Moving to IL, help

[chet everett]

I am going to recommend Elmhurst for several reasons.

#1 -- it is an easy commute to Rosemont. You can hop on the tollroad in even the peak of rush hour and be at work / home in 30 minute or less.

#2 -- There are a nice of homes available in the OP's price point. THE INVENTORY IN ALL DESIRABLE PARTS OF THE REGION IS EXTREMELY TIGHT RIGHT NOW!!! Homes are going in "pending" in about 14 days. For folks with school age kids the stress of having homes sell this quickly is extremely demoralizing. I have helped relo buyers in the past and if they feel too forced it greatly reduces their ability to feel good about the move.

#3 -- Elmhurst has a LONG TRADITION of extremely competitive youth baseball and a terrific network or interested parents that will help newcomers get into the right situation. http://www.eteamz.com/elmhurstyouthbaseball/
http://www.elmhurstbaseball.com http://www.elmhurstcougars.net/cougar_home.aspx
#4 -- Elmhurst has equally long tradition of dedicated youth dance.DuPage Dance Academy: Ballet, Tap & Jazz Instruction Elmhurst Park District | Dance Programs Beyond Center Stage Performing Arts Academy- Mission York Community High School: Advanced Dance

#5 -- For its size there is flat out no other town in the region that has at its a core the same combination of a LOVELY college campus with strong athletics & arts programs Elmhurst College Bluejays Elmhurst College: B.M. in Jazz Studies as well as lovely museums, a top flight public library and "real community feel" fostered by many volunteers / community groups:Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed

[Vasily]

Originally Posted by nana053

Don't let the snow worry you. We get snow, but not as much as you might think and the roads are cleared well.

+1 for this. I lived for five years in Charlottesville VA, which is in the piedmont and plagued with ice storms. And in Chapel Hill NC for five years. Winters there were much worse than up here in my opinion because of the scarcity of snow removal equipment, and the tendency of pipes to freeze when the temp approaches zero. Up here, houses are built for cold weather and laugh off cold that would burst pipes in the South. I remember two-four inch snowfalls paralyzing the town for days ... up here, that's nothing.

However ... driving on snow and ice is an art, and I suggest practicing driving around in large parking lots on the snow and ice before doing a lot of winter travel in the Midwest. But they are pretty good at keeping the roads salted and scraped in most areas ... the only time it's a hassle is when it's really coming down and the equipment can't keep up with it (maybe two or three times a winter).

If you're going to purchase a single family dwelling, you'll probably want to invest in a snow shovel and a snow blower (or pay a service to clear your sidewalks/driveway for you). Most apartment and condo/townhome complexes include snow removal in their monthly fees, so you'd only want a snow shovel. I keep a small shovel in my car trunk in the winter just in case.

View it all as an exciting new adventure rather than a hassle or something to be fearful of, and you'll do all right.

[GolfLover2]

JMO, but I don't think you're going to want to go as far south as the western suburbs you mention. The daily commute would be stressful, to say the least. And with the cost of Chicagoland gas?? Expensive too. I would recommend you look at the Niles/Park Ridge area ... the extreme north part of the City. I have a nephew that is an absolute sports nut (baseball included) and my brother and sister-in-law love living in that area. Many opportunities for the kids, great community feel, many churches (some with schools associated with them) activities, and more. Shout out if I can provide any more info .. and best of luck to you. Bundle up ... Chicago can get darn cold!!

[rcpeb]

Park Ridge and Elmhurst are being mentioned a great deal, my concern is the plane noise. They are close to O'Hare.

[pvande55]

Hope this map helps. Elmhurst looks worst for airport noise.o'hare noise map - Google Search

[chet everett]

I have friends that currently live Elmhurst and Park Ridge as well inlaws that lived in Mt. Prospect and a relative that lived in DesPlaines. I have been to each of those homes at various times and was, in fact, at a backyard party in Elmhurst last night.

My friends in Park Ridge are near the north east part of town. I know there are some homes that would be in the OP's price range and that section of town has ZERO noise issues. Quiet enough to rock a baby to sleep in the yard !

My friend in Elmhurst is in the central / south portion of town. Very very very quite. No indication at all that there is an airport within the vicinity.

I have to say that my inlaws that did live in south east Mt. Propect could definately see plane traffic and if a larger older plane (747) was taking off it could interupt backyard conversation. Worse was the house that another relative had in DesPlaines. It was in the part of DesPlaines that really was impacted by aircraft noise, so much so that the received grants to upgrade windows and such. That definately made things nice and quiet inside but the yard was not a pleasant place to hang out when lots of take-offs / landings were happening...

The thing too is that O'Hare is so busy it is EASY to determine if noise is going to be a problem. Visit a potential home pretty much any evening or morning close to peak flight time and you will quickly know whether there are any noise issues. Runways are very costly and re-arranging flight paths happens very infrequently. If the place is quest now it will likely remain that way. The changes that happened with new runways are likely locked in for the foreseeable time.

[cubssoxfan]

Arlington Heights has a good youth theater program through Metropolis and AH Park District
Plays, Musicals and Concerts in the Northwest Chicago Suburbs - Metropolis - Metropolis Performing Arts Centre
macDonalds Dance Academy is also quite good and AH Park District has Dance Classes as well.
- McDonald Dance Academy
Good youth Baseball, good schools, good library, good Park District etc. etc.

[Vestamama]

I live in Barrington/Palatine area. For dance, the best in the area (NW burbs) for classical (heavy on the ballet training) would probably be Faubourg in Hanover Park. They do not teach tap, however - they do ballet, jazz, hip hop, modern. They have graduated many dancers who have gone pro - excellent training there. Def not a "dance team" school, although there are plenty of those around. If you want "dance team", check out Perseverance Dance, also in Hanover Park. If you get on the highway and zip down, you can get to Academy of Dance Arts in north Downers Grove - they do both classical and dance team training; parking is a PITA, but they do a great job. For theater, you could look into Metropolis in Arlington Heights. We commute into Wilmette or the city for theater training - really, the best training is going to be there (ATC in Wilmette, Green Room Studio for on-camera, Actors Studio Chicago, etc.). There is also Spotlight Theater which is very active in the burbs which has a more community theater vibe and is viewed as a religious ministry (not sure if that is pro or con, depends on your outlook). There are other small little community theater groups, but in terms of TRAINING, best bet is downtown or ATC in Wilmette. Chicago is a theater town and there is excellent training to be had here, but you may have to drive for it.

I would suggest maybe you start looking in Arlington Heights. I think it has a good variety for everyone, would be good commute. Active downtown, good schools. Not sure where you are in the south, but you may have sticker shock - home stock is older and tends to be higher - the farther out you go, the more you can get with your money, like anywhere. So, if you like AH vibe, but want a little more house/lot, go further out NW HW to Palatine, Barrington, etc.

People have mentioned Evanston - I think it's what you are used to/comfortable with. Barr/Pal/AH to some extent = good schools, reasonable commute, good extracurriculars (altho you may need to drive further for whatever you end up specializing in, nice downtowns, easy parking, easy access to retail). North Shore/Evanston = higher home prices, prob longer commutes, harder parking/more difficult access to retail as areas are older and more developed, but better schools on whole and extra curricular - although, I would put Barr/Pal schools above ETHS on any day - I'm talking New Trier and Highland Park. Compromise might be Lincolnshire/Long Grove/Buff Grove feeding to Stevenson - excellent school, still do-able commute, access to excellent extracurriculars.