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Old 01-09-2008, 10:36 AM
 
12 posts, read 41,029 times
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My family is relocating, and we have found a few homes we like in Barrington. They are nice homes, but not extravagant ($550-650). We have two children, 3 years old and an infant. Will I be able to find fun things to do with children in this area? Also, I am having a hard time distinguishing the differences between all the Barringtons-can anyone tell me the difference? Do they all feed into the same schools? While we live a comfortable lifestyle, we are by no means super wealthy. Based on other posts I am wondering if we would be comfortable in this area. Thank you in advance for any thoughts you may have!
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Old 01-09-2008, 11:12 AM
 
Location: Phoenix metro
20,004 posts, read 77,359,841 times
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Have you looked into Naperville? Youll have no problem finding homes in that price range, and the town is FAR better for kids than the Barringtons. Actually, Naperville was rated the most kid-friendly city in America (by Zero Population Growth), its a great place to raise children.
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Old 01-09-2008, 11:25 AM
 
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Thank you for the quick response! I have heard about Naperville. It sounds like what we are looking for, however my husband will be working in Cary. Naperville seems like a long commute for him.
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Old 01-09-2008, 11:55 AM
 
Location: Phoenix metro
20,004 posts, read 77,359,841 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by VA Girl View Post
Thank you for the quick response! I have heard about Naperville. It sounds like what we are looking for, however my husband will be working in Cary. Naperville seems like a long commute for him.
No prob! But seeing that he works in Cary will be a problem trying to commute to Naperville. If you took 355 to 88, it would probably take about an hour or more, how far is he willing to drive? Not that I dont recommend the Barringtons, but seeing that you want to keep your kids entertained, Naperville is tough to beat. Maybe take a look at Gurnee? While not overly entertaining, there is still stuff to do. There is the Gurnee Mills shopping center, and right down the road is Six Flags Great America with rollercoasters, etc, etc. They also have a huge waterpark they just built too (Hurricane Harbor). And with the money you have to spend on a house, you can get something quite large for that price in Gurnee.
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Old 01-09-2008, 02:16 PM
 
4,721 posts, read 15,609,683 times
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Dont commute to Naperville, geeez, you will never get out of the car. I dont know why you would say that about Barrington steve 0, I thought you didnt have kids? I have lived in Barrington 20 years, raised kids and have one left in middle school. The park districts and surrounding park districts offer a plethora of year round activities for kids, as do the schools. The camps are great, from pre school thru teen activities,. My kids were always busy. It also has the usual pools, swim clubs, ice skating, ski clubs etc, my son is now on the basketball team for the park. Cary is a nice community as well, but we have been a very active family in Barrington. We have gone through all the schools systems (pre-kind thru High school, and have been pleased and my kids have stayed on the up and up and done very well/ have met some wonderful families and friends over the years. Check on the park dist web sites for more info also all the major soccer, lacrosse football clubs give lessons/camps,,, As well theres the Parades, summer park concerts,, etc just like many other chicago burbs. Your kids can be as active as you let them ..
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Old 01-09-2008, 03:31 PM
 
Location: Phoenix/Tempe, Arizona
128 posts, read 172,643 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by nanannie View Post
Dont commute to Naperville, geeez, you will never get out of the car. I dont know why you would say that about Barrington steve 0, I thought you didnt have kids? I have lived in Barrington 20 years, raised kids and have one left in middle school. The park districts and surrounding park districts offer a plethora of year round activities for kids, as do the schools. The camps are great, from pre school thru teen activities,. My kids were always busy. It also has the usual pools, swim clubs, ice skating, ski clubs etc, my son is now on the basketball team for the park. Cary is a nice community as well, but we have been a very active family in Barrington. We have gone through all the schools systems (pre-kind thru High school, and have been pleased and my kids have stayed on the up and up and done very well/ have met some wonderful families and friends over the years. Check on the park dist web sites for more info also all the major soccer, lacrosse football clubs give lessons/camps,,, As well theres the Parades, summer park concerts,, etc just like many other chicago burbs. Your kids can be as active as you let them ..
Well said! What does he mean that the Barrington's have an inferior lifestyle to that of nasty, sprawl happy Naperville?! I have grown up in the Barrington area my whole life (Lake Barrington to be exact), except for the past seven months here in Phoenix. Children's activities are VERY plentiful, and my parents always had me in something during all times of the year. The schools are excellent, and look far better in the "boardroom" setting than anything Naperville puts out. The Naperville graduates that I went to school with at Elmhurst had good grades while in highschool, but were socially inept and poorly prepared for the college setting both in the academic sense,and social. (Might be why most choose big downstate public schools.) My graduating class was larger"er", but the highschools in Naperville are some of the biggest in the state, making them crowded and with bad student to teacher ratios. The people in the Barringtons are super friendly, and I have found that the area is one of the few left in Chicagoland that has a real small town feel. I took the liberty of reading some of the comments that we left on city-data.com by other posters about the Barringtons. Most people in the western suburbs look to places like the Barringtons, Oak Park, and Hinsdale as the "ultra" rich society. Truth be told, it is fairly well to do in these parts, but you can find lots of neighborhoods that are not. My parent's street is home to some big executives in the city, but also to some pretty ordinary, upper middle class folks like yourself. If I were to move back to Chicago, this is the first place I would look into. Gurnee might seem attractive, but traffic up there from Six Flags is terrible and might even make the Naperville commute look attractive. Don't expect to go anywhere to fast. If you do decide that Naperville commutes don't look that bad, choose one of the smaller cities to the west(NOT AURORA or WEST CHICAGO!). Either way you will be in your car forever so you might as well pick the nicest community out there. Good luck!
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Old 01-09-2008, 03:37 PM
 
Location: Southern California
3,455 posts, read 8,340,834 times
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I agree with Nanannie...you really can't do better. And personally, a natural setting is important to me and you will find more of that in the Barrington area....most kids I know really appreciate that, I did, growing up!! Playing in woods, natural lakes and parks is so much more fun than having more "concrete" options only.

You also have the option of further north (though gurnee is waaaay to far east, another nightmare commute) but places like mchenry or crystal lake, even harvard would be ideal.

It is all about what is important to you and your family.

A more natural setting? Stick around Cary/Barrington/Mchenry/Crystal Lake

Awful commute and more malls....well then naperville and gurnee win, though there is plenty of shopping (nice shopping) in the barrington area.

I dont have kids in the schools...but the schools in this whole area are very good.

Oh....and yeah, all of the Barringtons feed into Barrington High School....though they have different elementary schools. Small parts of Barrington Hills, Lake Barrington, North Barrington and South Barrington feed into other school distrcits (simply, the outer edges of those towns)

I can't imagine being uncomfortable in the Barrington area...I am not even close to wealthy and I am completley comfortable here because I share the values of most of the people I work with and associate with. As far as I know....I am known for my work and not for the car I drive or whatever.
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Old 01-09-2008, 03:38 PM
 
4,721 posts, read 15,609,683 times
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Lots of good communities aboud in the burbs. All have the examplery students and the dufus'es no matter what level on the economic scales they come from. But working in Cary would be a terrible commute all the way to Naperville, and no reason to go all that way when there are other excellent choices much closer..and I agree, Barrington is a fine place to raise a family,,,much-o money or not so much
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Old 01-09-2008, 03:43 PM
 
Location: Phoenix metro
20,004 posts, read 77,359,841 times
Reputation: 10371
Quote:
Originally Posted by nanannie View Post
Dont commute to Naperville, geeez, you will never get out of the car. I dont know why you would say that about Barrington steve 0, I thought you didnt have kids? I have lived in Barrington 20 years, raised kids and have one left in middle school. The park districts and surrounding park districts offer a plethora of year round activities for kids, as do the schools. The camps are great, from pre school thru teen activities,. My kids were always busy. It also has the usual pools, swim clubs, ice skating, ski clubs etc, my son is now on the basketball team for the park. Cary is a nice community as well, but we have been a very active family in Barrington. We have gone through all the schools systems (pre-kind thru High school, and have been pleased and my kids have stayed on the up and up and done very well/ have met some wonderful families and friends over the years. Check on the park dist web sites for more info also all the major soccer, lacrosse football clubs give lessons/camps,,, As well theres the Parades, summer park concerts,, etc just like many other chicago burbs. Your kids can be as active as you let them ..
Yes, I do have a son (6 yrs old), and Id choose Naperville anyday over Barrington for kids activities. All that you listed can be found in Naperville too. Add to that the nation's best library system, TONS of superior festivals (ice carvings in winter, Last Fling in summer, Rib Fest, etc, etc), numerous park district activities, the bustling downtown with ice cream parlors and chocolate shops and childrens stores, the riverwalk with playgrounds and fountains, the swimming quarry, the paddleboats, DuPage Childens Museum, etc, etc. There are many more amenities in Naperville for kids than in the Barrington area. Also you would notice that I said Barrington is a great place to raise kids, but I just think (as well as national research groups) Naperville has alot more to offer, and thats the truth, not opinion.
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Old 01-09-2008, 03:50 PM
 
Location: Phoenix metro
20,004 posts, read 77,359,841 times
Reputation: 10371
It also should be mentioned that Naperville is also very close to many forest preserves (ie Blackwell, Herrick Lake, Warrenville Grove, etc) and other types of natural areas, including the fabulous Morton Arboretum. There are also many areas of Naperville where you can get an older home on decent acreage too, its not ALL subdivisions.

Heres a link for the kids:
Downtown Naperville - Be Surprised
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