Help needed with downtown Chicago neighborhoods (Addison, Lincoln: apartment, rent, townhomes)

[EmmaConnor82]

I'm moving my family from Northwest DC (great mix of living in the city with lots to walk to with residential streets) to Chicago for work.

My new job is in Randolph St Market and I'm wondering what neighborhoods downtown are very family friendly that I should consider.

Looking for row houses or single family home so that kids and dog have a little outdoor space , $2.5m budget, great for young kids/families with lots you can walk to (playgrounds, library, indoor playspaces, preschools etc - in general we don't drive during the week currently and love it that way), good schools very close by (public or private - will do public if good but won’t move to burbs to get good), and 30min or less commute.

Thanks for any suggestions, I don’t know the city at all!

[chicagobear]

Lincoln Park

[North Shore 770]

I would definitely recommend either the Gold Coast or Lincoln Park! Both have beautiful luxury homes and row houses, and they’re close to Chicago’s best private schools. In addition, both neighborhoods are walkable, safe, and have great public transit to take you to the Loop. The Gold Coast will be more expensive than Lincoln Park, so deciding between the two may come down to what you can get within your budget. Good luck!

[chet everett]

I'd add Old Town to your list. With highly desirable private schools such as Latin and the equally desirable public Walter Payton College Prep the educations options are very solid. Walk to pretty much everything -- https://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/15.../home/14117195

[emathias]

You have a lot of options. There are some townhomes in Lakeshore East, which is mostly high-rises, but surrounding a nice park there are some townhomes. From there you can walk for groceries or a number of dining options and Millennium Park. It is still being built out, so it's not for everyone, but it is a consideration.

The South Loop has some townhomes, as well as some SFHs, and keeps getting more and more walkable.

University Village, South of UIC, also has the mix of homes you seek and a nice walkable strip on Halsted. The biggest drawback is that it's a little disconnected feeling. You can walk to east Pilsen and maybe Taylor Street, but not much else, at least not easily. Taylor Street suffers similarly, it can be nice but is a bit disconnected. It's probably the closest to Randolph Street, though.

The traditional choices would be Lincoln Park, the Gold Coast, and Old Town, though. They're all pretty similar, although Lincoln Park is the most neighborhood-feeling, and is well connected to a lot. All three are near decent schooling options. Personally, with kids, I'd probably go with Lincoln Park south of Fullerton.

There are also a few townhomes and single family homes in River North, toward the West party of the neighborhood, but I don't see a lot of advantage for you there.

Depending on how vibrant you want the neighborhood to be, you could also consider the Ukrainian Village. Lots of nice vintage homes, easy access to the West Loop, and some walkability. If you were around Damen and Augusta, you be an easy walk from both Chicago Ave shops for Ukrainian Village and Division Street for Wicker Park. School options there are less good than other areas, though, but it's a nice, leafy, old-school neighborhood.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by emathias

You have a lot of options. There are some townhomes in Lakeshore East, which is mostly high-rises, but surrounding a nice park there are some townhomes. From there you can walk for groceries or a number of dining options and Millennium Park. It is still being built out, so it's not for everyone, but it is a consideration.

The South Loop has some townhomes, as well as some SFHs, and keeps getting more and more walkable.

University Village, South of UIC, also has the mix of homes you seek and a nice walkable strip on Halsted. The biggest drawback is that it's a little disconnected feeling. You can walk to east Pilsen and maybe Taylor Street, but not much else, at least not easily. Taylor Street suffers similarly, it can be nice but is a bit disconnected. It's probably the closest to Randolph Street, though.

The traditional choices would be Lincoln Park, the Gold Coast, and Old Town, though. They're all pretty similar, although Lincoln Park is the most neighborhood-feeling, and is well connected to a lot. All three are near decent schooling options. Personally, with kids, I'd probably go with Lincoln Park south of Fullerton.

There are also a few townhomes and single family homes in River North, toward the West party of the neighborhood, but I don't see a lot of advantage for you there.

Depending on how vibrant you want the neighborhood to be, you could also consider the Ukrainian Village. Lots of nice vintage homes, easy access to the West Loop, and some walkability. If you were around Damen and Augusta, you be an easy walk from both Chicago Ave shops for Ukrainian Village and Division Street for Wicker Park. School options there are less good than other areas, though, but it's a nice, leafy, old-school neighborhood.

I tend to agree that if the OP is fine with sinking all of their budget into a home that likely will be taxed very heavily and loose value rapidly as Illinois politicians continue to treat insiders at the expense of regular working people Lincoln Park is an obvious choice.


What I would caution is that the bias in many areas, especially those most "vibrant" such as Wicker Park and the expanding West Loop, is very much tilted to "nightlife" which is kind of a challenge with kids. Whether the OP is OK with having to schlep around their home turf with either little kids or deal with some what older kids that will be tempted to act even older to get into nightspots is really a question that only they can answer...

[EmmaConnor82]

Thank you for the suggestions - I'm coming from DC where that budget gets you a rowhouse with central air to fit your family size but not a "luxury" home (in that particularly part of the city, obviously you can go further out to get more house) - certainly happy to spend less here but care a lot about the commute and neighborhood.

Of the places you listed - are any particularly friendly in terms of neighbors knowing each other, having neighborhood events like summer BBQ and kids halloween parades etc? Are any less snotty? Where we currently live in DC is certainly very expensive but is mainly two working parents who want to live in the city to have short commutes and the rowhouses are intermixed with apartment buildings of all income levels. Lots of people from other countries, people drive practical cars b/c they're parked on the streets, in generally its not flashy or a luxury enclaves where people only want people like them and keep to themselves.

[emathias]

With kids in school, you can get to know the parents of other kids in most cases. As far as getting to know your immediate neighbor's, that should be possible in all those places except maybe the Gold Coast. But Chicagoans in general are warmer and more personable than some other cities. Taylor Street and the Ukrainian Village are more old school, so they probably would be slightly more likely to be experiences where you got to know your neighbor's, but really, your own personality and willingness to initiate conversations and form friendships will be more influencial than the specific neighborhood.

University Village, Lakeshore East, and the Dearborn Park section of the South Loop are all planned neighborhoods, so might be a bit more like "luxury enclaves," but the rest are actual, organic neighborhoods that aren't enclaves. I don't know which would be most racially diverse. If I had to guess, I'd say Taylor Street, the University Village, or the South Loop, but none of the areas are lilly white and none are super-diverse so it might matter what block your on as much as anything. Taylor Street and University Village get diversity from the proximity to UIC. The South Loop has diversity from holdovers from pre-gentrification, diverse professionals, and the proximity to Chinatown. Ukrainian Village is maybe the most recently gentrified, so it's diversity is mainly from holdovers from it's pre-gentrification days. My Filipino ex grew up there, it borders Chicago's Puerto Rican neighborhood, and it really does still have a noticable Ukrainian-born population.

[upe]

Ok I'll chime in with my .02 cents. I have lived in Chicago ~10 years and have 2 kids but probably much younger than yours (3yrs and 6 months). Anyways, my first suggestion would be Southport Corridor, specifically the area just west of Southport and a couple blocks north or south of Addison. The whole area is EXTREMELY kid friendly with a nice mix of people and much less snooty than Lincoln Park (where I have also lived). Your budget will get you a very nice SFH in this area.

My second suggestion might not be received too well from people here but look at West Loop. Still plenty of housing options in your price range, although you will end up with less square footage most likely. Where this area really excels is convenience and accessibility. I am a 3-4 block walk from 3 different grocery stores, a block from a park for kids, 20 minute WALK to work, 3 minute drive until I am on the highway, and the absolute best dining options in the city. I have met numerous people at the park with kids and everyone is very friendly. Additionally I will say the diversity in west loop is nice and a noticeable difference from anything you are going to see in Southport or Lincoln park.

[jonnynonos]

Without your '30 minute or less commute' dictate, there are just way too many possible neighborhoods to name. Even with it there are probably too many neighborhoods to name.

a) all over downtown -- this is like living in Manhattan. You should decide if you want that experience or to live in more of a 'neighborhood;' then people will can be able to narrow it down more meaningfully
b) Lincoln Park, Lake View, Old Town are obvious choices to the north
c) West Town, Ukrainian Village, Wicker Park, Bucktown would be the obvious choices to the northwest
d) i'll include gold coast since it's a bit different in character than the rest of downtown

I'd visit and cruise down some streets with a realtor in those areas. but really i would rent for a year. it takes a while to see how your life works. you could find a place you like and move in and three months later find a place you REALLY like, or realize that you've put your kids in decent schools, but you could have put them in GREAT schools with a diferent move. similarly, a commute that looks good on paper can actually be a real pain in the a$$, and you end up wishing you had just bought on that beautiful block a few streets away from work.

Chicago is an absolutely massive city with, as i said, houses in that price range probably available in something like 50-100 different 'neighborhoods.'