From our dear Maija - For me Wrigleyville equaled sports — but then I actually got to know the neighborhood. We all know the Wrigley Field, home for the Cubs, but I’m happy to say Wrigleyville is so much more than just that.
Only about 15 minute drive north from the Loop and you’ll reach the Wrigleyville’s restaurant repertory that is out of this world. It includes virtually everything from ”the basic international cuisine” such as Italian, Spanish and Thai food (Cozy Noodle & Rice, definitely worth of a try) to more extreme and unusual choices like Ethiopian cuisine. Pretty diverse, right? In addition to the area’s culinary reputation it is also a neighborhood known for its live music (you might want to try Metro on N Clark St). Walking down the streets of Wrigleyville is an excellent place to hear both indie and jazz – and everything in between. Wrigleyville is not too known for its shopportunities but if you’re looking for something to wear at the game (i.e. anything that says Cubs) it’s the top place to shop.
Due to the large variety of Wrigleyville’s activities (theatres, sports, beaches, clubs…), it’s a place favored by young professionals, many of them with families. The residential area in Wrigleyville reminds me quite a bit of its southern neighbor Lakeview’s housing; pretty tree-lined streets filled with cozy townhouses close to parks and a walking distance to beaches.
Wrigleyville has a huge number of clubs and bars (esp. sport ones) which are packed especially if there’s a big game going. Bars around Wrigley Field are a known place to hang out pre- and post games… If you are looking to experience the real Wrigleyville and its festive repute, hit the bar by Wrigley Field (for example The Cubby Bear) on a game night and feel the spirit.
While Chicago has its share of luxury Italian dining (think Spiaggia , or Pane Caldo in Chicago’s Mag Mile ) grab a cab sometime to a few”out of the way” Italian places for top notch homemade Italian dining that’s worth twice the price. Or more! I recently dined at two of my favorite Italian “joints” - RoSal’s on Taylor in Little Italy and Il Vicinato on Western Avenue near the “23rd and Oakley” neighborhood. RoSal’s is a classic Italian restaurant, an old two-flat converted for dining, with a TINY kitchen producing some of the best veal and pasta you’ve ever tasted. It’s the type of place where they’ll come and top off your wine glass or bring you a little anisette after dinner just to be nice. Il Vicinato is even more off the beaten track, and is definitely an “old school” place. But both these places are my secret weapons to impress out of towners and locals alike. Especially on a weeknight when there are no crowds to speak of.
They’ll think you know all the secrets of Italian dining in Chicago. Which, of course, I do.
Some comments from our resourceful intern, Maija - This is the time when many people are pondering over whether to buy or rent a property. While great amount of prospective buyers are deciding to rent there is also some encouraging facts that support buying. Forbes Magazine just published an article Ten Cities To Go From Renting To Buying where top10 areas to buy are listed. It’s definitely good news for Chicago relocation as we can be found in the third place.
In short, think how much money you pay for your rental and compare it with the amount you’d pay for mortgage each month. At the moment the premium is way smaller than the average of the past 15 years. And the areas that made to the top 10 are the places home prices are going to climb the most in the next 5 years according to Forbes.
Basically this means that in these areas it is cost-effective to buy a house instead of keep paying rent. Maybe it is a good time to upgrade — especially since many of the prospective buyers could benefit from the extended first-time home buyers’ tax credit.
While speaking some time ago at an international real estate conference in Rome, I reminded myself that I’ve heard Japanese, Italian, French and Spanish right outside my office while doing holiday shopping on Michigan Avenue.
While Chicago has always been a draw for tourists, Chicago is still a haven for luxury (and luxury bargain) shoppers from around the world. I hosted a couple from our network affiliates in Valencia, Spain not long ago, Inmobiliaria Rimontgo - it’s a great website by the way, especially since they feature a number of U. S. listings in four languages!). Using my best high school Spanish I learned that my new friend Susana was spending about 50% what she would spend in Valencia for the same (mostly European!) luxury items - clothing, leather, watches, etc! Ralph Lauren, Prada et al are doing OK these days; Hey, if it boosts our economy, more power to them!
Having lived in the Chicagoland area my entire life, and having spent 15 years downtown every day, most of them on Michigan Avenue, it’s amazing the slow but steady increase in foreigners walking up and down the Mag Mile - a 25% increase this year alone, per the Chicago Office of Tourism! We’ve always known that Michigan Avenue, and especially Oak Street, were the luxury capitals of the Midwest.
Check out Macy’s windows this year - They’re great.
As reported in the Pioneer Local a local Oak Park IL doctor has become the first orthopedic surgeon in outer space - The ultimate Chicago relocation! My hometown, Oak Park IL is immediately adjacent to Chicago on her west side. Home to lovely victorians, it also houses the home and studio of Frank Lloyd Wright as well as many of his commissioned homes.
A quick El or Metra trip takes you to heart of downtown Chicago in moments, making it a perfect home for commuters. This short term relocatee is my neighbor Dr. Robert Satcher Jr., 44, who along with six other astronauts recently set off on a journey to the int’l space station aboard the space shuttle Atlantis.
Satcher is a surgeon at both Northwestern Memorial Hospital & Children’s Memorial Hospital and an assistant professor of orthopedic surgery at Northwestern’s Feinberg School of Medicine. Satcher’s Uncle Dave is a former US Sugeon General.
Twitter users can follow his journey at www.twitter .com/astro_bones. His November 18th tweet was “Launch was amazing! 7.7 million pounds of thrust, mach 25, microgravity in less than 9 minutes! Awesome.” I was going to tweet him back but didn’t want to bother him in case he was near one of those big red buttons or something.
I’m sure he’s eager to return to the “broad lawn and narrow minds” of Oak Park - The sarcastic phrase b rought upon us by another favorite son, Ernest Hemmingway.
Relocating and need something really high end? Baird and Warner’s Jim Kinney , vice president of luxury home sales, recently listed the 13,200 SF goldcoast penthourse of Bill Wrigley Jr (chewing gum heir and chairman of the Wrigley Co.). The price, an astonishing $14 MILLION.
The property is undeveloped space on the 8th floor of the Lucien Lagrange-designed luxury building at 66 E. Goethe. The unit is a combo of three that he purchased for over $9 million some seven years ago. The space has never been built-out. Kinney was quote in a Chicago Tribune article as indicating “The penthouse includes two 1,500-square-foot outdoor spaces on the roof, plus six garage spaces… In addition, Wrigley is including architectural drawings that he commissioned for the space in the asking price.”
Kinney added, when asked about the building, that it is “a sort of Who’s Who of Chicago that lives there. It’s a matter of the right timing to get the right match.”
The price dwarf’s the famous relo listing of JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie DImon’s $10.5 MILLION, which is in the same neighborhood, around the corner on tony Astor Street.
Thinking of a move to Chicago? You’ll love this informative video about the great things to do in Chi-Town! Well…..Maybe your parents saw it at the theatre:
With deference to The Hollies, next time you’re out enjoying all the fun things that Chicago neighborhoods have to offer, don’t stand on a corner in the cold and rain trying to hail a little yellow car (or God Forbid, wait for a bus) - Let your fingers to the walking, er, texting! A new service has rolled out in Chicago - TaxiText! no matter where you are in the city, text 777222 with your address; a cab will be dispatched.
No cab after a few minutes? Text your confirmation back and get an immediate status update! Learn more here!
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