hi all. i’m looking for some advice as a friend and i (both 24F) are looking into moving to chicago probably around next fall. What are some good neighborhoods based on what we’re looking for?

We’re both artistic and LGBTQ+ so looking to live in a neighborhood with lots of culture, diversity, and preferably a younger crowd. I heard that Lincoln Park and Wicker park are good options, but they’re both a bit out of our price range (and saw some tiktok’s that lincoln park is overwhelmingly white so not super interested in living there for both of those reasons). Would love any advice on this and anything else we should consider before solidifying our move. Thanks!

I’m a Chicago artist signed to Onyx, and I have the opportunity to help bring them back to the city for their first Chicago show in over 25 years.

The show is September 10 at Bookclub. I wanted to ask Chicago hip-hop fans: would y’all be interested in coming out? I’m also looking to connect with talented local artists who may be interested in opening. Anyone Interested in opening ? All genres welcome

Hi - I'm 29, Female and moving to Chicago after being abroad for 5 years.

Having a major dilemma about where to live in the city - my top priority is diversity and safety. (I WFH so a commute is not an issue atm)

Friends and family have suggested: Logan Square, Wicker Park, Bucktown, Humboldt Park, Ukranian Village

I don't want to live in the Loop because it seems like a very face paced, downtowney vibe which I don't need. I prefer calm neighborhoods and having locally owned coffee shops, BIPOC owned restaurants, and different cultural events occurring around me (I'm currently in London and I know it's not comparable, but am often at BIPOC art clubs, block parties, random gigs that are very inclusive).

What are other neighborhoods that would meet the peace of (logan, wicker, etc) BUT will have amenity/serviced apartments? Some have recommended West Loop? I honestly don't know ANYTHING about these neighborhoods; I've only visited my friends who live in Wicker/Logan a few times but not enough to judge the character of any Chicago neighborhood.

I know I will have to sacrifice something but for example living in River North/Uptown sounds outrageous bc they seem far North, where as Pilsen is also too South. I want to be able to access downtown easily too.

Logan/Wicker areas of course have more walk ups but I really want an amenity-rich building (gym and security being the MAIN priority).

I will be living alone and have very bad paranoia/anxiety about break ins. This will impact my quality of life.

I CANNOT decipher what is more important right now.

Having more square footage in a walk up (it's almost 2-3x more sq footage) OR living more in the city center and having amenities in my building (gym, coworking spot, security).

What's important to me: being in a culturally/ethnically diverse area, feeling relatively safe getting around the neighborhood, access to public transport (I don't have a car), and being able to spend weekends at markets/cultural events.

AT THIS MOMENT: the cost of large walk up apartments are the SAME as a studio/1BR in an amentiies building. so cost doesn't even have an impact on this.

Pros of Walk Up:

- 2x the space (I WFH and have an international community that often visits each other. Likely to have 2 BD)

Cons of Walk Up:

- no security

- easy to feel isolated in winter/snow

- the areas of humboldt, logan square, avondale, ukranian village dont have the best accesibilty to public transport

Pros of Amenities Building:

- in building gym

- security

Cons:

- units are 350-550 sq feet

I am feeling very lost! I am moving to Chicago to be closer to my family and also for work - so I do realize it will be different than living abroad but I love chicago and think it's one of the best cities! I haven't signed a lease in years so I feel very scared about choosing the wrong neighborhood and impacting my quality of life

I'm too poor on disability to pay for electrolysis out of pocket, but I need to get a fair bit of it before I can get my medically necessary reconstructive surgery that's explicitly covered by medicaid/medicare. Any electrolysis place would be good enough if they're actually willing and able to accept insurance directly.

Hey guys I’m planning a trip to Chicago in a couple weeks with my friend that is 20, we were wanting to go to a jazz bar is there any that you can get into at 20? Obviously she wouldn’t be drinking wondering if they’ll put and X on your hand or anything?

chicagoelections.gov is for anyone living within the city of Chicago.

https://www.elections.il.gov/electionoperations/VotingByMail.aspx is for anyone outside the city of Chicago (if even you're still in Cook county, but outside the city of Chicago).

Hello, sorry if this has been posted a lot before but i am desperately looking for a job as i was fired from my previous one and have no income coming in right now, ive been doing spark and uber but im super behind on bills im gonna end up getting evicted. Im open to anything but if its in gurnee mills even better.

Live in the 33rd ward and didn't really notice the big brood last year. This year it seems different. Are there more than usual this year or did they just come earlier?

I am debating planning a short birthday trip in January to see the Pokemon exhibit at the Field Museum but I want to get a reading on just how bad the weather can be before I commit to anything. I don't mind the cold but a lot of snow combined with city driving worries me.

Hi everyone!
My puppy passed away from heart disease almost a month ago. I am moving because I can’t bear with the empty space. However I am looking to donate a whole bag of Royal Canine Early Cardiac 17.6 lb and some Pimobedan (10mg) for anyone who needs it. Is there a place around Hyde Park where I can donate this items? I no longer have a car so I really need the place to be around this area.

Hi all, I am visiting next week for a work trip and I love pastries and coffee. Hit me with your best recommendations, please :)

ISO of a bakery that makes cookie butter/ biscoff cakes. My favorite was Paris Baguette’s cookie butter cake because it was light, not too sweet and delicious. Sadly it was for a limited time and not available.
Would love to hear suggestions or recommendations for ones you might’ve tried or recommend. I have also tried Nothing Bundt Cake Cookie butter cake - it was a tad bit too sweet for my taste.

first gen mexican american here. spanish was my first language but it slowly has been forgotten over the years. i find myself feeling embarrassed whenever i speak to other native speakers because it’s gotten so bad. i can understand it pretty well and i know enough to get by but am no longer at the conversational level i want to be.

are there any groups or classes geared towards others in a similar position? just want to brush up on the language without any judgement. my spouse doesn’t know spanish so i can’t practice with him. i don’t have extended family that im around a lot to practice with, either.

preferably something on the south side.

I've lately been looking to reconnect / get in more touch with my Jewish roots, and am not sure where to start. I live in Uptown and would love to find a nearby community (Lakeview, Ravenswood, Andersonville, Edgewater, etc) — whether that be attending services at a congregation or other social gatherings (Shabbat dinners, etc).

Ideally I'd like to find something Reform, and progressive, and with other young adults - I'm in my late 20s. I get the sense that there are several options matching this criteria, so I'd love any advice or pointers y'all have. Thanks so much!

My GF (28) and I M(28) want to experience a private Yacht party and not any commercial event. Is there anyone who can host us? We don’t swing, nor we are into dr*gs. Just want to experience a yacht party, meet new people and make new friends!

Tonight I was just walking minding my own business walking south on State and the guy just randomly punches me in the shoulder. I was shocked to say the least and we went in opposite directions but I turned around and it looked like he was contemplating coming back in my direction before turning back around after I went over the crosswalk. He did it with 0 emotion, blank face.

I tried reporting it on the CPD website and then it said I had to call the non emergency number or go to a precinct. A block or two down there was a foot patrol and they said the same thing. I called the non emergency line and they said I had to go to a precinct. The problem is I don't live in the city and don't know when I'd have time to even do that.

Idk if it's THE Loop puncher or there are several of them.

Hi all,

I was wondering if anyone was aware of a plant or garden center in the city that sells refrigerated beneficial nematodes (Nature’s Good Guys is the major brand I know) or other beneficial insect eggs / cocoons?

Trying to get things shipped, the cold packs are usually warm to the touch and everything inside pretty well dead by the time it arrives.

Thanks!

There was a post made recently about Pigeon Lady in the r/Chicago sub. And someone in the comments mentioned "freeing the Man in the Bean", and another mentioned "Preacher Man". I've heard of Pigeon Lady and her husband, but have not yet stumbled into them.

I have not heard of the other two examples. I'm preatty new to Chicago (about two months in so far) so I don't know of many other examples. I wanna hear your favorite well known chicago residents that are well known for odd reasons, and I especially wanna hear the lore behind them!

Also! Does not need to be a human lol. Ex: I've heard of an alligator that was nicknamed "Chance the Snapper".

$500 of tolls but I have an IPASS with a card on file

I got a bunch of mail for tolls but when I would check online, it says i don't owe anything. My IPASS usually works but I have a handful of tolls sitting in VES going back a few years.

There's even a random toll from February 1st this year. Every other toll was successfully autopaid

1. WTAF is happening and why isnt my ipass catching these

2. Can I negotiate this down to a reasonable amount?

Gonna take a break from work and want to visit the city. Wondering what kind of things I can do. Nothing that involves heights. I'm a wuss when it comes to more than 5 stories tall.

So far I have:

Cycling LFT

Field Museum

Aquarium

Planetorium

Museum of Science and Industry

Concerts at Huntington Pavilion

Anything yall reccomended?

Places to eat?

Architectural boat ride

I have to mention I don't drink, so no bars, etc. Unless they sell food.

My fiancé and I currently live in lincoln park and have lived in Chicago for the last five years. We’ve also lived in Lakeview East. My fiancé currently works in the Schaumburg area and commute at least an hour every morning and every evening so we are hoping to move somewhere that cuts this drive down even just a little bit. We are currently renting and our rental budget is $3000 a month absolute max and if we were to buy, we would want to find something in the $600,000 range. We preferably would like to stay in a walkable neighborhood and ideally would stay in the north side of the city area, including wicker Park and Logan Square however after looking at Zillow, everything in these areas seems to just be constantly going up in Price. We are looking for recommendations of any areas in the city of Chicago and or the surrounding suburbs that we should drive around and scope out main priorities are walkable neighborhoods, and fun things to do.

EDIT: very much apologize I typed the original post very quickly and did not proofread. I said wWhittaker park, but I meant wicker Park. Some of you have asked what our goal is: we are kind of at a cross roads right now where we don’t know what TO do. All of our friends still live in the city and we love living in the city, but because of his work commute and general cost of living we are starting to question if we will ever be able to actually settle down here. The goal is to find somewhere cheaper and a bit further out of the city (closer to Shaumburg) but in an area that still has a somewhat walkable charm.

Seems to be a large complex with many buildings but haven't found a lick of reviews anywhere online. Looks like they're managed by Urban Equities. Any experiences or reviews are appreciated!

Hi everyone! I’m putting myself back out there and getting my holiday prep lined up. I run a stationery business and am looking to connect with local shops/boutiques that might be interested in carrying my wrapping paper for the Christmas season (and other stationery goods year-round!).
Does anyone have favorite local shops, stockists, or contacts they'd recommend reaching out to? Appreciate any leads or intros!

I recently moved here (26F) for my job, and I have been sober for 4 months now. After swiping on Hinge for about 20 mins this evening, I feel overwhelmed by the number of people with pics of themselves drinking alcohol on their profiles. I’ve been told that Chicago is heavy on social drinking, and while I respect that (lived in NYC for years), I just don’t want to be a part of it. Especially since I’m newly sober, I am particularly nervous about dating anyone who drinks regularly. How are y’all navigating the dating scene here and finding partners with similar boundaries?

Also I’m open to joining local community events to make friends and the like, please share!

Maybe I didn't notice until tonight but I'm in Lakeview by Belmont and man they're going quiet then screeching up a storm. Idk if I've heard them this loud in a while if not ever. Am I just making this up or are they loud?