Oak Park vs Evanston

Evanston is fantastic and I love living near the lake. I had a friend in OP who loved that, also. But for me, the lake is a big draw all year round, as is the easy commute to the city on LSD, EL or Metra.

Re: integration, it depends where you are. North Evanston is very "north shore" and more like its neighboring Wilmette. Not bad or anti-integration, but it's just a fact that those bigger houses on the north shore attract a less diverse population. Mid to south Evanston is very diverse and well integrated. Our neighborhood school has kids from something like 120 countries. Seriously. I think many are here with their parents at Northwestern, but there's a lot of diversity and integration in the neighborhood as well.

There is a terrific community feel, tons of great parks, lakeside festivals and concerts all summer. Great camps for kids. All kinds of cultural things through NU. Great restaurants and downtown areas. So many people here are originally from here -- they move away for college, etc., and move back from all over the country/world as soon as they have kids because it's such a great place to raise them. I think that speaks very highly of the place.

Re: crime, I feel as safe as I do anywhere walking at night. We've been here for ages and have never had any issues.

Good luck making your choice!

I also live in OP and love it. There is crime everywhere but most of it in OP is theft. There's very little violent crime. And even though I don't have a dog, I don't have a problem being out after dark.

I love my neighborhood! Everyone is friendly and you can't go anywhere without running into people you know. There are a ton of different activities for everyone, from kids to adults. The schools are great.

My family is racially diverse and we fit right in. So many families in OP are that people don't seem to notice anymore. Our friends are all colors of the rainbow. I can't imagine raising my family anywhere else. (FYI-I've been there for 12 years).

I also love the accessibility. I work downtown and take the L in to work. I've actually got a choice of 2 L lines and the Metra so getting into Chicago is easy. The Eisenhower is right there so I can jump on it and get to any suburb very easily.

OP has a small town feel in a fairly cosmopolitan community. You should have been at the July 4th parade-the scouts and the kids' baseball teams marching down the street, very Norman Rockwell but it's also got Frank Lloyd Wright and tourists from all over the world coming to view his works. There's really something for everyone here.

Hi, L.,

I'm not an expert, but I did grow up in Evanston (and my parents still live there). It isn't well integrated at all. I have heard, from people who live in Oak Park, that it's much better integrated.

Best of luck,
R.

I love OP!! It FEELS like home. After moving away ten years, I came back to raise my children here. There was no other place on my list.

I have never felt unsafe here.

OP is so diverse that I don't think most people even see the diversity anymore.

OP makes it a point to have economics integrated, ie, Section 8 housing isn't only allowed in a certain area, or certain street.

People say hello to you on the street & if you go to a local ice cream shop, business, the workers chat with you, it is nice.

We are right next to River Forest & as soon as you cross the street, I swear, the snobbery drips in the air. I can not stand that.

I also love the quick accessibility to the city. We often take the L to the city & explore there.

Obviously, OP is perfect to me!!

This is a great question. We are debating between Oak Park and Evanston as well (but leaning towards Oak Park because its closer to hubby's job).

Are people happy with Oak Park schools and city services for the most part? The property taxes are on the higher end of all the suburbs we have considered, so we're wondering if people feel like they're getting the most bang for their buck. Thanks!

They are both great places. I agree with the other post that Evanston is not very well integrated. I don't know about Oak Park, but I would expect that it is more integrated than Evanston.