Potential relocation from uk. British school of interest but where to live? (Chicago: 2014, to rent)

[chirack]

Itasca is really too far from Chicago to commute to(You can but it would hurt shall we say). That kinda rules the British School out. Commute times are just as important as schools since a bad location could easily cause one party or the other to have an hour or more drive. Palatine, Glen Ellen and Wheaton are probably better locations than the city of Chicago in this situation.

[Finp06]

At present My husband leaves the house at 6.30am to get a train to London to be at his desk before 8am. He gets home for around 7.45pm. He used to drive 60 miles to his last office. We would expect him to do some sort of commute. I would happily drive the kids to school for half an hour if it means its the right school. Although what half an hour commuting time gives me in miles - who knows!
He is back tomorrow so I'll get a better idea about his thoughts as he has just had it confirmed we will be relocating as long as we want to.
Having just got a great tan on Sanibel maybe I should push for the Miami office!! At least I could hit the beach when it all got too much!

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by Drover

This kinda narrows it down a bit: "at present we live in an affluent area south of London..."

Lol did not see that. Doh

[chirack]

Originally Posted by Finp06

At present My husband leaves the house at 6.30am to get a train to London to be at his desk before 8am. He gets home for around 7.45pm. He used to drive 60 miles to his last office. We would expect him to do some sort of commute. I would happily drive the kids to school for half an hour if it means its the right school. Although what half an hour commuting time gives me in miles - who knows!

Understand and half an hour isn't too crazy a drive but that is Itasca is probably a little more than an hour with traffic out of Chicago and driving will probably be his only option and a snow storm could double his commute.

There is a Metra Station(commuter rail) in Itasca and one a short distance away in wood dale but there could be a problem with getting from the station to the office(i.e. lack of bus service or sidewalk for safe walking esp. in snow). If there is a way to get to the location from the station (sometimes companies run shuttles, PACE is the suburban bus system) then it could be possible to stay in the City of Chicago near the Metra Line and not have an insane drive to work or school.

If there is a Chicago office for his company esp. in the loop it would give him the maximum amount of freedom as to where he could locate and be close to that particular school without getting a bad commute because the loop is well served by public transit. The burbs are much more iffy and distant in that department. If he were working in the loop, the north side, west side, or near south side it would be very easy to locate in an area close to both the British school and his work.

To give you an idea of scale, during Rush hour on the expressway oak park would be the closest burb to downtown Chicago via the expressway and it would take about 30 mins in rush to drive it. Is is only 15 non rush from downtown to give you an idea of just how bad it can get on I290. From downtown to O’hare airport(on I90/94) during rush can push 40-50 mins all by itself and that expressway is notorious for getting jams outside of rush. The problem is both distance and traffic. Rush hour in Chicago is about 6:30 to 8:30.

Otherwise for the sanity of all parties involved (parents, co-workers, children, everyone in your house hold, pets) you do not want to live in Chicago and drive to Itasca daily. Trust me there are some very good suburban schools that can give a reasonable commute to Itasca. Here is a link with some information you may find handy about schools in the us and about us life in general:

http://britishexpats.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=57

He is back tomorrow so I'll get a better idea about his thoughts as he has just had it confirmed we will be relocating as long as we want to.
Having just got a great tan on Sanibel maybe I should push for the Miami office!! At least I could hit the beach when it all got too much!

LOL, well we do have beaches here but Miami has nothing to worry about from Chicago's beaches and rightnow I would love some nice warm Miami weather.

[Drover]

Heh, seriously. Spring in Chicago has been a frigid pile of suck this year. We're actually looking to get flurries this morning. Didn't we already have several weeks in the 70s and 80s by this time last year?

On the other hand... Miami summers... I think I'd rather go about my daily business in a sauna. At least they tend to be dry.

BUT... if you are truly interested in a genuine beach-type lifestyle... yeah, Miami is a no-brainer. Just be sure to brush up on your Spanish.

[Finp06]

Ok so Chicago is happening for sure. We are only going for 3 years or so. The schooling has to be right for us to fit back into a UK system. The British school meets this target but the area is an awful place to live for husband working in Itasca. So now looking at private school option or truly excellent state schools.
Advice appreciated

[marothisu]

Post on the suburbs forum about this IMO.

Itasca is pretty far out there. My small about of knowledge of the area tells me to maybe look in the suburbs of Mt. Prospect, Hinsdale, Arlington Heights....

[acrossthepondagain]

Hello, I was reading your posts about moving to Chicago and deciding where to live, choosing the right schools, etc. We are also moving from the UK to Chicago in July 2015, and are facing the same decisions re schools, commutes, etc.

We have three children, 8, 7 & 3. The eldest two are in an excellent local state school in Brighton, and I am looking at state schools in Chicago suburbs vs private options in the city. We are all going over at Easter for a fact finding mission, looking round neighborhoods, schools, etc.

Have you made any decisions yet or found out any further info? I am also reading an interesting book comparing different education systems which you might find interesting - "the smartest kids in the world and how they got that way".

Would love to compare notes/research/dilemmas!

[nana053]

Originally Posted by acrossthepondagain

Hello, I was reading your posts about moving to Chicago and deciding where to live, choosing the right schools, etc. We are also moving from the UK to Chicago in July 2015, and are facing the same decisions re schools, commutes, etc.

We have three children, 8, 7 & 3. The eldest two are in an excellent local state school in Brighton, and I am looking at state schools in Chicago suburbs vs private options in the city. We are all going over at Easter for a fact finding mission, looking round neighborhoods, schools, etc.

Have you made any decisions yet or found out any further info? I am also reading an interesting book comparing different education systems which you might find interesting - "the smartest kids in the world and how they got that way".

Would love to compare notes/research/dilemmas!

Before you decide which suburb, where will you be working? What is your budget? People can help more with this information. Also post in the Chicago suburbs forum.

[richixs]

Hi,
we are also moving to Chicago in August 2015. we have 2 children, my daughter is 7 and my son is 9. We are going to find a house in may. we are thinking lincoln Park area so it is near the children's school. would also love to share notes/research as i have never been!
many thanks