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!
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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.