Elgin -- where to live within easy commuting distance? (Chicago: apartment, construction)

[maclock]

Elgin, I gather, is rough around the edges. I'd rather live in a safe, nice place, so if Elgin isn't quite up to standard, are there some decent towns/cities with walkable downtown areas in close proximity that are on the same METRA line? I'm looking at a job out near Big Timber station and would appreciate some recommendations on good places nearby. Thank you in advance for any suggestions that you might have to offer!

[knitgirl]

I lived in Elgin for 18 years until I got a job in Chicago and moved back to the north side. I enjoyed my time living there and never had any problems. To be honest, I think a lot of the reason for Elgin's reputation is there are more brown people living there than other suburbs. I don't think there are any towns on that METRA line that have interesting downtowns. I grew up in Roselle and still have family there. It HAS a downtown, but there's not much to it. Why do you want to be on the same train line? If you think you'd want to take the train to Elgin and then walk to work, I'd rethink that. The area around Big Timber isn't all that walkable, and you'd be reverse commuting and there aren't as many trains going in that direction, so if you miss your train, you'll have quite a wait.

[maclock]

Originally Posted by knitgirl

I lived in Elgin for 18 years until I got a job in Chicago and moved back to the north side. I enjoyed my time living there and never had any problems. To be honest, I think a lot of the reason for Elgin's reputation is there are more brown people living there than other suburbs. I don't think there are any towns on that METRA line that have interesting downtowns. I grew up in Roselle and still have family there. It HAS a downtown, but there's not much to it. Why do you want to be on the same train line? If you think you'd want to take the train to Elgin and then walk to work, I'd rethink that. The area around Big Timber isn't all that walkable, and you'd be reverse commuting and there aren't as many trains going in that direction, so if you miss your train, you'll have quite a wait.

I know the area around Big Timber isn't really walkable, but for those days when the car is in the shop or on the fritz, for bad weather days, for periods of road reconstruction, or for those weekends when I'd like to go into the city, having the train close by is somewhat handy. Also, some older towns and cities built little downtowns around their train stations, so I thought that some of the station areas out that way might offer what I'm looking for. I don't know much about Elgin and environs, I'm afraid. I've tooled around Franklin Park a few times, but that's about the extent of it.

[flamadiddle]

St. Charles or Geneva.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by maclock

Elgin, I gather, is rough around the edges. I'd rather live in a safe, nice place, so if Elgin isn't quite up to standard, are there some decent towns/cities with walkable downtown areas in close proximity that are on the same METRA line? I'm looking at a job out near Big Timber station and would appreciate some recommendations on good places nearby. Thank you in advance for any suggestions that you might have to offer!

Originally Posted by flamadiddle

St. Charles or Geneva.

Realistically the reasons that Elgin is "rough" (and not just around the edges but at its core...) is that the primary reason for its existence was as a manufacturing town. The factors that have hurt manufacturing jobs have really cut into the income of its residents.

There are a handful of firms with modern facilities in the area and of course the layer of "professionals and service sector" workers that live in the nicer areas like South Elgin (parts of which are served by the far more desirable St. Charles schools) but overall the OP would probably do better seeking out an apartment in the core of Geneva if they really want a walkable type downtown. Heck some weekends Geneva is so "bustling" that traffic is an issue...

Big Timber is never going to offer the kinds of entertainment options as Geneva or even St. Charles -- the developments along the Fox River are quite nice.

[aga412]

Originally Posted by chet everett

Realistically the reasons that Elgin is "rough" (and not just around the edges but at its core...) is that the primary reason for its existence was as a manufacturing town. The factors that have hurt manufacturing jobs have really cut into the income of its residents.

There are a handful of firms with modern facilities in the area and of course the layer of "professionals and service sector" workers that live in the nicer areas like South Elgin (parts of which are served by the far more desirable St. Charles schools) but overall the OP would probably do better seeking out an apartment in the core of Geneva if they really want a walkable type downtown. Heck some weekends Geneva is so "bustling" that traffic is an issue...

Big Timber is never going to offer the kinds of entertainment options as Geneva or even St. Charles -- the developments along the Fox River are quite nice.

Echoing the Tri-Cities (Batavia, Geneva, St. Charles) suggestion. South Elgin wouldn't be bad either. Or Campton Hills.

[knitgirl]

OP was looking for towns on the SAME TRAIN LINE as Elgin.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by knitgirl

OP was looking for towns on the SAME TRAIN LINE as Elgin.

The OP is unlikely to actually be able to rely on any sort of commuter services unless their job is within walking distance of the Big Timber stop and even then it would require walking in areas with really no provisions for pedestrians -- https://binged.it/2kqxCpj

As others have pointed out, the various towns along the MD-W line are not among the most well developed and few have any real "hub" near there train stations because the addition of commuter service was not an integral compared to towns that had more of a history or passenger service and more upscale office workers...

[knitgirl]

Both the OP and I commented on that above.

[ipkl07]

Originally Posted by flamadiddle

St. Charles or Geneva.

Yep