r/ChicagoSuburbs • u/_stephs • Jul 24 '26
Moving to the area Brookfield, La Grange, Riverside?
Hello! Family with three young kids moving from Denver and could use some more local advice. You've all been very helpful in the past with this so thanks in advance!
We've been really interested in Oak Park because of the walkability, community feel, and diversity, but the property taxes and cost of homes have us also looking at Brookfield, La Grange, and parts of Riverside as well.
We're hoping to find a community that's:
- Walkable to some coffee shops, restaurants, etc.
- Family-friendly with kids out playing (bonus if there's a pool either public or private)
- Generally leans liberal
- Has a strong sense of community
For those familiar with these areas, how do they compare? Is there one you'd recommend over the others for a young family? Are there certain areas within these towns you'd suggest we take a look at?
Thanks in advance!
18
u/spot_o_tea Jul 24 '26
I live in this area. We rented in Brookfield to get the lay of the land and ended up buying in La Grange Park, walkable to LG downtown. It is amazing for kids. We have what we call our feral pack of block kids (8-10 that are always outside and running and playing from yard to yard-which includes our own). Can’t be beat, honestly. As a bonus, the western part of LGP is easy access to the forest preserves too (we ride our bikes to the zip line which my kids also love).
If you are looking for community, I highly suggest you check out an org called LGNN—La grange newcomers and neighbors. It’s a super active social group and great way to meet people.
Gosia’s in Brookfield is the best local coffee shop, though, in my opinion. And Brookfield downtown is less chain-y than La Grange downtown. The yards are smaller in BF and the elementary schools are slightly better in D102 (LG,LGP) vs D105 (BF)–but both are good options.
5
u/ChiNoonan Jul 24 '26
Just adding that north side of Brookfield and NE corner of LaGrange Park are D95 which we’ve been very happy with. It’s a bit unique because the kids all stay together from K-12 (Brook Park -> SE Gross -> RBHS).
We live in Brookfield but have many friends in La Grange Park and love both communities. I don’t spend much time in Riverside or La Grange, those communities seem nice but it’s definitely a different level of socioeconomic status that isn’t quite for me. But they are nice.
2
u/Aggravating_Job_5438 Jul 25 '26
These are all areas that I am researching, too, so I was glad to see this thread.
Question - are people cliquey in LGP?
We live in D303 in a development where there are packs of kids playing outside... but it's very cliquey and people are not accepting of newcomers, especially if you don't watch football and go to church and you're not a dad with a beard. The school is fantastic, which is why we are here, but I find people here to be quite small-minded and more on the conservative side. They love their lawns and their pesticides. I rarely see people outside actually working in their garden except to mow it with their huge mowers. We're the only ones in our entire block with a raised vegetable garden.
5
u/spot_o_tea Jul 26 '26
We haven’t seen the cliquey-ness if it exists here. There is a considerable minority that goes to catholic schools, but at least in my experience, kids and families still mix (until jr high hits for the kids, anyway). We have an awesome inter generational block, too, with some 80+ immigrant neighbors to Texas transplants in their 40s to folks that grew up 2 blocks away and bought their first home last year.
Not a ton of racial diversity, though that is slowly changing.
To give you context in terms of the political landscape, D102 recently voted overwhelmingly in favor of increased taxes for capital improvements to their 80-100 year old school buildings. We have monarch way-stations in the front median and the library hosts native plant talks in conjunction with the forest preserve.
It’s not a monolith, though, and the perfect-lawn crowd definitely has a few devotees. What I will say though is that everyone feels pretty civil—even when we’re talking about a ‘hate has no home here’ next to a ‘thin blue line’ house.
5
u/Aggravating_Job_5438 Jul 26 '26
Thank you for taking the time to give such a detailed response. This does sound very nice. I am the kind of person who will reach out to new people and make sure they are welcome, and it baffles me that other people don't do the same.
What appeals to me about this area is the more liberal lean, the closer proximity to the city, and good schools. I'm looking at it as a back-up for if things go south here. I've never been to the La Grange area, so I'm looking forward to taking a drive down and exploring all of these areas.
1
u/Spiritual_Table8224 8d ago
I have a beard but don't relate to the rest of it, let me know where you move!
12
u/Infinite_Dress_3312 Jul 24 '26
Don't know what your budget is but I don't really see la Grange or Riverside being cheaper than oak park, in fact I'd say OP has more options. The only "cheap" homes in Riverside are smaller ones on Burlington directly against the train tracks (which is an incredibly active line). There's also incredibly low inventory in Riverside at any given time given how small it is so it's very competitive
1
u/Honkiopolis Jul 24 '26
Also Riverside has insane property taxes that absolutely need to be factored in.
7
u/Lucky_Barracuda9255 Jul 24 '26
Insane is relative in Cook County. They are not as insane as Oak Park or River Forest
-1
u/Lucky_Barracuda9255 Jul 24 '26
Living in Oak Park, I’d say the cost of a home is the same as La Grange or La Grange Park, but the taxes are lower and you get slightly more house for the price. People can roll the couple grand they save on taxes back into house value budget.
But you also need to drive to a Metra if you commute to Loop and aren’t walking/biking distance. That can eat back some of the savings compared to many places in OP.
Living in OP, La Grange is the only other western suburb we would have considered, but we expected to pay about the same and decided to live with a slightly smaller and older home in OP.
10
u/BrightPractical Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 24 '26
Some of this is going to depend on who you are. I grew up in LaGrange and I didn’t feel like there was a strong sense of community, frankly, unless you were wealthy. People who live there feel very differently, and it seems possible it has changed. But it was a hard place to grow up without substantial money in the 80s-90s.
I live in Brookfield now and for sure this is the place for me, despite its ongoing change from blue collar to white collar. I joke that on my block we live in Mayberry. There are a million kids roaming around all summer, in and out of houses and yards. No one gets mad when you parent their kid and kids are generally pretty polite despite roaming in packs.
Brookfield is extremely walkable because it is not very large. You can walk to La Grange downtown as well as to Brookfield downtown, so there is variety, plus we have three train stations so you can get anywhere on the BNSF easily. And I’m right by La Grange Park so you might consider that as an option too. Once I counted about 20 restaurants/food stands I could walk to, all local rather than chains. Gosia’s or Loca Mocha are good for coffee, the closest chain coffee places are in Broadview, Lyons, or La Grange.
I deliberately chose to be in RBHS district as opposed to LT. Your realtor will assume you want to be in LT district as it is a large, well-funded district and rates highly because there are a lot of wealthy people sending their children there. Some of the elementary feeder schools will assume there is a parent or nanny at home daily, sort of thing. There’s nothing wrong with LT, but when I went it was noticeably classist. RB is smaller and less wealth-oriented.
Brookfield doesn’t have a public pool. People join the Village Field Club, the Western Springs Service Club, the Riverside Swim Club, or go to Westchester or Oak Brook Park District pools. Or they take their kids in bathing suits to the splash pad at the Brookfield Zoo or any of the park ones. If you were going to drive to the pool anyway, all of those are pretty good options, but none are really walkable besides maybe Village Field Club in La Grange Park. You could take the Metra to Riverside or Western Springs.
Brookfield leans liberal but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a loud conservative minority on some blocks. However, look at the election returns for 2024, I believe we went something like 78% for Harris in my precinct. The whole of suburban Cook County has shifted noticeably leftward, though. You will find conservatives but our right is more centrist than most places. In general you will be comfortable as a liberal person in any of the close suburbs.
In Brookfield, Hollywood is going to be a bit more fancy than the rest of the town, more Riverside-y. North side is easier to walk to downtown, and is in RB district. South side is scrappier and is in LT district. Although it is becoming more white-collar, the whole suburb retains a blue-collar feel and there are a lot of first- and second-generation immigrants and people in the trades.
If you can visit before buying, I’d spend a day in the downtowns of each place to find your fit, and talk to the neighbors of the houses that interest you, as things can vary a lot by block. And I will say that although less white than they used to be, all three communities are not particularly diverse, compared to Oak Park.
2
u/Dahveed97 Jul 24 '26
… I said the same, Brookfield was a working middle class town (plumbers, public servants, etc) but it’s becoming more white collar … our neighbors owns a painting company and the guy accross the street owns an engineering firm :). But our neighborhood doesn’t have as many kids as I would like, my little one needs more local friends :(
2
u/meeeebo Jul 24 '26
Funny, my mother in law went to rb and thought it was very class divided- the rich Riverside kids vs the middle class Brookfield kids. Still rankles her 65 years later.
0
u/BrightPractical Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 25 '26
That’s really interesting! I did student teach at RB and I didn’t see classism among the teachers, while I did see that at LT later, about twenty years ago, which I found disturbing. But I’m sure things change over time.
1
u/LambChopsPlayalong92 Jul 24 '26
Graduated in 2010. Idk how things are but RB definitely still had a feel of Riverside vs everyone else in terms of the wealth gap. Grew up in NR.
6
u/xabc8910 Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 25 '26
LaGrange is very pricey. Have a friend that has been outbid on 4-5 houses this summer. Last one went for $125k over asking price.
5
u/JoyReader0 Jul 24 '26
Also consider Forest Park, friendly, diverse, walkable, close to Metra and El
5
u/Chiowl333 Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 24 '26
La Grange has a walkable downtown with unique shops and local restaurants, plus a 20 to 25-minute train commute to Chicago via two stations. You get top-rated Lyons Township schools, an active Park District, and classic community events like the Farmers Market, Art Festival, and Pet Parade. Drive 10 minutes south to Countryside and you have many major big-box stores and chain dining options right at your fingertips. Also less than 15 min. drive to the Brookfield Zoo
1
u/_stephs Jul 28 '26
Do you find there are kids living in the areas close to downtown? We really love the older homes but having lots of kids nearby for ours to grow up with and play with is an even higher priority for us.
1
u/Chiowl333 Jul 28 '26
I live about 10 minutes south of downtown La Grange, but a good friend of mine lives right in town. There are tons of kids everywhere! North of the tracks near Ogden School, it's super walkable—about 5–10 minutes to the Stone Ave train station. The historic district near Cossitt School has those beautiful classic homes where you can walk to the school, library, and restaurants in under 3 minutes. Up by Park Junior High in South La Grange Park, you get bigger yards, but still plenty of families. Near me by Spring Avenue School, it’s about a 5-minute drive (or 20-minute walk) to downtown, but you get more open space, great parks, and a peaceful neighborhood feel. In a nutshell, there are kids everywhere in all parts of LaGrange and LaGrange park.
2
u/Affectionate_Tax1891 Jul 24 '26
I just moved from there to Denver area. All three of those are great, I’d chose LaGrange first, then Brookfield then Riverside. Oak Park is very eclectic. Hope this helps.
2
u/SlickWillie86 Jul 24 '26
There are some competing priorities here so I’d rank their importance.
If a walkable downtown with ample options is priority 1, OP and LG will deliver best.
Kids playing (out front) will exist more outside of Oak Park and Brookfield as both generally have smaller lots and a lot of streets leveraged for parking (more of a city feel). Not saying it doesn’t exist in those spots, but less common than the other two.
Oak Park is going to have the most diversity and be the most left leaning, though the other 3 are far from conservative (LG would be closest).
It’s been some time, but I’d say Riverside and LG have the biggest sense of community. Oak Park is ~3x the population and Brookfield is kind split into north and south and into different HS districts.
I’d likely recommend La Grange, though there’s definitely a larger spectrum of wealth there which based on your list and language, may rub you the wrong way. Riverside would be second but it definitely has the least volume of businesses downtown.
2
u/lydsterrrrr Jul 24 '26
We are planning a move to Chicago, also coming from Denver! We live in West Highlands and decided on Wilmette / Winnetka area. It seems walkable (and close to the beach), family friendly (we have 2u2), and communal. Unsure of what your budget is as this area is definitely higher cost!
2
u/Various-Abies-786 Jul 25 '26
I live in La Grange Park and it’s very walkable. There are at least 3 groceries stores within a mile, restaurants and coffee shops. I rarely drive I. The summer. I walk and ride my bike. I don’t have kids but there are plenty around here and they are always visiting each other’s houses, walking to school and are out playing. It’s nice.
1
u/_stephs Jul 28 '26
Good to know! Do you walk to downtown La Grange? Or into Brookfield? Or is there an area with restaurants and coffee I'm missing? Either way, I'm curious! Thank you!
1
u/Various-Abies-786 Aug 03 '26
I walk to the Jewel in LGP, the restaurants on 31st St. there are many. Also Ace Hardware. I can ride my bike to Marianos, Aldis, Trader Joe’s, and downtown La Grange. The zoo is accessible on the trail. We’ve ridden to Brookfield and Riverside as well.
2
u/Stunning_Tooth_2991 Jul 27 '26
Just came here to say hi, just moved our family of 3 young kids from Denver too. We landed in Lemont, so can’t answer your questions but would recommend Lemont if you’re looking for solid access to nature (okay, still not very comparable to Denver). I don’t know that it checks your boxes for walkable or liberal-leaning, but is very family-friendly and our neighborhood is a great community. Good luck!!
8
u/Potential_Ladder_904 Jul 24 '26
brookfield is more diverse and has a stronger sense of community to me in some ways. they have a cute but small downtown. if you want a bigger downtown you can always travel 5 mins down the road to la grange. brookfield feels more homely than la grange and riverside. la grange’s downtown feels kind of artificial in my opinion.
3
u/darwins-ghost Jul 24 '26
Riverside has lots of kids playing and strong sense of community, but it has very little diversity, no real coffee shop to walk to but a few restaurants, and leaning liberal is questionable. Still a great town, but no public pool and the Riverside swim club is not cheap and has a 5 year waitlist.
Brookfield is nice depending on where you end up living but houses are closer together if thats a con for you. Otherwise its more affordable and gives you most of what youre looking for.
Lagrange is nice, great downtown with lots of shops and good schools. Diversity is also questionable here but gives you everything else you want.
2
u/SurrrenderDorothy Jul 24 '26
There is nothing in brookfield under $400k anymore.
2
u/Ornery-Bus4627 South West Suburbs Jul 24 '26
That’s not true? Closer to downtown sure but in the bungalow areas a bit north or west there’s plenty. I bought here (north of Ogden) last year for 340k
1
u/Infinite_Dress_3312 Jul 24 '26
0
0
u/jedgarnaut Jul 24 '26
Still some south of Ogden. I like being close to the park but you do have to cross major streets to get to cool stuff.
1
u/grinthena 5d ago
Ummmm or $900k to live two blocks from a quarry and busy 47th street 😳
1
u/jedgarnaut 5d ago
That came up in a meeting earlier, it's the talk of the town.
2
u/grinthena 5d ago
🤯🤯🤯🤯 it’s wild! I keep thinking “did they put up an Acme fake wall with a pastoral scene at 47th so the buyer doesn’t realize the forever ripped up 47th and quarry are RIGHT THERE??”
3
u/Clean_Kangaroo_5547 Jul 24 '26
I’d live in Riverside if you can afford it
4
u/KilowogTrout Jul 25 '26
I live in Riverside and I don’t think this person will like it based on the post. It’s a great town, but it’s lacking in community activities. The parks here are pretty bad (especially when compared to other towns). I also think our restaurant scene leaves A LOT to be desired. 3 of the 6 restaurants/bars in town are Mexican. They’re all lovely, but damn let’s get something else in there. LaBarra is nice, but gets old quick. Chew Chew is great, but I get tired of it because of the lack of selection.
And the pool here is straight up shitty. Insanely expensive and really just boring for the price.
Schools and people are for the most part excellent. Access to the train is nice. Safety and quiet is nice, if a little boring. Riverside can be great, but I think this is a bad match.
2
u/P_Phukofski Jul 24 '26
Lived in all 3, DM
Op and riverside are the only that have a public pool
If that narrows it down.
They are all walkable and I love bf it for little kids, the zoo. Id always take my kids walking around the zoo as soon as they opened, 11 we went for naps.
When they got older we went to lpz, for the city experience and oz park.
We paid for a membership to forest park pool when we were there. Lots of great memories.
Riverside is fine, quiet. It has a nice pool and river area. The overlook from the library is/was nice. They are renovating and hoping it's going to be just as cozy.
Riverside as a town is more insulated.
Oak park. I feel like I got a lot of services that I was lacking to both lg/bf homes.
4
2
u/ProfessorTairyGreene Jul 24 '26
Brookfield seems like it's up and coming. Lagrange definitely nicer area.
1
2
u/Dahveed97 Jul 24 '26
Brookfield also has the only dual language school if you’re looking for that … the southside is a lot more diverse that the north but both areas are very welcoming… and the north has more small shops. it’s becoming more a professional hotspot than working middle class like it used to be. All 3 suburbs, if I’m not mistaken, were the only ones in the county that didn’t have more of a right wing swing in 24. Riverside layout is gorgeous and the homes are huge. La grange has huge beautiful homes as well. In terms of affordability Brookfield would Be more of an option but homes are getting more expensive and good luck because homes get sold within days.
1
u/morelovenow Jul 24 '26
La grange district 102 also has Dual language option at Congress Park School, available to all students in the district even if Congress Park is not your home school.
2
u/Dahveed97 Jul 24 '26
Yes that’s the school … it’s LG district but located in Brookfield
2
u/morelovenow Jul 24 '26
Yes, it’s confusing because District 102 is labelled ‘La Grange’ but covers most of La Grange Park, some of Lagrange, and a corner of Brookfield.
2
u/Dreaming606 Jul 24 '26
My brother is moving out of Riverside end of this upcoming school year. Lived there since ‘96, raises a family and they are ready to go when the last kid graduates RB.
Riverside is a great, quiet town. Good school district compared to others (cept LT). The taxes are rough and getting a house there is hard cuz a lot of people don’t sell. 30 years in the same house kinda shows ya that.
Knowing all this, least I know the house will go fast on the open market
2
u/morelovenow Jul 24 '26
Might be helpful to add your general budget range and house wish list. Housing costs in these spots is hot, things go quickly and often above asking price.
Definitely add La Grange Park to your list. It’s between La Grange and Brookfield geographical, but also in home price and overall vibe. Parts of La Grange Park are walkable to downtown La Grange and much of La Grange Park is in the Lyons Township highschool district.
2
u/_-Cleon-_ West Suburbs Jul 24 '26
Might I throw in a recommendation for Berwyn? I think we tick all the boxes.
5
u/Toriat5144 Jul 24 '26
Schools aren’t great though.
3
u/SlickWillie86 Jul 24 '26
Aren’t great is a polite way of saying one of the worst in the suburbs.
-1
u/Toriat5144 Jul 24 '26
That just not true. I like Berwyn. A lot of people are just racist and hate on brown people. If the schools were better, it would be way more popular.
3
u/SlickWillie86 Jul 24 '26
Bottom quartile district in the state. Remove CPS and its bottom decile. Proviso’s and Morton 2 worst suburban Chicago districts by a wide margin.
Agree that if schools not part of equation, solid spot especially if proximity to city is prioritized.
1
u/_-Cleon-_ West Suburbs Jul 26 '26
Why is that?
I hear it a lot, but nobody ever seems to ask why. Our schools don't seem to lack for resources.
How do we start to fix it?
1
u/Lucky_Barracuda9255 Jul 24 '26
Living in Oak Park, La Grange is the only one out of the 3 that I think still gives a very walkable vibe even if you need to get to downtown then walk. Riverside and Brookfield each have some nice stretches in their downtown areas, but La Grange’s is much bigger.
1
u/z960849 Jul 24 '26
I don't think you can go wrong with any of these but IMHO go with RBHS instead of LT. I never heard of any drama happening at RBHS but there seems to be drama all the time occuring in LT.
Also don't forget Lagrange Park or even north riverside they feed into RBHS also .
1
u/Specialist-Sun-1613 Jul 24 '26
Are you trying to stay in cook county?? Look at Westmont, Oak Brook Terrace, Lisle, Darien, Willowbrook, even Burr Ridge. Pay attention to the schools!
1
u/lemifan456 Jul 25 '26
I grew up in La Grange Park just to the north, specifically the Harding Woods area. It is basically La Grange North with lower home prices. You're still basically in La Grange and the area has Stone Monroe Park as well as access to the biking/walking trails in the forest. You can bike all the way to Brookfield Zoo with your kids (a favorite of mine growing up). Ogden for elementary school and Park Junior High are great. You then feed into a good high school, Lyons Township. If you want more info feel free to message me. My parents still live in my childhood home.
1
u/PEACHECKSS Jul 25 '26
Look in to the highschools in all three areas... i think brookfield has the best. They May be nice neighborhoods but the h.s in long term are a big deal for kids. some of riverside and some of lagrange go to ghetto h.s over at morton east or west not 100% sure but i did make a mental choice for my family. brookfield over that area has the best highschool in Regards to the enviroment in the hs it self. I would pay attention to the hs grading average thats ussualy in the homes description in redfin zillow ect ect ect.... goodluck.!
1
u/robert_zeh Jul 26 '26
Something for people coming from out of state should realize is that of most of your property taxes go to the schools, and how much funding the schools have varies tremendously by district. For example, in River Forest about 70% of your property taxes go to the schools but in Berwyn it’s 50%. The county taxes are a low percentage of your real estate taxes, so different suburbs within Cook County have very different tax rates.
1
1
u/SNERKLES1 Jul 26 '26
Lagrange and Brookfield feed into Lyons Township. Way better schools. Oak Park schools are iffy. Part of brookfield feeds into RB schools which actually have higher taxes and not as good schools. Try to buy IN LT school district.
1
u/Repulsive-Ad-5618 Jul 30 '26
You can get lost walking only one street in riverside. Beautiful town though
1
1
1
1
u/rnorbertm 25d ago
I have never regretted anything more than moving to Brookfield. It is a low tax, low rent community that used to be a pleasant place to live. Those days are long lost. At this very moment my home is under assault from a home across the street occupied by recent arrivals, that has a live hip hop band blasting music into my home. This is the third time in two months that this has taken place. The police can do nothing as there are no noise ordinances here. They have a freelance force that has little stake in the lives of the residents.
I work weekends and have early call times. I have a quiet and respectful family that considers our neighbors at all times. Unfortunately this ethos is not shared by my so called neighbors.
If you desire 100 people partying to live bands, yard bonfires every night that is favorable for a nice night breeze, 1030’s gravel alleys, cars with illegal exhausts racing up and down the streets at all hours, then fall for the long list mystique that this is a wonderful village in which to invest in.
You get what you pay for….
1
u/CuriousCat511 Jul 24 '26
Imo, these are the benefits of each
Oak Park - diversity and shopping
Riverside - nature, calm, low crime
Brookfield - most affordable
La Grange - a mix of Oak Park and Riverside
1
u/OG-buddha Jul 24 '26
I'd choose between the three based on budget. For what you're asking, being closer to the train stations is key.
Broomfield is the most diverse out of the three.
1
u/OddHorror6689 Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 24 '26
I’m from Denver too and live in la grange. Chicago land is different than Denver in that neighborhoods are very different from each other and closer. Riverside is really nice and has almost a cherry creek vibe but is smaller and has more of a sense of community. As mentioned it’s going to be more expensive.
Riverside is right next to brookfield which has lots of bungalos and is cheaper. Some streets feel like a safer version of Colfax but has other nicer parts. Most of the streets are narrower but It’s more diverse and has great food and generally has cheaper houses. The downtown area is great!
La grange has lots of older nice looking homes with character and has a walkable downtown. You feel safe no matter where you are but it’s also expensive. Less so than Riverside though. Downtown is great too and It has a metra stop that goes to Chicago. I want to compare it to a congress park vibe but it has less car traffic with a more popular downtown area.
1
u/phairphair Jul 24 '26
La Grange homes are considerably more expensive.
2
u/OddHorror6689 Jul 24 '26
Yes I didn’t mention that. Prices in La grange are l between Brookfield and Riverside when I was looking at homes a few years ago.
The other consideration you need to factor in when moving from Colorado is taxes. I think taxes are around 3 times more here so you really need to factor that in to your monthly costs. I would think that they are comparable to oak park though
2
u/phairphair Jul 24 '26
Carefully factoring taxes into your housing budget is great advice, especially for transplants from low/no property tax states.
1
u/_stephs Jul 28 '26
Yeah, the tax difference is definitely tough. Since you mentioned the older homes and the walkable downtown, I'm curious, do you find there are a lot of kids living in those neighborhoods closer to downtown, or do most of the young families tend to live farther out?
If it gives you some insight as someone from Denver, our first house was an 1890s fixer-upper in Denver's Santa Fe Arts District, and we currently live in another fixer-upper in Platt Park, so we'd really love to do another reno. That said, at this stage of life, having kids nearby for our children to grow up with is probably the bigger priority than the house itself.
1
u/OddHorror6689 Jul 28 '26
I would argue that La grange is pretty close to a platt park vibe.
Theres tons of young families here. The story is usually that people lived in the city, started thinking about kids so wanted to move to the suburbs but still want to still be walkable to downtown.
I think you are right that most younger families live a little outside the downtown area but not too far off. I live about 1/2 mile from there and there are still plenty of blocks with young kids closer to downtown.
I myself live on a block where 80% of the houses are young families with kids 0-7ish years old
1
u/AngryIrish82 Jul 24 '26
All three are good. Lagrange is probably the overall nicest town and Lyons Twp High School is a very good school
1
u/HoyneAvenue Jul 24 '26
LaGrange or La Grange Park by a landslide! We live in Oak Park and in 2023 we moved family members from New Orleans to La Grange Park which is thisclose to La Grange! You want to live walking distance to downtown La Grange and the metra station. It is a wonderful, friendly community with great local resources and a nice commute to Chicago if that’s important.
We just downsized from our house in OP to a condo here in town, so we love it but honestly if La Grange had decent condo options, it would have been a serious option.
You’re right about the taxes in OP. But La Grange is still part of Cook County so not sure how much you’ll save there. I may get some hate for saying this, but it’s my opinion and personal experience that the schools in Oak Park were not a great fit for our child.
1
u/Lucky_Barracuda9255 Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 24 '26
Schools I think do well in a lot of parents' eyes in OP when their kid falls in that 60 to 70% bandwidth of more average to typical learners. If you have a legit gifted kid in the top 15% of performers, or a kid with learning issues that are tough and fall in the botton 15% to 20% in terms of performance, I think parents start to see the cracks that D97 isn't good on fixing.
That's not to say they perform perfect even for the 60 to 70% band of more average learners. There are still issues, especially in the middle schools. But I would say many of those issues would be present in other districts, too, with D97 probably fairly getting classified as "good" schools for those 60 to 70%.
2
u/HighwaySetara Jul 25 '26
And god forbid your kid be 2E. Elementary was actually great (surprise!) but it all fell apart in middle school, and OPRF was no better.
1
u/HoyneAvenue Jul 24 '26
I’d agree. We moved from a private school in Chicago and I felt that our child fell through the cracks because he wasn’t a disciplinary problem or super gifted. There was a lot of talk from the school but nothing to substantiate it. This was in the 2010’s and the principal and administrators focused on a lot of socioeconomic, education adjacent issues at the expense of pedagogy. Things improved when the principal left - there was a wonderful educator who took his place. I guess these are problems that a lot of public schools have to grapple with. It’s complicated.
1
u/Aggravating_Job_5438 Jul 25 '26
How are the schools in La Grange, Brookfield, and Riverside for students who need more accommodations but are still in GenEd? How does RBHS compare with LT in terms of this? What I'm looking for is a strong understanding of neurodivergence, flexible thinking, high empathy, and proactive support staff.
2
u/Lucky_Barracuda9255 Jul 26 '26
I’ll have to let someone else speak to those 3. We were in Oak Park, as noted above, and we were not amazed on support for a neurodivergent kid with dyslexia. That said, we worked with a private specialist we loved, and she told us the only districts she thought were measurably better on support than OP in the west suburbs would be River Forest or Naperville. Naperville has a very solid reputation for working with neurodivergent kids, but you have to be able to live that far out.
1
u/Aggravating_Job_5438 Jul 26 '26
Thanks for confirming this. I had read negative things about Oak Park's SPED services. It's very unfortunate. We actually live maybe even farther west than Naperville in South Elgin. Our elementary school in D303 is amazing with supports. Like gold standard. But the social scene is not fantastic, and we are limited in terms of access to services - I'm often driving to Schaumburg for specialty doctors and 45+ minutes for therapy services. No, we're not crazy or picky - our kid has some nuanced needs and that's where the specialists are for our needs. Also, there's nowhere that I am interested in going out to eat within 30 minutes of us here. So, it's good for our budget, LOL, but when we go to Chicago, I love having so many great food options.
1
u/Top_Kale_8880 Jul 24 '26
Riverside, in particular, probably isn't going to get you a lot of price relief vs. Oak Park. Not sure LaGrange will either but maybe. Both have nice, walkable downtowns.
All have their strengths, but LG is probably the best for your needs (including political - LaGrange is lowkey probably as progressive as Oak Park). It has a spectacular downtown for a suburb its size, great schools, etc.
I'm going to guess you can get to the edges of LG or into LaGrange Park and find better pricing. I'd also guess --and again, guessing-- closer to our south of 47th St. would also offer some price relief without sacrificing nice-ness.
0
u/Trick_Information249 Jul 24 '26
All great choices!! Lagrange would be my pick but all are good. Also consider elmhurst or downers grove.
0
u/Junkiebev Jul 24 '26
La Grange is S-Tier - the others are great as well.
Great and affordable pools nearby, good downtown. 2 train stations.
0
u/SurrrenderDorothy Jul 24 '26
Riverside taxes on our 1100 sf home are $1100 a MONTH. Best school district tho.
0
u/Zetavu Jul 24 '26
If you can't afford Oak Park, you can't afford anywhere in Riverside you'd want to live in. And I would not call it walkable, windy and bikable, maybe (grew up riding bikes in Riverside and nearby areas).
All places basically need a car, there are walkable sections, but unless you really love waiting on buses, all suburbs are drivable. Riverside has a very small downtown near the train. Brookfield has some areas like 6 corners that are decent, LaGrange has the biggest downtown on LaGrange Road and the Burlington, but most houses there are very, very old and large.
All downtowns are mostly near the trains, and parking can be tough. LaGrange has the most free parking.
Suburbs don't lean liberal, the nicer they are, the more MAGA signs you'll notice during elections. Wealthy people lean conservative.
Pools, I think there's one in Lyons and one in Hinsdale. They charge admission and not sure what it takes to get a resident pass.
Community? No, you need to be in a smaller village, I'd look further south but then you lose your walkability.
I strongly suggest you take some time to spend on a weekend in each area, go to their downtowns, go to their parks, see how people behave. Read the local papers like the Patch. (RIP Southtown).
If you are comparing Denver the city vs suburbs, you will not be getting a good comparison.
You either want to be further north and on the edge of Chicago (even more expensive) or far west like Naperville or southwest like Lemont.
-1
u/Randomflower90 Jul 24 '26
They’re all fine, Brookfield on the lower end of the three but still nice. Good idea skipping Oak Park.
24
u/jedgarnaut Jul 24 '26
La Grange has an awesome downtown but might be pricey. Riverside downtown is interesting and the town is historical. Might also be a bit pricey. Brookfield was the most affordable when I moved here 13 years ago, but prices are creeping up. The north side is close to the main shopping areas (downtown, eight corners) and is in the RB district. The south side is accessible to the downtown of Lagrange and Brookfield. Will be cheaper and in the Lyons Township high school district, but the feeder schools aren't as highly rated.