The Decatur, Georgia of the Chicago Suburbs? (Oak Park, Homewood: houses, neighborhoods)

[firemaplelb]

On thing I distinctly remember about Decatur... a farmers market and a very community oriented environment (festivals, block parties, etc.).

I feel like Oakpark is the right option, but I don't know about this with LaGrange or River Forest.

Homewood /floosmor is way to far out to be comparable to Decatur.

[oakparkdude]

I'd consider renting for a year first. The way the market is you won't miss out by waiting a year. More importantly you want to confirm that a 1 hour+ commute is really tolerable. Although taking transit is easier than driving, long commutes get tiresome after a while.

[stewartthrower]

If you like Decatur. I wouldn't move to a Chicago suburb. Even with the housing bust, Chicago is way over priced compared to Atlanta and that goes for the suburbs too. Chicago has some distinct advantages, but affordability is not one of them.

[bicycleguy]

Thanks for all the good input, y'all. We've investigated the places you've named and come up with some more questions. We're going to look into this when we visit the neighborhoods, but if anybody wants to chime in now, we'd appreciate it:

Oak Park is clearly intentional about diversity and sees it as a value. We like that.

Is the same true of Homewood, Flossmoor, and the feeder areas for Lyons Township High School (ie. La Grange, Indian Head Park, La Grange Highlands, Burr Ridge, La Grange Highlands, Western Springs)?

To ask it another way: do the "white" residents of these neighborhoods generally see the increasing ethnic diversity in their neighborhood as a *positive* thing and seek to encourage it and make it work, or are they clinging to a white bubble and *enduring* the darker skinned newcomers?

We'd love to be part of the former and really don't want to live in the latter.

Thanks again for all the advice!

[prairiestate]

You definitely want to put Homewood at the top of your list. There's no direct transit link from the west 'burbs to Hyde Park, and your commute while driving will be an hour and half, minimum. Aside from the direct rail service to the Univ. of Chicago, Homewood is an exceptionally attractive and charming town with a lot of new development. There is a quaint downtown with new shops and restaurants, and the convenience of numerous big box stores along Halsted Ave. Schools are good, and there's plenty of open land around providing an uncrowded feeling. As for diversity, first there was white flight, then endurance. Now, with the south suburbs being predominantly black, (with a few exceptions, notably Homewood and Lansing) I think the white folks that are left see diversity as a positive thing. These are solidly middle to upper middle class towns, and they could afford to leave if they wanted to. Race is a very touchy subject in Chicago though.

[outsider1]

Having once spent a week in Decatur, it's somewhat of a cross between parts of Oak Park and Evanston, imho. And parts of it could be distantly compared to Skokie. Unfortunately real estate prices in former two are almost double of what you pay around Atlanta. I would suggest you try Skokie. You'll probably like it as it has everything Decatur does and even more. Overinflated prices went down somewhat so you should be able to find a 3/2 splitlevel built in 1960-70ies in your budget.

[ShampooBanana]

I'd highly recommend Oak Park if you want a more urban experience. If you are looking for a bit less urban but still very nice neighborhoods with some nice tree lined streets, good architecture, and vibrant downtowns, I'd go with La Grange/LaGrange Park or Elmhurst. The schools are very good in any of them, they all have great downtowns, good libraries, Elmhurst has a nice college, and you can probably find a decent home at the higher end of your range (~$400k). Another great thing is that they are all on Metra lines so that makes getting into the City much easier, especially if you live somewhere close to the station so you can just walk.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by bicycleguy

T...Oak Park is clearly intentional about diversity and sees it as a value. We like that.

Is the same true of Homewood, Flossmoor, and the feeder areas for Lyons Township High School (ie. La Grange, Indian Head Park, La Grange Highlands, Burr Ridge, La Grange Highlands, Western Springs)?

To ask it another way: do the "white" residents of these neighborhoods generally see the increasing ethnic diversity in their neighborhood as a *positive* thing and seek to encourage it and make it work, or are they clinging to a white bubble and *enduring* the darker skinned newcomers?

The sheer dearth of racial minorities at Lyons Township (LT) should be noted -- if that is important to you I'm afraid you won't find it in most of the towns it serves. Granted, some of this is economic, the rise in real estate prices is extreme. It is not like there is any sort of organized effort to steer people of color away from these areas...

While the percentage of racial minorities is far higher at Oak Park and River Forest (OPRF) High School the trend of achievement is severally bifurcated -- except for the students that enter as top performers success is quite limited.

The record is a bit different at Homewood Flossmoor (HF). To begin with, the school is a majority of minorities. Interactive Illinois Report Card
This is important to understand. OPRF is greater than 60% white. The day-to-day encounters between students and faculty are shaped by this in many ways...

While I would STRONGLY encourage you to investigate all these areas I keep coming back to your statement about "high achieving children" and your employment at UofC -- that builds a very good case for sending the kids to the UofC Lab Schools. Lab School News (http://www.ucls.uchicago.edu/announcements/ - broken link)
The schools are even more committed to the diverstity you seek than OPRF.
You would not be alone in doing so, it is popular option among UofC employees both who live in HydePark and those who commute in. A fair number of folks have their kids ride in from the 'burbs...

[cdc3217]

Originally Posted by NYrules

Check out Homewood or Flossmoor. There is a train that will take you right into the city and the neighborhood is very safe, clean, family friendly, and offers great schools. You can find a very prestigous home with the requirements you want for about $350K right now.

[/url]

I would also recommend Homewood-Flossmoor.

[mia220]

I would also vote for Oak Park. It definitely has a walkable downtown with lots of little stores, restaurants, a movie theater, library, Whole Foods (River Forest) and a forthcoming Trader Joes.

I went through the school system there. Schools have an awesome reputation, are safe, and very diverse.

Housing is pricey, but you could buy a nice small house in the higher end of your price range. Taxes are very high, though.

It usually takes about 20 minutes at the max to get from Austin. Blvd. in east Oak Park to downtown on the blue or green El Train lines. From there you could take the U of C bus that you mentioned.

Hope this helps!