How common is street noise?

[oak317]

Yes, living on a side street is much quieter. And of course, as Telzey pointed out, there is still noise, like people walking home from bars. My friend lives on a quiet side street in Lakeview and that's the noise he hears. There can also sometimes be construction.

But it's a question of priorities. For me, safety is paramount. I don't like having back-door entrances in rental apartments managed by mediocre companies. There are a lot of break-ins in Chicago, especially in the safer neighborhoods, because that's where the money is. Like Lincoln Park, for example. I don't want to have to worry about a break-in, so I prefer not to have an egress in my apartment. I like living in doorman high-rises and elevator buildings. And oftentimes, in Chicago, the high-rises are off Lake Shore Drive, or on busy streets.

[ChicagoMeO]

Originally Posted by oak317

Yes, living on a side street is much quieter. And of course, as Telzey pointed out, there is still noise, like people walking home from bars. My friend lives on a quiet side street in Lakeview and that's the noise he hears. There can also sometimes be construction.

But it's a question of priorities. For me, safety is paramount. I don't like having back-door entrances in rental apartments managed by mediocre companies. There are a lot of break-ins in Chicago, especially in the safer neighborhoods, because that's where the money is. Like Lincoln Park, for example. I don't want to have to worry about a break-in, so I prefer not to have an egress in my apartment. I like living in doorman high-rises and elevator buildings. And oftentimes, in Chicago, the high-rises are off Lake Shore Drive, or on busy streets.

Thats interesting, i dont like them either - the ones where you can the back stairs and/or fire escape right outside your apartment in a walk up. Then again, the ones like the 4plus1's are not any safer in a way because anyone can walk in behind someone who lets a stranger inside because they feel like they are profiling strangers and not wanting to offend them by saying "who the eff are you and why are you not using your key if you are a tenant"

[Chicago60614]

Originally Posted by Telzey

The problem with your suggestion is that those "quiet side streets" eventually become full of bars and clubs, almost inevitably. WHen I first moved to the corner of Sheffield and Oakdale in 1980, there were exactly two bars: Pops for Champagne right across the street, and an Hispanic bar right at the corner of Belmonst. A few years later, there were eight or nine bars/clubs within just a few block of my place. I went back to Chicago a few years ago and was amazed at how there were still more bars and clubs *everywhere* in my old neighborhood.

The other problem with your solution is that even if you live on a "quiet side street" - hey, guess who parks on that street? The patrons of those bars and clubs in those "busy nightlife corridors". And guess how noisy they are when they stumble back to their cars, and have loud, loud quarrels right underneath your bedroom window at four in the morning? I endured that all the time. So, like I said. Oak Park. Or Elmhurst.

That's one of the loudest areas of the entire neighborhood, I lived right there for many years. Sheffield is in no way a "quiet residential street". It's one of the main commercial streets through the area along with Halsted, Diversey and Belmont. The L has a stop right there a street to the north as well. I've lived all over and Sheffiled and George Street was the loudest area I've every personally dealt with (although it didn't bother me and I loved the location) as far as an apartment, and I've lived on all major roads like Sheridan, Diversey and Kedzie. Sheffield and Oakdale is ground zero for people out going to bars and restaurants, it's split between Lincoln Park, Boystown and Wrigley all within a short walk. If you live there you HAVE to know it's going to be very very loud compared to a vast majority of areas in the city.

That said, most people live on actual quiet side streets, not those main commercial streets. Just go off on the side roads anywhere around there and it's very very quiet compared to any main roads. Mildred, Kenmore, George, etc.

It always amazed me how if you just walk a few hundred feet down to around Mildred and George and all those residential areas how QUIET everything was, it reminded me of being back in a small town in Iowa as far as sound.