Place to live in Chicago

Where are you going to school? Lincoln Park is where most of the 20-somethings live these days.

Loyola Law or DePaul Law Schools...

I don't know which law school is better, but you def missed the topless girls in the hottub! shit was hot!

Goto Depaul, Ive heard Loyola's Law School is on a downward slope, while Depaul's is on the rise. Depaul's campus is also in the heart of downtown. Lincoln Park is a great place to live! The Fleet Feet runners club meets very close (maybe even in Lincoln Park)to the Depaul Lincoln park campus. Only a few el stops away. Theres also alot of new condos and aprtments being built by UIC

Chicago is mostly a young town for the 20 somethings. If you are in your 30s or above, it's not a happening place.

Chicago sucks as a place to live for runners and triatletes. To find hills you have to travel to the burbs on weekends. The weather sucks for 8 months out of the year, traffic is terrible, the cost of living is high. The only place to run in the city is the lakefront which wears off after about 10 training runs. There are tons of Gallowalkers that take over the lakefront on weekends which makes it congested. There are really no other options or trails to run unless you drive out to one of the burbs.

Choose another grad school.

Forgot to add that I lived in Chicago for 5 years and re-located to the west coast. Chi-town might be one of the largest cities but it has the weather to contend with and overall it's just not a happening place.

chi-town = lame town wrote:

Forgot to add that I lived in Chicago for 5 years and re-located to the west coast. Chi-town might be one of the largest cities but it has the weather to contend with and overall it's just not a happening place.

Please share with us, what "happening" dudes like yourself require in a city. Those of us who live in the east are always interested in the opinion of enlightened people like yourself.

chi-town = lame town wrote:

Forgot to add that I lived in Chicago for 5 years and re-located to the west coast. Chi-town might be one of the largest cities but it has the weather to contend with and overall it's just not a happening place.

Boo hoo. Anyway...

How old are you? Single? how important is running to you? (competitive, pro, etc? Oh, forgot, everyone on Let's Run is a professional) Do you like living in a city? Do you need a lot of space? Do you like the Cubs?

If you go to DePaul and live in the Lincoln Park area you have to learn to like the Cubs. Wrigley Field does not have a parking garage, so everyone who comes to the games park in lots or in the street, regardless of if it's zoned or if parking stickers are needed. Night games can be especially bad, but with 81 home games I think only 20 or so are night games.

Lincoln Park is fantastic if you are single and in your 20's. There are women everywhere. if you're married then there's really no point to live in Lincoln Park. You can move to one of the quieter neighborhoods (Andersonville, Ravenswood) and take the L into school.

No one lives in the Loop. It's a ghost town after 7:00 pm most nights. All the good night life is north of downtown.

Driving around the city really isn't that bad if you know the grid (i.e. cross streets). And if you have half a brain, you probably won't own a car if you live in the city. Public transportation goes everywhere in Chicago. If you're willing to give up a little convenience, then ditch the car (parking, higher insurance, wear, tear, high gas prices, door dings, etc) and you'll save yourself a ton of money.

You have to know where to train in the city if you want hills. I saw Chris Wehrman running thru the Rose Hill Cemetery a few weeks ago. He's a 2:20 guy and seems to have no problem living and training in the city.

As far as the lake front path goes... Yeah, there's Gallowalkers and buffoons showing off on the lake front path but if you get out there at an early hour it's not crowded at all. Watch out for bikers though.

Chicago has fantastic road racing. The CARA circuit races are very competitive.

yeah, the weather sucks a lot of the time, but unless you're retarded then you adapt and keep running. Last summer there was a heat wave that was pretty bad, but you can laways get up early and run. This winter was especially tough with the six week sub-zero freez we had, but I lived thru it and PR'ed this past weekend at the Shuffle. It CAN be done if you WANT to do it.

So, there's my $0.02 from someone who lives here.

chicago can be a great place to live/run. as previously mentioned, lincoln park, and wrigleyville are fun places to live. lot's of other 20-somethings, bars/clubs, stuff going on. not too far from the lake-path. i lived in streeterville(east of n.michigan ave between chicago ave and the river) when i was a grad-student. easy beach, lake-front access. easy walk to shopping and short cab-rides or el-rides everywhere else. i was originally from the w.coast but i learned to deal with/even enjoy running in the climates that chicago has to offer. feel like i became a better runner after dealing with the snow and cold of winter and the heat/humidity of summer. met some really good local runners out there, very friendly running scene when i was there 10 yrs. ago or so. the only negative for me was the lack of hills(there are some to run on, just have to travel further out of the city). good luck.

Don't run on the lake front north of Soldier Field though--I have a friend who told me it might as well be called "Chi-honkey-go" up there.

chi-town = lame town wrote:

Chicago is mostly a young town for the 20 somethings. If you are in your 30s or above, it's not a happening place.

Chicago sucks as a place to live for runners and triatletes. To find hills you have to travel to the burbs on weekends. The weather sucks for 8 months out of the year, traffic is terrible, the cost of living is high. The only place to run in the city is the lakefront which wears off after about 10 training runs. There are tons of Gallowalkers that take over the lakefront on weekends which makes it congested. There are really no other options or trails to run unless you drive out to one of the burbs.

Choose another grad school.

I could not disagree more. Running on the lakefront (17 miles of paths from north to south) does not get old. Tons of trees, different path surfaces, good views, lots of water fountains, marked paths. I did it for 12+ years. Recently moved to California and I very much miss running on the lakefront. Plus there are tons of great runners on the paths also. Sure there are slow pokes, but it is not like they are in the way. Chicago is an awesome running city.

Thank you to all the advice being posted--it has all been very helpful.

Seems like Linkin Park is the place to live according to most.

Now just the decision of what school to pick......

Wicker Park...

Lincoln Park is corny as hell. It has little substance or character. Call it Lameman's park.

Chicago is way overrated as a city. It is not a great running city. You must be living in East LA which must explain why you miss Chicago.What other "different path surfaces" have your feet encountered on the lakefront? On the lakefront running path, there are 2 surfaces concrete and gravel/dirt.Do you call looking at McCormick Center and Lake Michigan a good view? Solider Field and Navy Pier aren't exactly the Michelangelo or great architecture wonders. Don't you live in California where the mountains are? Maybe you need to look up once in a while.

chi-town = lame town wrote:

I could not disagree more. Running on the lakefront (17 miles of paths from north to south) does not get old. Tons of trees, different path surfaces, good views, lots of water fountains, marked paths. I did it for 12+ years. Recently moved to California and I very much miss running on the lakefront. Plus there are tons of great runners on the paths also. Sure there are slow pokes, but it is not like they are in the way. Chicago is an awesome running city.

You've got to be kidding. The architecture along the Chicago lakefront draws architecture tourists from around the world. The views while running along the lakefront from Fullerton to McCormick Place are unparalleled. Plus there are other views that are noteworthy, e.g. female runners.

I live in Irvine now. I run along trails in Irvine, in Newport Beach, in Crystal Cove, in Corona Del Mar and Laguna Beach. I run along the Pacific Ocean, in parks and on hills.

The running here is good. In my view, it is not better than Chicago for the reasons I describe. Plus, I didn't mention above that the running community in Chicago is significantly stronger than here. The weather here is better, I will grant you that. But the running is not better. I don't think it's even close, and I have an open mind about it.

The different surfaces along the lake front? Soft crushed gravel, cement, asphalt, dirt, cinder. That's five. How many more are there?

Your sarcastic comments, bizarre personal attacks and cheap shots do not enhance your credibility on this issue. I won't respond to them.

Some people love Chicago and I've known quite a few to absolutely abhor Chicago. I think it's all about your own personal likes and dislikes. My 2 cents is that I'd take a view of the Pacific Ocean and run along the beach over Chicago's laekfront and architecture views any day. But again, who's to say what's better? I spread the word of peace.