green and blue lines run through rougher areas of Chicago, but I feel safe on both of them during the day. There are occasionally some characters... young guys playing their music a little loud, a few "preachers" asking for money, but never anything too concerning. However, I am more alert later at night, and I probably am less happy about riding late at night alone on the Blue line, as it seems a little less populated then the Green. However, the Oak Park stop is certainly a good one, and the streets around there are well lit. I certainly would feel comfortable living around there too.

[chitownperson]

Originally Posted by AmoreLeo

All of your posts are very helpful. I was wondering about which stops/streets were more dense with businesses and which were more remote, and some of you really helped by pointing those out. Reading your recommendations for which areas might be considered "more safe" was enlightening.

And I do agree that there is a lot of crime in areas on Chicago's north side, and women walk around alone without thinking twice, which I think is a huge mistake. I check out the police blotter and compare the areas I'm looking at.

Thanks again!

I would say that around harlem and Lake, or Oak Park ave and Lake are probably the most populated in terms of foot traffic, so Harlem and Lake maybe more suitable as it has the green line and the Metra. Harlem and Lake tends to have more people walking around at night as there is entertainment options, eateries and grocery stores surrounding that cross street. Oak Park Ave and Lake (and Oak Park ave by 290) have decent amounts of foot traffic at night as there are lots of dining options. If I was single in Oak Park without a car I would probably opt to live near Harlem and Lake as I could literally walk a block or 2 and get my groceries, get to the El and Metra quickly by foot and have the cinema and lots of eateries at my door step.

I think that even men need to retain awareness when walking about Chicago... Awareness is always a good thing regardless of where you are imo.

You can get a sense of what types of crime and where they happen by checking the police blotter, and I think you'll find that other than the occasional bike or snow blower theft (and the likes), most other crime happens more along the border to Chicago... But something the police blotter doesn't tell you is when incidents happen. Most things happen late at night or early morning, so you might see an incident posted on Humpfry or Taylor (1 and 2 blocks from Austin), but what you don't know is that it could have happened between 12-2am (times when most people aren't walking about), which often turns out to be the case. So it's important to keep that in mind.

Though I am a guy, I am slightly paranoid about crime and safety and there is no way on earth I would have moved to Oak Park if I didn't feel it was safe (especially with a wife and kids). I have had concerns when ever I moved to a new place, but after researching and living here for a while I feel perfectly fine, but I always retain awareness of my surroundings regardless of whether I'm in the sketchy city area or a suburb considered safe. The police force here is very proactive and provides a great service to this community. The fact the many parents with young children decide to live in Oak Park says a lot about safety, as many parents are often very protective of their kids. There really are no unsafe areas in OP, but I would avoid taking midnight strolls down austin blvd at night.

If you have a chance, you should drive and walk around different areas of Oak Park to get a feel for it.