What can you tell me about Geneva? (Chicago, Aurora: wood floors, cul-de-sac)

[kirstie707]

Hi everyone,
Thanks for everyone's help on previous posts. I really appreciate it!! Anyway, I was wondering if you could help me with some other questions. I have been told that Chicago traffic is worse than D.C. traffic. Bearing that in mind, can anyone tell me about how long it would take to get to Chicago (downtown area) and O'Hare from Geneva? Also, can anyone tell me what you know about a subdivision called Mill Creek near Geneva? I know they are newer construction which isn't always the best, however being a married couple in our early 30s about to have a baby, we'd love to be some place where we can meet people. The prices of houses in that area are in about our range. Thanks for any help/advice, it is much appreciated! Take care!

[seeriously]

We use to live in Geneva. We lived in a DC suburb too. No way is the traffic in Chicago worse than DC!

Mill Creek is okay but it's on the outskirts of Geneva. To truly 'live in Geneva', try an older house within walking distance to the quaint downtown. I found Mill Creek to be cookie cutter and when you live in a cookie cutter neighborhood you meet cookie cutter people.

[Steve-o]

Mill Creek is nice, with its own golf course, real close to wonderful Delnor Hospital too, its a quiet neighborhood. The homes are a bit pricey, but you get what you pay for. Central Geneva is simply awesome. Lots of beautiful homes, but theyre also expensive. Theyre within walking distance of the wonderful downtown, so its worth it IMO.

To get to O'Hare from Geneva? Expect 1-2 hours easy.

[oakparkdude]

I posted my description of Geneva in response to someone else's question

https://www.city-data.com/forum/chica...tml#post487632

Mill Creek is fine if you're into McMansions and typical cul-de-sac suburbia. Its on the edge of town (right now) so there's not much within walking distance (besides the other houses in the subdivision). You'll have to drive to go shopping (Randall Rd) or the quaint downtown area by the river.

[TheWayISeeThings]

I live around the corner in Aurora, IL. As far as housing goes, there are 3 kinds here: New Contructions, in-town/historic district homes, and older more rural homes.

Mill Creek is on the far western side of Geneva, so further from Chicago and the train stations. Its new construction and I've looked at them myself. As far a builder quality, they are middle of the road. I thought the floorplans were a little small for the price tag, but the property is spacious, contains some retail/office space...nice if you own a small business, and park like. You are a few minutes from every type of retail store imaginable. Waubonsee Community College is 10 minutes away. Schools are good and taxes are through the roof. Expect to pay $5,000+ /year for any new construction. For this reason, it may be worthwhile shopping for an older home. Just be sure to calculate the costs of updating said older home, and whether or not you have the patience for that sort of project. Also, be careful with the house-flipper market. Lots of flippers have lost money as we're heading into a buyers market. And some have cut corners. Those nice wood floors may have been installed badly by inexperienced investors...not a savings if you have to replace them in 5 years.

Geneva, St. Charles and Batavia are all nestled along the banks of the Fox River and are chaming little towns. St. Charles is the largest and has some nice summertime fesivals.

Okay, to answer your real question, drive times. From Geneva to Chicago is about 40 miles. For a weekday, rush-hour commute, I'd plan for a 90 minute drive time. There is a train station in Geneva that will take you downtown. $2/day parking plus about $5/one way fare. Checkout www.metrarail.com

To O'Hare during the day depends on the time you drive. You'd be taking Randall N to the Elgin/O'Hare E to 355/290 N to 90 E. I'll give you a rundown of the majore highways/tollways in the area and commutes/reverse commutes:

I88 (East/West Tollway): Heavy: East in AM and West in PM. Reverse direction is light
I355 (North/South Tollway): Heavy (very) North in AM and South in PM, Reverse direction is very light
I290 (Eisenhower freeway): Heavy between the 294 interchange and Austin almost always, very heavy Eastbound in the AM.
I294 (Tristate Tollway): Heavy both ways between I88 and I94 and O'Hare during normal rush hours.
Elgin/O'Hare: Heavy Eastbound in the AM and Westbound in PM...reverse is OK
I90: Same as Elgin/O'Hare, except that between O'Hare and Chicago, it can become heavy either way at various times each day....O'Hare traffic is not always predictable.

The other roadways I don't know much about. If you plan to travel out of O'Hare regularly, Geneva is not the best location. I'd position myself somewhere along the Metrarail that runs through Arlington Heights/Des Planes, as it goes to O'Hare directly. Or along the CTA Blueline.

Good luck!
Kristin

[TheWayISeeThings]

Another property to consider would be Settlers Ridge. Its a tiny bit more west than Mill Creek and further south. It is, however, easy access to I88 which gives you a more direct route to O'Hare (I88 East to 294 North to the O'Hare I190 connector). They've planned a new metra stop 2 miles from Settlers Ridge which will be up sometime in 2008.

The property has homes and townhomes on site. What I liked about them is that they aren't the boxes with front facades we are used to seeing in new contruction. They have nice character on all sides. And the builder seems to have attention for detail. The property is on 500+ park-like acres with planned trails. It is surrounded by protected land, so it won't become over-built in the future. I would have bought one if I hadn't decided to rent for now.

[kirstie707]

Thank you to everyone for your help! I would love if anyone could answer some more questions. Thanks!
I grew up in a quaint town in Pennsylvania, and have missed that feel living in a town in Maryland where the "downtown" is only a bunch of strip malls. About what price range are the older homes within walking distance to downtown Geneva? (We're looking at spending between 350-450.) Are there young people in the downtown area? In terms of going the Mill Creek route how far is it from there to the downtown area? What are other good areas/subdivisons in Geneva/St. Charles for a young couple about to have a baby/wanting to meet nice down to earth people? Thanks!

[Steve-o]

Geneva has a very nice downtown (not just limited to Rt. 38 either), Im sure youll enjoy it. From Mill Creek to downtown would take about 5 minutes by car. There is also endless shopping along Randall Rd from Batavia all the way past Crystal Lake. IOW, its HUGE! Im not sure about the prices of the older homes, but Im sure theyre quite pricey. There are some townhomes/condos/etc in and near downtown St. Charles and Geneva that should fall into that price range, but I cant be positive. There are some beautiful new ones in St. Charles where the old Piano Factory Mall used to be, I cant recall their names though.

Geneva has its share of old and young folks downtown, but its mostly older folks. St. Charles' downtown is ok, but not as nice as Genevas. However, St. Charles is packed full of nice bars downtown (Pub 222, McNally's, Chord on Blues, Beehive, etc) that attract gobs and gobs of young folks downtown on the weekends. There are also nice trails along the river and decent shopping and good diners in St. Charles as well. If youre in the area, let me know and Id be glad to show you around. I myself am 30 and have a son, so Im right in your age group. Have you thought of Naperville? Its the perfect mix of young/old in downtown, more young on the weekends. Naperville rocks, look into it if you have the chance.

[Drover]

To put it politely, I'm not a fan at all of McMansions, suburban sprawl, isolated/self-contained "cul-de-sac" subdivisions, HOAs with mega-restrictive covenants, SUV culture, Stepfordism, Big Box strip mall development like Randall Road that seems to repeat itself every few miles like a rolling backdrop of an old Hanna-Barberra cartoon while characters are in motion, and all that. "Mill Creep" is what my wife and I like to call the oft-discussed development on the west end of Geneva. But I have to admit, if I had to live in such a development, Mill Creek would be at the top of my list. While there are a lot of McMansions there, a couple of the sub-subdivisions (yes, Mill Creek is so huge that there are actually subdivisions inside the subdivision) try to recreate a more conventional suburban setting; homes are close together instead of on sprawling lots, they have a traditional, modestly adorned Colonial design with a porch in front and the garage in back, et cetera. Once the trees are mature, those parts will actually look pretty nice.

For all its ickiness (at least from one with urban tastes) I will grant that Mill Creek does at least offer a variety of neighborhood "environments" from a recreation of a WWII-era subdivision to standard 21st century McMansionism and I believe even some townhouses.

Not that I'll be looking out there any time soon...

[kirstie707]

Thanks for all of the helpful input from everyone. I am grateful to have the assistance! Growing up in a small, quaint town in PA that is now filled with huge developments with enormous houses I can relate. My question to Drover is since you aren't a big fan of Mill Creek, what other subdivisions, neighborhoods can you suggest in that area that are in our price range 350-450s? Thanks!!!