Job in Park Ridge (Chicago, Lincoln: condos, big house, neighborhoods) - Illinois (IL) - City-Data Forum

chicago23 · 03-12-2013, 03:13 PM

My husband is considering in Park Ridge so we're researching where to live. We're a young family (one toddler and a baby on the way) and currently live in northern Virginia near DC. We lived in downtown Paris (without a car) for a year with our toddler so we have some family city living experience. Lincoln Park is attractive to us as we value community feeling and being able to walk places far more than having a big house. Would a commute from Lincoln Park to Park Ridge (right by the airport) be terrible? At first I thought it would be against traffic but, according to google maps traffic, it can be bad going either way... Also looked at the train options and there doesn't seem to be a direct line from Lincoln Park to the airport so, if I'm doing it right online, it appears it would be over an hour on the train. Comments from people who are familiar with the area would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

JBVirtuoso · 03-12-2013, 03:39 PM

Yeah, there's not really a fast way to commute from Lincoln Park to Park Ridge. If the job is near the Park Ridge Metra station, you might look into the area around the Clybourn station in Chicago. The western parts of Lincoln Park are not too far from there. You could also look a bit further north into Lincoln Square and Ravenswood, which are also great neighborhoods for families, but I'm not sure that would save you much commute time. Is there a certain upper bound on commute times that you have in mind? I would think the tolerance for a train commute should be higher because it doesn't involve constant attention to the road. You might also want to provide us with some budget guidelines or other things you might be looking for so we can give you some more specific advice.

marothisu · 03-12-2013, 04:10 PM

I would check out where in Park Ridge the work place is. The public transit is worse in the suburbs, although does exist. Check to see if it's near a Metra (Commuter Rail) station or the work place offers shuttle service from the metra station to the workplace
.
I second Lincoln Square or Ravenswood, or North Center. Due west of them (especially parts of North Center) is a Metra station which goes up to Park Ridge. It would be not too long bus ride to get to the station, and not that long of a ride to Park Ridge from there. All three of these areas are great for families by the way IMO.

MassVt · 03-12-2013, 04:30 PM

Perhaps they should just consider living in Park Ridge, which is a pretty nice community..

chicago23 · 03-12-2013, 04:52 PM

Thanks for the replies. I'll confirm the cta station soon. Our budget is likely in the $600s. We'll look into the other areas that you've suggested. What are your thoughts on a driving commute from Lincoln Park to the airport area? Too much traffic? Google maps says about 35mins with traffic during standard commute times but I know google maps can way underestimate average traffic times (in our area near DC anyway).

key4lp · 03-12-2013, 04:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chicago23

My husband is considering in Park Ridge so we're researching where to live. We're a young family (one toddler and a baby on the way) and currently live in northern Virginia near DC. We lived in downtown Paris (without a car) for a year with our toddler so we have some family city living experience. Lincoln Park is attractive to us as we value community feeling and being able to walk places far more than having a big house. Would a commute from Lincoln Park to Park Ridge (right by the airport) be terrible? At first I thought it would be against traffic but, according to google maps traffic, it can be bad going either way... Also looked at the train options and there doesn't seem to be a direct line from Lincoln Park to the airport so, if I'm doing it right online, it appears it would be over an hour on the train. Comments from people who are familiar with the area would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

If your considering Lincoln Park but working in Park Ridge, I would recommend living in Park Ridge. PR
is close to the CTA and there is a Metra train in Edison Park (Chicago) which is adjacent to Park Ridge.
The price of homes and taxes are similar. Park Ridge is an older established suburb with a very good
school system and has a nice downtown area. I lived on the Chicago side (Edison Park) so I am very
familiar with the area. You will find some lovely homes there.

marothisu · 03-12-2013, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chicago23

Thanks for the replies. I'll confirm the cta station soon. Our budget is likely in the $600s. We'll look into the other areas that you've suggested.

$600,000 or $600/month rent?

Quote:

What are your thoughts on a driving commute from Lincoln Park to the airport area? Too much traffic? Google maps says about 35mins with traffic during standard commute times but I know google maps can way underestimate average traffic times (in our area near DC anyway).

Yeah, it depends on the time of day and also what's going on. In the morning you can easily avoid it if you leave early enough (say before 7 or 730am). The afternoon commute back can be a lot worse. It can easily take an hour or more sometimes if there's enough traffic.

The Cubs' stadium (Wrigley Field) is in Lakeview, right north of Lincoln Park, so if there's a game going on, you could see extra traffic from that too.

I will re-iterate again about Lincoln Square/Ravenswood, which is closer to Park Ridge. Those neighborhoods are great. Stuff to do, but still quiet and even the Mayor lives there. Right on the Brown Line too which is a short trip to a lot of north side areas (i.e. Lakeview, Lincoln Park, "downtown", etc). It's also next to one of the most racially mixed areas in the entire US, Albany Park. A lot of nice single family homes in the area, but some are more expensive than other areas. Still some good deals and of course the condos are less expensive as usual.

This video is unfortunately like 3-4 years old, but still not a bad overview:

A little older even:

chicago23 · 03-12-2013, 05:32 PM

Sorry I meant $600,000s.

Thanks so much for the advice. Will watch the videos tonight with my husband. Much appreciated!

Drover · 03-12-2013, 05:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MassVt

Perhaps they should just consider living in Park Ridge, which is a pretty nice community..

That said, gotta be mindful of airport noise out there and other areas near there.

Drover · 03-12-2013, 05:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chicago23

Thanks for the replies. I'll confirm the cta station soon. Our budget is likely in the $600s. We'll look into the other areas that you've suggested. What are your thoughts on a driving commute from Lincoln Park to the airport area? Too much traffic? Google maps says about 35mins with traffic during standard commute times but I know google maps can way underestimate average traffic times (in our area near DC anyway).

It can be brutal at times particularly on the return trip where you're fighting inbound traffic from the airport. Additionally the inherent problem with the reverse commute along the Kennedy expressway corridor is that you'll always have the express lanes working against you. (The Kennedy expressway has reversible express lanes from downtown out to about Montrose Avenue.) My wife works right on the Chicago/Park Ridge border near the airport and her drive home can take up to an hour. And we're several neighborhoods closer to Park Ridge than you would be in Lincoln Park.