Western Just North of Chicago Ave - Ukranian Village (Augusta: rent, house)

[goblinmason]

Thinking about getting a place in this area... (Still haven't ruled out Pilsen if you've seen my other thread )

The place is actually a block west of Western and a block North of Chicago if it matters...

1. Is this area pretty safe? It seems so from what I can tell...How about at nighttimes? Can a female go out at night by herself and be ok?

2. Anyone live here? How do you like it? It seems pretty quiet, but I hear stuff to do is pretty close. (Not that I mind the quiet.)

3. I plan on taking the Metra to the loop...it seems like the best way as far as I can tell.

You were all a BIG help in the Pilsen thread - Keep up the good work!

-Craig

[Drover]

I'd rate it one small step above Pilsen. It's not too bad, but it's right at that threshold where I would recommend minimizing the "strolling alone at night" factor especially if one is of the female persuasion. I particularly wouldn't wander too far west.

[chet everett]

Sounds to me that if you and your pal spend a lot time wandering around late and night you'd be better off shopping for a safer neighborhood. Generally there are smaller older places in the better areas that rent for the same money as the bigger newer places in the dicey areas. You would seem ideal for the latter...

If you are hoping for a big place in a great area cheap, OR just want the cheapest place anywhere that is NOT a good strategy at all. There is a thread from someone that CLEARLY did not understand that the worst areas are cheap becuase they are NOT desirable places to live...

[Irishtom29]

Just watch out for Cossacks.

http://i254.photobucket.com/albums/hh92/Irishtom29/19013.jpg (broken link)

[dddane]

i live within 2 blocks or so of where you describe.. i would say it's safe, even at night.

personally, i don't like going more than two or three blocks west of that late (but i'm also closer to augusta, chicago is just more dead west of there). it's not that it gets unsafe further west, but the hoodlums stand around and kinda loiter on their porch ... (well it does get unsafe further west, but not that soon). on my block there's one house where hoodlums hang out but they're more of an annoyance than anything, i think they travel west if they're going to cause trouble.

there are a few new restaurants on chicago right there (nxxt, etc), i'd say it's a good area to be going into right now. also a few blocks north is the empty bottle, a great music joint... and paired with that is Bite, one of my favorite restaurants in chicago, byob too (just went there last night actually)

[goblinmason]

Ok, so I'm feeling a bit better about the area...however, the commute to the Loop doesn't seem easy. Is the Metra my best option? How about getting to other parts of the city?

[dddane]

i personally take my scooter... but during the winter i go east down division or chicago to the blue line. sometimes i'll take the western bus north to the western blue line. basically if you stand at the corner of either division/western or chicago/western you'll probably not wait more than 2 minutes for a bus during rush hour... i hop on whichever comes first... or i actually really like walking the15-20min walk east to the blue line, even in the winter i enjoy the walk. google recommends me taking the western ave bus to grand east...

i've never taken the metra from here, mainly because the station it lets off at isn't very near to my work. if i worked within a 5 or 10 minute walk to that station (union station i believe?) it would probably be the best option...

dealing with the bus/el situation in this area can be frustrating sometimes... it's really not that bad when things are goign smoothly but if anything is delayed it gets frustrating. i used to commute on the metra from the south side and really miss it, it probably took half the time to travel twice the distance... it's soooo much nicer than the cta. and quick. it's probably a 10 minute train ride at the most from that stop, and price-wise i think it's the same price as the cta from that stop if you buy a 10 ride or monthly

going out in other areas... it's a close walk to the restaurant strip on division in wicker park (10-15 mins depending on speed)... though lately it really seems like chicago ave is becoming the new hotspot for restaurants. i've taken to the bus to lakeview, it's relatively quick, the western bus is a pretty great bus line as far as frequency goes, and from division and chicago there's an express bus that skips the small stops in between... i usually take a cab back if i'm going out in lakeview or lincoln park or somewhere though.

[Drover]

Originally Posted by goblinmason

Ok, so I'm feeling a bit better about the area...however, the commute to the Loop doesn't seem easy. Is the Metra my best option? How about getting to other parts of the city?

Metra is your best option for the loop. As for the rest of the city, both the Western and Chicago bus lines run 24/7. They are your lifeline to other parts of the city and other transit connections, such as the Blue Line train.

[psr13]

Is this area one of the bad ones? Augusta and Rockwell. The rent seems to be quite cheap.

[Avengerfire]

Originally Posted by psr13

Is this area one of the bad ones? Augusta and Rockwell. The rent seems to be quite cheap.

It is not very far from Chicago and Western. Off the top of my head I really do not think it is much better IMO.