I actually started this post on the North Side development thread as a response to major projects in Austin and their effect on Oak Park. I decided the subject would actually be better as a thread of its own.
So how is a booming Chicago affecting the lands beyond its border?
I wonder how involved Oak Park is in Austin's redevelopment. It was sadly pressure from poverty and race that caused Oak Park to build cul-de-sacs on streets that ran onto Austin Boulevard. It also (on a higher note here) caused the village to steer blacks to the west end and whites to the east to maintain racial balance.
It would seem to me a reenvigorated Austin will spell huge dividends to Oak Park.
Another question for those who live in the area where the west side adjoins the west sububs (an area I know well, have family there, but don't have the familiarity that you folks do):
are the close in western suburbs (other than Oak Park, where I know the answer is "Yes") having the same surge in property value that the close in north suburbs (Evanston, Skokie, Lincolnwood) are experiencing due to proximity to Chicago?
The city boom has produced some unexpected effects. It has reinvigorated the inner ring of suburbs (particularly north) that might have gone into decline because being close to the city is an asset.
Interestingly it has had a similiar affect on the far North Side where neighborhoods north of Foster are not at all part of the "buzz" of city life, but offer proximity. So Sauganash builds town houses into the millions, Jeff Park sees major town house, single family, and condo construction, etc.
What effect does the city's growth and development have on close in suburban areas (or far north, west, and even south side neighborhoods)?
Do you see a time when low income families will be squeezed out of the likes of Evanston and Oak Park due to rising property values?> |
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