Family Friendly AND Downtown Commute Friendly Places ? (Chicago, Aurora: for rent, houses)

[Shiv]

I am aware that "family friendly" is very frequently asked here , but mu situation is slightly different (and whose is'nt ?), so here goes.

We are late 30ish, with 2 young children (4, 2 months), upper middle class (i.e. we have some money to burn). After I got bit by a crazy dog, I also want to do a part time MBA at UC. This will be at their downtown (Gleacher Center), Classes will be on Tuesdays and Thursdays (6 to 9 pm).

Q1. Any suggestions for neighbourhoods that are both family and downtown commute friendly ?

Q2. Looking at the suburbs (I will be posting this thread there too ), I was kind of interested at Naperville. Lots of Indians, and like it or not, that bit of diversity means something to us. So is Naperville (or any other suburb) to Downtown do-able ?

[reppin_the_847]

Naperville is not a bad option, especially if you can find a way to access the express Metra trains (the expresses skip a lot of stops) to downtown. From what I've heard, parking is really difficult at the Naperville train stations, and there's even a waiting list to get on board. Some options could include taking one of the area buses from your neighborhood over to the train station. Maybe seek out a parking spot for rent nearby the train station. And finally, if you happen to luck out and live walking distance from the station, you'll be good to go. An express train from Naperville to Chicago would probably take about 34 minutes. A non-express on the other hand could easily run more than an hour (69 minutes is what I found on the Metra website). So the difference in travel time between an express & a non-express is very significant on this train line (the distance is about 32 miles from Naperville to Chicago's downtown area). And yes you're right...Naperville, and the western suburbs in general have a very significant Indian population.

That being said, I'd also take a look at the northern suburbs. Glenview (and perhaps its neighboring towns of Northbrook to the north & Wilmette to the east) would be a good area to look at. These areas all have excellent school districts (most of west Glenview gets Glenbrook South, east Glenview & Wilmette get New Trier, and Northbrook gets Glenbrook North). The Metra ride into downtown is probably around 30 to 35 minutes or so from Glenview on an express train. Even a non-express train will only take you about 40 minutes at the most since this town is only about 20 miles from downtown Chicago. Glenview itself has a very large Indian population, and it of course neighbors other suburbs such as Des Plaines, Niles, Skokie, Morton Grove, etc. that have a very large Indian population as well. On top of that, you're really not a far drive from Devon Avenue either when you really need to do some serious desi shopping!

Finally, another option you may want to consider is the Lincolnwood area. If you were to do this, I'd consider private schooling for the kids. You could either drive to the city, or park & ride at the Edgebrook Metra station. You'd be even closer to Chicago, and you can still find some very large houses in the area. Distance from the Loop is about 13.6 miles (you can throw a stone and it will land in the Chicago city limits.

This site will tell you just how congested the parking lots get at each particular Metra station in the Chicagoland area:

http://www.rtams.org/

Originally Posted by Shiv

I am aware that "family friendly" is very frequently asked here , but mu situation is slightly different (and whose is'nt ?), so here goes.

We are late 30ish, with 2 young children (4, 2 months), upper middle class (i.e. we have some money to burn). After I got bit by a crazy dog, I also want to do a part time MBA at UC. This will be at their downtown (Gleacher Center), Classes will be on Tuesdays and Thursdays (6 to 9 pm).

Q1. Any suggestions for neighbourhoods that are both family and downtown commute friendly ?

Q2. Looking at the suburbs (I will be posting this thread there too ), I was kind of interested at Naperville. Lots of Indians, and like it or not, that bit of diversity means something to us. So is Naperville (or any other suburb) to Downtown do-able ?

[Shiv]

or thanks a bunch, as they say it here in MN.

Awesome information !

[acdevane]

I am aware that "family friendly" is very frequently asked here , but mu situation is slightly different (and whose is'nt ?), so here goes.

We are late 30ish, with 2 young children (4, 2 months), upper middle class (i.e. we have some money to burn). After I got bit by a crazy dog, I also want to do a part time MBA at UC. This will be at their downtown (Gleacher Center), Classes will be on Tuesdays and Thursdays (6 to 9 pm).

Q1. Any suggestions for neighbourhoods that are both family and downtown commute friendly ?

Q2. Looking at the suburbs (I will be posting this thread there too ), I was kind of interested at Naperville. Lots of Indians, and like it or not, that bit of diversity means something to us. So is Naperville (or any other suburb) to Downtown do-able ?

Naperville is a wonderful community. Yes, it does have diversity!

If your classes are in the evening, you are good to go. It is most definitely do-able! You can usually find parking spots by mid afternoon without much problem. Or as stated in a previous post you can take the NEW & IMPROVED PACE bus system. Also, just for your info - Naperville is served by not one but 3 train stations. The west part of Naperville is served by the Route 59/Aurora train station. Then there is 5th Avenue Station which services Central Naperville, and east Naperville is served by the Lisle Train Station. All three stations have express routes. In general homes located in North Naperville tend to be pricier than the ones further south, simply because of their easy access to train and expressways.

With young children you will LOVE this community. There's no other like it! We like to think, if you can't find it in Naperville, it doesn't exist. When I refer to it, I mean activity, product, just about anything. Naperville is definitely worth pursuing.

[jak88]

If you are looking for good access to Chicago via driving, anywhere along 55 is a good place to move. Lemont, Romeoville, Plainfield, Bolingbrook, etc. All Southside suburbs. It takes a while to drive to Chicago, but my girlfriends father does it in 35 minutes through the backroads taking Archer, which is closer to Lemont.

As for family friendly schools, Naperville to me would seem like the best place to go. Your children will deal with a lot more snobby children, but a lot less gangbangers like I had to deal with in high school going to Romeoville High School. Not that it was a horrible school, but I would have preferred going to Naperville North, or Neuqua Valley.

Also, Mokena is a great area in Cook county, a little farthur out but they are almost done connecting 55 to Mokena and all of La Grange road, so I have a feeling a lot more people will be moving out towards that area because of how nice it is. More tree lined, not as industrialized, etc.

[nanannie]

There are few towns that do not have "snobby children". There are great kids and not so great kids everywhere,does not matter what town. As far as suburbs, If you are "upper middle class" ,I would definiltly check out Naperville,Glen Ellyn,Elmhurst,Geneva areas. The schools are great, the towns are wonderful for family events and activities, they have nice "downtowns" and are sought after towns should you ever consider selling. In the other direction,North shore area (Wilmette,Winnetka,Lake Forest etc) have all the above and the benefit of that wonderful lake ! All these burbs have metra trains to Chicago.You have some great choices. IMHO,I would skip the South side,,I mean no offense,but I would certainly pick the other areas first, IMHO ! Good Luck to you and your move

[jak88]

Originally Posted by nanannie

There are few towns that do not have "snobby children". There are great kids and not so great kids everywhere,does not matter what town. As far as suburbs, If you are "upper middle class" ,I would definiltly check out Naperville,Glen Ellyn,Elmhurst,Geneva areas. The schools are great, the towns are wonderful for family events and activities, they have nice "downtowns" and are sought after towns should you ever consider selling. In the other direction,North shore area (Wilmette,Winnetka,Lake Forest etc) have all the above and the benefit of that wonderful lake ! All these burbs have metra trains to Chicago.You have some great choices. IMHO,I would skip the South side,,I mean no offense,but I would certainly pick the other areas first, IMHO ! Good Luck to you and your move

I just graduated from high school not too many years ago. When I am talking about snobby communities, I mean it as a ratio to the whole. And Naperville schools have far more snobby children and spoiled rich kids driving nice cars their parents bought them compared to other areas. Of course, people in Naperville do have more money.

I don't understand the issue with the south side, it's nearly as nice as the north in my opinion. I do prefer the north side, but I wouldn't exclude the south suburbs.

Another note to Naperville, they have a wonderful downtown that is always nice to walk around and check out. Lots of cool shops, and good restaurants plus a nice river walk. A college nearby too, so you will see a lot of young people.

[nanannie]

I have no "issue" about the south side.Just a matter of preference and opinion.And I have lived in several areas, Naperville sure doesnt have all the snob kids to itself-there are plenty to go around. I can almost promise,where you have a snob kid,you have a snob parent

[sbd78]

Originally Posted by nanannie

There are few towns that do not have "snobby children". There are great kids and not so great kids everywhere,does not matter what town. As far as suburbs, If you are "upper middle class" ,I would definiltly check out Naperville,Glen Ellyn,Elmhurst,Geneva areas. The schools are great, the towns are wonderful for family events and activities, they have nice "downtowns" and are sought after towns should you ever consider selling. In the other direction,North shore area (Wilmette,Winnetka,Lake Forest etc) have all the above and the benefit of that wonderful lake ! All these burbs have metra trains to Chicago.You have some great choices. IMHO,I would skip the South side,,I mean no offense,but I would certainly pick the other areas first, IMHO ! Good Luck to you and your move

Areas like Orland Park, Lemont, and Frankfort to the south are great towns with great schools and lots of upper middle class residents. They also have great access to the city by train or car and are worth checking out in my opinion.

[sing4him]

You might want to look into Elk Grove Village as well. Not a bad commute at all and it was listed as one of the TOP places to raise a family!! It has a small town feel to it - some GREAT areas!!