Hello All!

It looks like we are moving to Chicago (from Charlotte) in the next couple of months. We are not sure where we are living yet, but most likely in a condo downtown for the first 6 months.

Just wanted to get an idea what kind of events the S2k club has during the year, i.e. drives, track days, social events, etc.

Also, just some advice on things to do, where to live, etc. I'm fairly familiar with Chicago but its been a while since I've been there. We are in our 30's, no kids, spend an obscene amount on eating out and drinking wine! So you get the picture.

I look forward to meeting up with you when we get there!

 

Just for an idea we do get together quite a bit throughout the year.

One of the best tracks in the area is Gingerman raceway. It's about 2-2.5hrs from Chicago. There is a group of us that goes up there. I plan to go up there 4-5 times this year. There are also several AutoX events in the area.

Most of the group gets together in the Nortwest suburbs of Chicago (near Schaumburg.) We try to get together at least every other week through the summer. We tend to get together at restraunts and hang out spending money on eating out and good Beer.

A lot of the people are in their 20's, but there are more than a few of us in our 30's, and some older than that.

There are some BIG plans for this year in the works, so stay tuned.

 

Ditto

Where will you work and intend to live? Be careful buying into condo life (it is not for everyone) but I assume you are renting then intend to buy somewhere after you look around. It is truly a mixed bag of positives and negatives moving here from another stated but one positive is they don't monitor the speed too closely on the tollways like they do at other states

But the local police are sometimes anal about the city streets
So you do traffic school and it doesn't go on your record or affect your insurance if you you don't get carried away

Oh yea, they take your driver's license every time you get a ticket unless you get a bond card or post bond on it. That is really a strange law to me

Your profile sounds very similar to my wife and I. Look forward to catching up with you. Have fun and be safe

 

Good point on the condo life.

Make sure you know how much it's going to cost to own a car in the city. Gas is typically higher in the city. Parking costs. Also in Illinois you pay to renew your license plate every year, but there is ALSO a parking sticker required in most villages or towns. Some areas don't have the stickers, but most do. The prices vary wildly, and are most expensive for people with a Chicago address.

That said, the city is great. There is a lot to do on any night of the week.

 

It really depends on if you plan on suburb or city life, but it sounds like you'd enjoy the city a lot more. Applebee's and Chili's get old in the suburbs Coming from Charlotte, you're in for a good culture shock. My close friend did the opposite move a few years ago for a job and I think he's still recovering from the (lack of) culture there.

I live in Lincoln Park, which is a neighborhood within the city. If you're not familiar with the area, you'll find that a lot of the areas in the city are referred to as individually named neighborhoords. Lincoln Park, for instance, is roughly 3 miles north of downtown Chicago. Very residential, but also lots of shopping/eating/etc. Also very easy access to the major expressways.

Almost all the neighborhoods have their own unique flavor and/or ethnic presence. Lincoln Park may actually be one of the only ones known for it's lack thereof (haha). Mostly white people and drunk college kids from DePaul. Just try to not get run over by X5s and Range Rovers.

About the track thing.. I love going to Gingerman, which is about 1.5 hours away from the city. There are tracks in the other neighboring states as well (road america, Grattan, Blackhawk) plus lots and lots of autocrosses during the season.

 

Thanks for the great info!

We are going to rent before buying and most likely it will be a condo in the city closest to downtown as we can get, since that is where Bryan will be working most of the time. We actually have looked at a few places in Lincoln Park, and right now I think we are looking at a few places in the medical district (?). The plan is that we will most likely move further into the suburbs in the next couple of years.

Any other suggestions on recommendations to live (in the city)? We want a good area that will cater to our dog (Huskerdog as he is known on the board )- its important we are close to a park for him, plus places to go for good eats, drink, and socializing. Again, we are in our 30's so college bars and young professional hangouts are not our thing anymore.

I am not sure where I will be working yet...that will be my first task is to get a job. However, I may pursue my masters at SAIC if I can get accepted. We'll see.

I'm not a huge autoX fan but I hit the track as often as I can; so I will definitely be interested in checking out the local tracks.

Despite the crappy weather (I'm from Nebraska originally so I KNOW what its like there) I am very excited to be moving there. I love the city life. However, this is Bryan's first time living outside of Charlotte so he may need to visit some of you in the 'burbs every once in awhile!

Look forward to meeting with all of you!

Kallan

 

Well seeing as that I just moved here from the UK last year, I can honestly say you wont meet a friendlier bunch of guys! We seem to have a very active community here in Chicago, at the height of the season we were meeting almost once a week!

there's a lot of good stuff planned for 05 too.........

As far as the city goes, its a very diverse place. We too looked into living in the city but decided to move to the burbs as we knew we wanted to buy straight away. You get so much more for you money out here!

Even out in Huntley (which is waaaay out in the burbs), Chicago is still close enough to be viable when wanting to go out. In fact, i did it today and got downtown in an obscenely ridiculous time....good job there were no cops out today

Im sure you will like it out here....its a great place...and I for one dont intend on going back to London....this is my new home.

Look forward to seeing you at a meet sometime.

 

If your husband is going to be working downtown, then living downtown is a good idea. The traffic can be a real pain, especially day in and day out.

I work downtown and commute daily by train. It takes a little longer, but it's consistant, and so I arrive at the same time everyday. One thing the Chicago area has a lot of is train tracks. The commuter rail service and the "EL" are great ways to get into, out of, and around the city.

 

You sound similar to my wife and I. We live downtown in the West loop where we have some great restaraunts along Randolph St. If you are young and don't have kids, the city is the place to be. It is more expensive but you are probably going to make more money on a place in the city. My wife is in real estate and knows just about every area and price range in the city. If you are interested, let me know what it is that you are looking for and she can send you some listings from various areas.

We are actually in the process of selling our Loft now and looking to get into something else. Depending on our price range she may already have an idea of what is out there.

Take care,

Phil

 

Huntley, you go from London to Sun City. You should have bought a Caddy.