Overrated and underrated suburbs Chicago (Aurora, Naperville: tenant, luxury, closing)

[Canaan-84]

Originally Posted by dtcbnd03

You lost me at Naperville. By far and away the best suburb. Exciting centralized downtown. 30 minute express train to union station. Amazing schools. Only downside is not close to the lake like North Shore but you get up into Lake Forest which has awesome mansions and the lake but it is BORING...maybe one or two restaurants downtown that close at 9pm. And this is coming from someone that has lived in Naperville...has friends in Naperville now...and would choose North shore simply because of the lake and proximity to Wisconsin getaways. I wish Naperville could be picked up and moved to the North shore.

And isn’t Aurora (small city) like 10 miles from Naperville? Aurora has museums, forest preserves, aquatic parks, Zoo, etc. Things you’d find in larger cities, I’m sure they are not as grand as Chicago, but you have options if you lived in Naperville.

[mwj119]

Originally Posted by dtcbnd03

You lost me at Naperville. By far and away the best suburb. Exciting centralized downtown. 30 minute express train to union station. Amazing schools. Only downside is not close to the lake like North Shore but you get up into Lake Forest which has awesome mansions and the lake but it is BORING...maybe one or two restaurants downtown that close at 9pm. And this is coming from someone that has lived in Naperville...has friends in Naperville now...and would choose North shore simply because of the lake and proximity to Wisconsin getaways. I wish Naperville could be picked up and moved to the North shore.

You are right to say it's exciting by suburban standards, and that it has the best suburban downtown of the bunch.

But, with the exception of the Downtown Naperville and Naperville Historic District (which are very pretty), there is nothing notable about the neighborhoods. Vast areas of sub developments and strip malls with little connective tissue. It is suburban sprawl, like you'd see in many other parts of the country.

First street view that popped up in some of the "other" Naperville areas:

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7535...7i16384!8i8192

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7963...7i16384!8i8192

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7234...7i16384!8i8192

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7246...7i16384!8i8192

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7687...7i16384!8i8192

So, while what I prefer exists in Naperville, it exists only in very few locations. Compare that to Elmhurst, which is as if Naperville Historic District extended throughout nearly 1/2 of the city. I'll take the latter, with closer proximity to the city and the rest of the MSA.

I absolutely understand the mass appeal - Great downtown, great schools, many areas that fit reasonable family budgets. But if you or I had unlimited budget, is that really where you'd be? I'm not suggesting you said that, but point being, there are more than a dozen places you could find me in the Chicagoland area. "Best" seems like a stretch to be sure.

Overrated wouldn't be the term i'd use for Naperville. I think it's known for exactly what it is.

[SonySegaTendo617]

Originally Posted by marcobed

I grew up in Lincolnwood decades ago.

It was a safe, low tax, near to the city area.

It had been developed in the 1930s as "Lincolnwood" after it was called Tessville for many years. The WPA planted 10,000 trees, and the streets were laid out.

After WWII, it was built up quickly with very solid ranch houses, bi-levels, and the more prestigious houses in the Towers.

The ethnicity was quite Jewish, but not as high as people believed. Many were Irish, German, Greek, Italian-Americans.

The village was 99% white. There were hardly any Asians (Chinese, Indians, etc.).

And the school system with its unique campus of three schools (Todd, Rutledge and Lincoln) was highly regarded.

Only the con side, there was, and is, no downtown. And today the population is predominately Asian-American and the schools are still considered excellent, though the property taxes have shot up substantially and there are many ugly, ostentatious and garish new houses that look like they were built without an architect present.

Speaking of Lincolnwood, I wish that community could do something about the old site of the former Purple Hotel/Radisson/Hyatt. It'd be great, if that land could be redeveloped into something new! OTOH, I really like how the Valley Line bike trail east of Cicero Ave did get a bridge, over Touhy Ave a few years ago myself.

And totally agreed about some of the blah and garish McMansions, that've gone up in some parts of Lincolnwood in recent years. I wish more of the houses on the southwest side of Lincolnwood still put up Christmas and Hannukah lights, but what can you do? My friend's dad is probably right, that slowly more people have retired, or moved away from L'wood in recent years who used to decorate their house.

[fusillirob1983]

Originally Posted by mwj119

You are right to say it's exciting by suburban standards, and that it has the best suburban downtown of the bunch.

But, with the exception of the Downtown Naperville and Naperville Historic District (which are very pretty), there is nothing notable about the neighborhoods. Vast areas of sub developments and strip malls with little connective tissue. It is suburban sprawl, like you'd see in many other parts of the country.

First street view that popped up in some of the "other" Naperville areas:

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7535...7i16384!8i8192

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7963...7i16384!8i8192

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7234...7i16384!8i8192

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7246...7i16384!8i8192

https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7687...7i16384!8i8192

So, while what I prefer exists in Naperville, it exists only in very few locations. Compare that to Elmhurst, which is as if Naperville Historic District extended throughout nearly 1/2 of the city. I'll take the latter, with closer proximity to the city and the rest of the MSA.

I absolutely understand the mass appeal - Great downtown, great schools, many areas that fit reasonable family budgets. But if you or I had unlimited budget, is that really where you'd be? I'm not suggesting you said that, but point being, there are more than a dozen places you could find me in the Chicagoland area. "Best" seems like a stretch to be sure.

Overrated wouldn't be the term i'd use for Naperville. I think it's known for exactly what it is.

As someone who lives in Naperville (literally blocks away from the intersection in the first link), I think this is very accurate. It's a means to an end for many in terms of bang for your buck, and the downtown happens to be nice, schools are good and there's a lot to do. Those are all good things, but it is subdivision after subidivision. I am fortunate to be pretty close to the downtown, but you're absolutely correct, Naperville doesn't have the location advantage of a town like Elmhurst.

[ChiGuy2.5]

Originally Posted by Canaan-84

And isn’t Aurora (small city) like 10 miles from Naperville? Aurora has museums, forest preserves, aquatic parks, Zoo, etc. Things you’d find in larger cities, I’m sure they are not as grand as Chicago, but you have options if you lived in Naperville.

Aurora is great for big city amenities, that's for sure! They have a massive theater, gambling boat, wonderful restaurants, and plenty of museums/parks. The downside of Aurora is that you have good areas and bad areas, much like a larger city. It also doesn't have the best school systems.

Originally Posted by dtcbnd03

You lost me at Naperville. By far and away the best suburb. Exciting centralized downtown. 30 minute express train to union station. Amazing schools. Only downside is not close to the lake like North Shore but you get up into Lake Forest which has awesome mansions and the lake but it is BORING...maybe one or two restaurants downtown that close at 9pm. And this is coming from someone that has lived in Naperville...has friends in Naperville now...and would choose North shore simply because of the lake and proximity to Wisconsin getaways. I wish Naperville could be picked up and moved to the North shore.

Naperville is a fantastic suburb but it's not close to downtown by any means. The 30 minute express trains are only part of the time allocated to travel. You aren't taking travel to/from the train, parking headaches at the station, and your remaining commute once you are at Union into account. I used to take the Naperville express and it still took me the better part of 1 hour 20 mins to get the office. It's a terrible commute for someone working downtown!

Naperville is also one of the few suburbs where you can experience stop and go traffic similar to downtown Chicago. I hate driving through Naperville during rush hour. Just want to be sure I callout the issues with Naperville since people may be looking at this forum for advice.

[fusillirob1983]

Originally Posted by ChiGuy2.5

Aurora is great for big city amenities, that's for sure! They have a massive theater, gambling boat, wonderful restaurants, and plenty of museums/parks. The downside of Aurora is that you have good areas and bad areas, much like a larger city. It also doesn't have the best school systems.



Naperville is a fantastic suburb but it's not close to downtown by any means. The 30 minute express trains are only part of the time allocated to travel. You aren't don't take travel to/from the train, parking headaches at the station, and your remaining commute once you are at Ogilvie. I used to take the Naperville express and it still took me the better part of 1 hour 20 mins to get the office. It's a terrible commute for someone working downtown!

Naperville is also one of the few suburbs where you can experience stop and go traffic similar to downtown Chicago. I hate driving through Naperville during rush hour. Just want to be sure I callout the issues with Naperville since people may be looking at this forum for advice.

Generally accurate about Naperville - my door to door when working downtown was about 70 minutes, with 35-40 minutes spent on the train. 35 minute inbound express and 40 minute outbound express (outbound includes a stop at Lisle). This was pre-pandemic. Of course that can vary based on where you are in Naperville and where your office is downtown. Yep, parking at the station in normal times is rough. I'm sure it's a breeze these days. It's a 57 minute train ride if you catch it late at night on a weekday or 85 minutes on a weekend.

The train goes to Union, not Ogilvie.

[ChiGuy2.5]

Originally Posted by fusillirob1983

Generally accurate about Naperville - my door to door when working downtown was about 70 minutes, with 35-40 minutes spent on the train. 35 minute inbound express and 40 minute outbound express (outbound includes a stop at Lisle). This was pre-pandemic. Of course that can vary based on where you are in Naperville and where your office is downtown. Yep, parking at the station in normal times is rough. I'm sure it's a breeze these days. It's a 57 minute train ride if you catch it late at night on a weekday or 85 minutes on a weekend.

The train goes to Union, not Ogilvie.

Been a few years since I rode the BNSF! Fixed it.

Another great point about the non-express. If you miss the express train, ohhhh boy. Or if you go out for a happy hour which I used to do. I once SPRINTED to the last train and made it but I wasn't home until close to 3am.

[Hiruko]

Originally Posted by SonySegaTendo617

Speaking of Lincolnwood, I wish that community could do something about the old site of the former Purple Hotel/Radisson/Hyatt. It'd be great, if that land could be redeveloped into something new! OTOH, I really like how the Valley Line bike trail east of Cicero Ave did get a bridge, over Touhy Ave a few years ago myself.

And totally agreed about some of the blah and garish McMansions, that've gone up in some parts of Lincolnwood in recent years. I wish more of the houses on the southwest side of Lincolnwood still put up Christmas and Hannukah lights, but what can you do? My friend's dad is probably right, that slowly more people have retired, or moved away from L'wood in recent years who used to decorate their house.

Construction Underway At Lincolnwood's Purple Hotel Site

To the other poster who claimed Lincolnwood is predominately Asian, you must be confusing Lincolnwood with somewhere else. It is not predominately Asian. It is approximately 70% white with a lot of people of Greek origin.

[Master Jay]

Hiruko, good evening!

Ahhhhhh, you gave me a homework assignment.

From what I find, Linconwood is between 25% and 30% Asian-identified. ( 1, in 3 or 4 is Asian).

So I agree with you, therefore, that Lincolnwood could not identify as a predominantly Asian community.

P. S. I still need to give L. Woods a try!!!

[Hiruko]

Originally Posted by Master Jay

P. S. I still need to give L. Woods a try!!!

L. Woods is a pretty good establishment. I don't get over there very often, but they have some pretty good barbecue. Lincolnwood is a lovely community with a lot to offer in a great location.