Second City? LA or Chicago?

[jtamay3]

Those studies are all over the place. I read somewhere on this forum showing DC was the worst too IIRC. Either which way, living in Chicago for 29 years and being in LA for a few months now (while also visiting for the prior 6 years or so), I feel like I can help you on this.

COL - Honestly, they are almost the same. The most expensive thing I've seen in LA is insurance. Housing (in terms of renting) is the same. Look up places in Chicago in the desirable areas such as Lincoln Park, Wicker Park, Gold Coast or Streeterville. They're pretty on par with LA. If you're looking to buy a place, then LA is a lot more expensive just because of housing.

Food - Cheaper here; Quality is the same though. You will find great food in either city and love it. They have much better Pizza though. I miss that big time.

Weather - Better here. After being in the high 90s on Monday, the temperature yesterday in Chicago was at 60 for the high. It's supposed to be like that throughout the weekend. 4th of July, the high was 62. The winters are harsh there. In 2013, during the winter, every weekend the temperature was below 0 degrees, or we received significant snow. It will affect your life, your schedule and what you do.

People - LA for myself, I've found friendlier people. Chicago is pretty friendly too, but once in awhile, like in all cities, you will find people who just have a mean look or who don't want to be bothered.

Stuff To Do - Like Food, both cities have tons of things to do. You won't be bored in either city.

[Gabriella Geramia]

Yes, Chicago has traffic too but the CTA is better than driving during rush hour and in LA I would have to get a car. Just can't get around that.

[moonsparkle]

I've lived in both, currently LA.

Both cities are very friendly given you avoid street bums, obvious hoodlums, or some type A personalities that both cities have a lot of. LA is more relaxed & generally has a better vibe, more fashion conscious. Chicago gets a little sports/food obsessed at times. The yuppie parts of Chicago feel too much like an extension of college. Also, it's dominated by midwestern culture. Something I never liked, but some move to the midwest and end up preferring it.

Chicago has a massive skyline, but I personally prefer LA's multiple skylines with the mountain backdrop.

Traffic, I'd say Chicago downtown is worse than anywhere in LA, and that includes Hollywood. LA is a bigger city in terms of land as well, so it really depends where you are. Freeways are always prone to congestion in both cities.

Weather, obviously LA, unless you like 4 distinct seasons with over the half the year being too cold to really enjoy being outside. Every new season is kind of like pushing the "reset" button on an old nintendo, but besides that I never liked seasonal changes much. To be fair, the seasons do change in LA. In winter it rains more often, still gets dark earlier (though not as early as in Chicago), and LA can be cool at night, down the 40s more often than you'd think.

Chicago is on the central/eastern time zone border while still being in central time. I lived in a city about 5 hours west of Chicago and the day/night balance was one of the first things I noticed. Any city on the easternmost border of its time zone doesn't have enough daylight at the right time in my opinion, but the sun does come up extra early if you like that.

[brrabbit]

So, 2 people (who lived both in Chicago and LA) agreed on my assessment of traffic and did not contradict my POV on prices... But obviously, I know nothing and my opinion is a BS.

[Drake744]

Originally Posted by trancedout

Traffic, I'd say Chicago downtown is worse than anywhere in LA, and that includes Hollywood. LA is a bigger city in terms of land as well, so it really depends where you are. Freeways are always prone to congestion in both cities.

Originally Posted by brrabbit

So, 2 people (who lived both in Chicago and LA) agreed on my assessment of traffic and did not contradict my POV on prices... But obviously, I know nothing and my opinion is a BS.

I'm not trying to rain on your need for validation (second poster), but the thing that makes LA worse in the traffic department is actually backed up by the first quote saying (in their opinion) that Chicago downtown is worse that any traffic LA has. If that's true, so be it. LA's traffic all throughout its massive sprawl is what makes it worse than anywhere else. There aren't main pockets of terrible traffic, it's spread out all over the area from Ventura County to Orange County and mainly the (enter obscene word here) that is the LA County freeway system. I've been to Chicago plenty of times. My father's side of the family is from there and I get it....it can be terrible there, no one is disputing that, it's just the wide-reaching awfulness of LA traffic that makes it worse.

[brrabbit]

Originally Posted by Drake744

I'm not trying to rain on your need for validation (second poster), but the thing that makes LA worse in the traffic department is actually backed up by the first quote saying (in their opinion) that Chicago downtown is worse that any traffic LA has. If that's true, so be it. LA's traffic all throughout its massive sprawl is what makes it worse than anywhere else. There aren't main pockets of terrible traffic, it's spread out all over the area from Ventura County to Orange County and mainly the (enter obscene word here) that is the LA County freeway system. I've been to Chicago plenty of times. My father's side of the family is from there and I get it....it can be terrible there, no one is disputing that, it's just the wide-reaching awfulness of LA traffic that makes it worse.

Whatever, I did a lot of driving in LA. It's not great, but not too terrible either. My subjective memories say that it isn't much worse than in any other major city where I was driving - Boston, NYC, DC, Chicago. Maybe, having a good GPS with traffic updates (as I do) helps.

[jtamay3]

Originally Posted by trancedout

I've lived in both, currently LA.

Both cities are very friendly given you avoid street bums, obvious hoodlums, or some type A personalities that both cities have a lot of. LA is more relaxed & generally has a better vibe, more fashion conscious. Chicago gets a little sports/food obsessed at times. The yuppie parts of Chicago feel too much like an extension of college. Also, it's dominated by midwestern culture. Something I never liked, but some move to the midwest and end up preferring it.

Chicago has a massive skyline, but I personally prefer LA's multiple skylines with the mountain backdrop.

Traffic, I'd say Chicago downtown is worse than anywhere in LA, and that includes Hollywood. LA is a bigger city in terms of land as well, so it really depends where you are. Freeways are always prone to congestion in both cities.

Weather, obviously LA, unless you like 4 distinct seasons with over the half the year being too cold to really enjoy being outside. Every new season is kind of like pushing the "reset" button on an old nintendo, but besides that I never liked seasonal changes much. To be fair, the seasons do change in LA. In winter it rains more often, still gets dark earlier (though not as early as in Chicago), and LA can be cool at night, down the 40s more often than you'd think.

Chicago is on the central/eastern time zone border while still being in central time. I lived in a city about 5 hours west of Chicago and the day/night balance was one of the first things I noticed. Any city on the easternmost border of its time zone doesn't have enough daylight at the right time in my opinion, but the sun does come up extra early if you like that.

5 hours west would be out of Illinois and leave you somewhere in Iowa I think.

[jtamay3]

Originally Posted by Drake744

I'm not trying to rain on your need for validation (second poster), but the thing that makes LA worse in the traffic department is actually backed up by the first quote saying (in their opinion) that Chicago downtown is worse that any traffic LA has. If that's true, so be it. LA's traffic all throughout its massive sprawl is what makes it worse than anywhere else. There aren't main pockets of terrible traffic, it's spread out all over the area from Ventura County to Orange County and mainly the (enter obscene word here) that is the LA County freeway system. I've been to Chicago plenty of times. My father's side of the family is from there and I get it....it can be terrible there, no one is disputing that, it's just the wide-reaching awfulness of LA traffic that makes it worse.

But also keep in mind, downtown is the bonafide center of Chicago. Everyone pretty much goes there for work or to have fun. In LA, you can go to BH, Santa Monica, Downtown, Glendale, Hollywood, West Hollywood, Venice Beach, Manhattan, Redondo or any of the studio cities. In Chicago all that traffic congests at one point, downtown. Because that's where everyone is going.

With that said, Chicago has the public transit infrastructure which helps negate a lot of this. If you live on the north side, many routes are served 24/7 which is why you don't even need a car in that city. In LA, public transit isn't as far as it needs to be to make that feasible.

One thing I forgot to add though, is the rampant violence in Chicago. It's a whole lot worse than people want to imagine.

[drunk on kool aid]

Originally Posted by GKelly

Hi,
Not sure where to post this, but I am going to graduate in May and I am trying to decide whether I should relocate to Chicago or LA after. I am from the west coast so LA would definitely be closer to family. A few things holding me back from LA is traffic and it's probably more expensive than Chicago. Chicago seems more affordable but I thought about moving there in the past and couldn't because of the weather. I always wanted to move to Chicago because of Second City. I found out LA has it too so I'm wondering if anybody has experience with Second City in LA? I took an immersive with Second City in Chicago and it was great, but when I saw a show in Second City Toronto I wasn't that big of a fan. So I was wondering about the Second City in LA. Any opinions?

Are you interested in Second City only? LA also has The Groundlings and a branch of the Upright Citizens Brigade as well as others. Chicago, of course, is synonymous with improv/sketch/stand-up. I'm assuming you want a career in comedy?

Here's an interesting article about from where the most SNL cast members hail: Second City vs. Groundlings vs. UCB: Where Do the Most ‘SNL’ Cast Members Come From? - Splitsider.com. The article is dated March 14, 2013 so keep that in mind.

LA was recently cited as being the most unaffordable city based on rent vs. median income. I don't know Chicago at all but from what I've read here, there are lots of affordable areas once you look outside the downtown area. In LA, the coastal areas or the "Westside" in general have the scariest rents. More inland areas are generally reasonable but it all depends on your salary and what type of environment you like.

Forum member, JohnG72, recently made a thread, What rents really are in the LA area - City-Data Forum, that argues that many decent areas are actually affordable by many people.

If you're not familiar with LA, it might be a good idea to make a scouting trip and hit all the improv spots and talk to the folks there.

Good luck.

[Gabriella Geramia]

I forgot to factor in the culture and dating scene. I am more of a west coast girl. I liked Chicago when I visited but I'm not a huge fan of the mid-west culture.