Oak Park or Naperville? (Elmhurst, Glen Ellyn: section 8, rentals, crime rates)

[jacquieoh]

We moved to Naperville 2 years ago and live approximately 2 miles from the downtown area in the WestWind estates. We moved from the city due to my husband's job in Aurora. We thought with toddler twins that this would be an ideal place to raise our kids. Having said all that, we are now planning to move to Oak Park next April when our lease here expires. We are definitely quite liberal in our politics and viewpoints but heard Naperville was becoming more centrist as more families like ourselves were relocating from the city. Being a SAHM I joined many many moms groups, local women's organizations, book clubs, etc and have come to realize it is not changing fast enough for us. During the 2008 election, our polling place was lined up and down the street with McCain/Palin signs. My neighbor's Obama sign was stolen the first day she put it up. I did find some like minded individuals but we decided we wanted to live where the majority of people had our same viewpoints, not have to constantly be seeking out people who were more liberal like ourselves. Downtown Naperville has now where near of an urban feel as downtown OP. Having owned a business in Wicker Park at Division/Damen for many years, a thriving, cosmopolitan downtown to me consists of primarily independent restaurants and businesses. Naperville may have a Sugar Monkey and Las Tablas in the bunch but they are far outnumbered by Borders, Catch 35, Restoration Hardware and all the other chains that are located downtown. And whatever one's point of view may be, I have never seen so many bumper stickers on cars professing a certain stand on woman's reproductive rights. I asked my husband if they hand these out along with the welcome packet to the city.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by jacquieoh

We moved to Naperville 2 years ago and live approximately 2 miles from the downtown area in the WestWind estates. We moved from the city due to my husband's job in Aurora. We thought with toddler twins that this would be an ideal place to raise our kids. Having said all that, we are now planning to move to Oak Park next April when our lease here expires. We are definitely quite liberal in our politics and viewpoints but heard Naperville was becoming more centrist as more families like ourselves were relocating from the city. Being a SAHM I joined many many moms groups, local women's organizations, book clubs, etc and have come to realize it is not changing fast enough for us. During the 2008 election, our polling place was lined up and down the street with McCain/Palin signs. My neighbor's Obama sign was stolen the first day she put it up. I did find some like minded individuals but we decided we wanted to live where the majority of people had our same viewpoints, not have to constantly be seeking out people who were more liberal like ourselves. Downtown Naperville has now where near of an urban feel as downtown OP. Having owned a business in Wicker Park at Division/Damen for many years, a thriving, cosmopolitan downtown to me consists of primarily independent restaurants and businesses. Naperville may have a Sugar Monkey and Las Tablas in the bunch but they are far outnumbered by Borders, Catch 35, Restoration Hardware and all the other chains that are located downtown. And whatever one's point of view may be, I have never seen so many bumper stickers on cars professing a certain stand on woman's reproductive rights. I asked my husband if they hand these out along with the welcome packet to the city.

I agree with several of your points. I have railed against the obsession of paid City/Village staff in attracting "national retailers" to the various downtowns -- they do this for several reason, most notably that historically the LANDLORDS that own the spaces suitable for retail prefer the high rents that national retailers are willing to pay (the retailers are used to the rents in Oakbrook Center and Northbrook Court so to have similar demographics they drive out local tenants). Further the city employees operate with data from the retailers that say they have higher sales per sq ft and thus the city's take of sales tax is higher. I doubt that arguments are either universally true or supported by current data -- my experience is that well run locally owned businesses with adequate funding to advertise and draw in sufficient customers are every bit as capable of generating high sales per sq ft AS WELL AS tending to support OTHER LOCAL FIRMS for their adverstising, business expenses and various other needs. This is not what the "big guys" like to hear...

I will caution you that the bumper stickers you see are really not so much a political statement as a statement of solidarity with a particular religious view and that view is also very dominant in Oak Park, though with far more people in Oak Park spending less time in their cars you may not see so many visible signs of that solidarity...

Best of Luck!

[kindrakindra]

I think Chet is trying to say that OP is pretty Catholic as well, so you may find a good number of people who are antichoice in OP. You won't see bumper stickers, and you will see lots of prochoice Catholics. Just my two cents.

[jacquieoh]

I'm not trying to hijack this thread with a discussion on women's reproductive rights, which by the way, a woman's right to an abortion is still legal last time I checked. My point in bringing this up is that the prevalence of cars in Naperville with bumper stickers professing a pro-life viewpoint is something I've never seen before, and I think it points to a larger point of view which is predominant in Naperville. I am a mother of twins who happens to be pro-choice and also happens to respect those who disagree with me on this.. Please respect my viewpoint without resorting to emotional tirades so we can have an intelligent discourse.

[linicx]

Oak Park is a unique Village less than 10 miles from the Loop. If you like green, large mature trees, architectural excellence and a bit of history, you might very well like Oak Park. Here are a couple of links.

The first is to the official home page.

Oak Park Tourist - Touring, Living and Working in Oak Park, Illinois

The second is a virtual tour of the types of housing that might be available. Each has a floor plan and rental details. The non-profit housing centet can help you get settled and possibly offer a short term lease. Click on *Sample Apartments* in the menu on the left. I think you will be surprised

Oak Park Regional Housing Center

Enjoy the tour!

Originally Posted by sethro77

So I'm thinking of taking a job in Lisle with my wife more than likely working downtown. I don't think living in the city is doable based upon my commute (not too close to metra stop). We are both 28, no kids with no plans for any in the near future. We would like to be able to go into the city for weekends for the nightlife, but would like to be able to do a little stuff close by during the week. Does Oak Park offer this? Is the green line safe to ride late at night? Where should you live in Oak Park if you are trying to replicate city living as much as possible (we like Lakeview/Bucktown areas)? We would be willing to spend up to $1600 if the place was awesome, but think $1200ish is more likely. 1 bed, 1 bath over 900 sq. feet with parking for 2 is the only other requirements. A safe neighborhood is required as well. Thoughts?

[kindrakindra]

Seriously? I was just trying to further your point, by pointing out that OP is a fairly Catholic town, and not disagree with it. I am the mother of three (twins included) and would be annoyed by lots of bumper stickers too.

I think the issue is "hot" in Naperville because of that Planned Parenthood clinic in Aurora. I know there was vocal opposition to it, including huge and obvious signs in the Catholic Church not too far from downtown Naperville. I was there for a funeral and wedding within a month of each other and couldn't believe how many signs there were.

[jacquieoh]

Kindra, 2 posts have been deleted that were posted before yours. They were both hostile and incendiary in nature and were directed at my perceived pro-choice stance. I was not directing my comments above at your posting bt at theirs.Sorry about the confusion.

[kindrakindra]

Oh, sorry. Just so you know, I thought your post was really informative. I think you will love OP. Make sure you join West Suburban Moms of Multiples.

[jacquieoh]

We've been spending all our free time in OP to get to know the area well, before we move next spring. I love the children's bookstore in Scoville Square, I love Mancini's and Winberries and Mayo. I love that we are looking at neighborhoods and not subdivisions and that we will be so much closer to Chicago. And yes, I will join the Moms of multiples group, thank you. On the other hand, I will miss the almost absolute safety of Naperville. I have left my door unlocked unintentionally a few times and never had to worry about rushing home to make sure I wasn't burglarized. I'll miss the beautiful Springbrook Prairie preserve which is walking distance from my house. I'll miss the fact that the salespeople here are unfailingly polite and friendly and helpful or my neighbors who all brought us food when we moved in and cleared our driveway for us when we were out of town. Both Naperville and OP are win/win places to live. It's just a matter of choosing which one is more attune with what is the most important criteria for you in a place to live.

[chet everett]

I generally do not believe it is important to move to a town because of your national political affiliation, though I have no real problem with people who do.

I do feel it is worth "defending" Oak Park as a place that in MANY neighborhoods you will find that neighbors DO help one another tremendously and there are PLENTY of folks that leave doors unlatched without problems. Oak Park, and heck even most parts of Chicago itself, is not some hot bed of crime or hostility anymore than the DuPage burbs are some enclave of religious freaks...