Urban yet laid back neighborhoods? (Chicago, Lincoln: rent, loft, to live in)

[seapony]

I want to move to Chicago and I'm visiting next month to check out neighborhoods. I've been a couple times before and I have been to Wicker Park, Lakeview East, Lincoln Park and Edgewater. My favorite of those was Lakeview East but I found them all to be good areas.

Ideally I'd like to find a neighborhood with cool architecture that has an urban vibe and lots of shops/restaurants but is somewhat laid back, mid-20s to early 30s type area. My personal interests tend to fall into a somewhat artsy/hipster category as I play guitar and I enjoy thrift store/second hand shopping but I wouldn't want to be in area that takes the hipster thing to an elitist extreme, if you know what I mean. I work as a web developer so an area that has a concentration of start up companies would be a plus. Lastly, I am a young women with a small dog and I intend to use public transit, so safety is important.

Any advice on areas I should check out on my trip is much appreciated. I'll be staying in Wicker Park. Thank you for your help!

[BleedCubbieBlue]

East Humboldt Park, Pilsen, Logan Square. All fit your needs. Enjoy.

[via chicago]

The way I see it, the more urban a neighborhood the less laid back it will be. "Laid back" to me translates to quiet and residential.

Out of neighborhoods with a high concentration of start ups, that would be areas surrounding the loop such as River North and the West Loop. But those are mostly high-rise and loft neighborhoods with probably some of the more expensive rents in the city. Definitely not thrift stores and rock clubs.

I guess it would be helpful to know your budget, and what you did/didnt like about the places you already visited. But out of the places you've visited, Wicker Park has the more "alternative" feel, tho increasingly to a lesser extent as large chains have largely taken over. But most neighborhoods will have a commercial strip, with residential side streets closeby.

Just stuff to consider. I will say, if you want to live in a hipster neighborhood without a high concentration of hipsters...dont know what to tell you. Youre looking for a lot of divergent things all in one place (hipster/not hipster/tech startups/residential in feel, etc)...and that dosent exist. Id narrow down the things that are important to you first.

[Attrill]

Head North from Wicker Park on the Blue Line and check out Logan Square and Avondale. It's safe and has a fair amount of things going on that qualify as "hipster". The highest concentration of tech and start ups is around the West Loop and into River North, and the Blue Line gets you to that area pretty easily. West Town and Ukrainian Village would be work checking out as well.

I haven't had any experiences with anyone taking the "hipster thing to an elitist extreme", but I guess if someone is really insecure they could take some things that way.

[bahiabrazil]

is Logan Square diverse at all? I know there are Hispanics (who are leaving because of gentrification) and whites. Any blacks or asains?. Whats the rent like now?

[rzzzz]

Hip but not really, urban but not too much, somewhat artsy web designer with guitar sounds like the exact description of Wicker Park.

[seapony]

Thanks for all the replies! I know what I'm looking for is a little Goldilocks in essence I'll be checking out all those areas when I visis next month.

When I say laid back, I don't really mean residential; I mean not a rowdy nightlife scene. I'd rather have things to do that are more centered around restaurants and breweries/pubs than sports bars. Just a more mature, down to earth scene.

In regards to the hipster thing, I only mean I wouldn't want to be in an area that caters too heavily to a certain type of person. I'd like variety but to still have access to the things I'm interested in. I live in Denver and many people consider Boulder to be a bit of a bubble of far left, outdoorsy, spiritual types. All fine by me, but a little too much of one mindset in one place for my personal tastes. I didn't know if the areas in Chicago that are more "hipstery" are also kind of a cultural bubble in that regard. Hopefully that gives a little more context as to what I meant.

[Ace Rothstein]

Most Chicago neighborhoods are fairly laid back once you get on the side streets.

[andrew61]

When I think of "laid back yet urban" neighborhoods in Chicago, I think of places like Ravenswood, Lincoln Square, North Center, Roscoe Village... although I'm not sure those nabes have a particularly high "hipster" quotient.

I can't think of any really Boulder-type areas in Chicago.

[5Lakes]

I would look into Bucktown. It's like Wicker Park but is more chill with less busy commercial corridors.