r/oakpark

My family & I just moved to Oak Park this past wekend and while I've been diligent in the school registration for my kid (starting 5th grade this school year), I am a bit concerned about the options for afterschool care.

Currently looking for something less than $400/mo, but the options the school recommended are either full or way above that budget. I registered in the Oak Park District Clubhouse waitlist, but we're unlikely to get a spot since we're 23 on the list. I know registrations opened in January but I wasn't living in OP by then.

So far I've looked into the Seed Montessori program (too expensive), Hepizibah (Full), Clubhouse (Full), Magical Minds (Not sure if there's spots, also expensive).

I really need afterschool care minimum 3x Week, so if anyone has any recommendations on options that include transportation for my kid from school to the afterschool location, that'd be much appreciated!

I am also open to do sports, arts, literally anything that she could go 3x week and gives me enough time to pick her up after work.

Thank you SO MUCH!!

Hi! I have to relocate for a job opportunity and I just resigned my lease. I have a giant 1-bedroom apartment in Oak Park. The kitchen space is small but the living room, bedroom, and dining rooms are huge. There is a lot of natural light.

The building is slightly older so no modern appliances and some creaky floors but it’s a gorgeous spot. Management has been great and maintenance shows up within 24-hours. Washer and dryer are in the basement (I’m on the first floor) but I’ve never had issues with laundry or waiting.

There is free parking around the street and the area is extremely safe.

I am hoping to move by Oct. 1st and rent is $1550 but we could discuss that privately.

I will also throw in a couch and a dining table for free if interested!

Please let me know if you’re interested in images and a video. I would also be happy to give you a tour of my place.

We are new to the area and curious if there is a book club where individuals rotate houses and do little shindigs to discuss the book? Thank you 😊

*edit: if there isn't, anyone interested in getting on together?

**Edit #2: I AM SO GLAD THIS GOT SO MUCH INTEREST! ! If truly serious please send me a private DM mentioning book club & your number. We can start a group chat and get coordinated with it (: my wife and I would like to work our way through the NPR book recs but open to other book lists as well. YAY!! Thinking byob and potluck snacks, type thing

I recently started dabbling in LoRa, specifically MeshCore, which is an off-grid communication network using low-cost hardware, and I'd like to see if anyone here is interested. The idea is that the community can setup a communication network that can function even if power and/or cellular networks go down. The network is relatively young in Chicagoland with lots of room for growth in our area. This kind of network has been used after natural disasters to coordinate emergency responses, but it's also an opportunity to learn about radio communication.

If you're interested, check out https://chicagolandmesh.org/about/

I have a family member visiting soon who has celiac disease and cannot eat anything with gluten. Would love any recs on your favorite gluten free spots in the area. Thanks!

Just a vent of how annoying the man hole covers are on Harlem. If you hit them, it’s like your car is going to bottom out and trying to avoid them feels like you’re playing Frogger.

This is fun, and maybe something to discuss more than, like, a pure advocacy piece. A concern some have about the proposed rezoning is the impact multifamily will have on home prices. It turns out we have a bunch of data about this, because we built a lot of multifamily in Oak Park before we effectively outlawed it in the 40's-70's.

If you're a housing nerd, have a look. I don't think it matters one way or the other (maximizing home prices isn't the purpose of the rezoning, though I expect single-family home prices to increase either way) but it's a fun data set to examine. (Thanks to Josh for putting this together).

Hello! We've decided Oak Park is the right fit for us and will be moving at the end of the year. Now we're trying to narrow down where in Oak Park to focus our house search.

For those with young kids, would you recommend living north (south of Madison) of the Eisenhower or south, or are both equally good for families? Our kids are 5, 4, and 1, and one of the things we love about Oak Park is the community feel—block parties, kids out riding bikes/playing with neighbors, parks, etc. We'd really love to land on a block where there are lots of young families so the kids can have friends nearby and it's easy to meet people. Are there particular areas you'd recommend? There are definitely more houses available north of LakeWe’d love to have a house to move into but are also flexible renting while we search around.

We'd also love any insight on elementary schools and daycares, especially for the younger two. My husband will commute to the West Loop and I work remotely, so access to the Blue/Green Line or Metra is also a consideration.

Thanks, as always, for all the input!

Hi everyone! We just adopted the cutest 4-month-old Maltipoo 🐶💕 and are looking for some recommendations for reliable dog walkers/sitters in Oak Park/River forest area!

We live at The Oak Park Place Apartments, so if anyone here in the building does dog sitting, mid day check ins, dog walking- we’d love to connect! We’re also looking for long-term boarding/pet-sitting options for when we travel — either someone who could care for her in our apartment or a trusted home-based boarding option nearby. All recommendations are welcome!! Thank you!!

I was standing in line at Hole in the Wall on Oak Park Ave and saw the new storefront across the street for Chocolat. Anyone have any details they can share?

Hi! If I am a college student who lives in Oak Park, but has my car registered to my parents (in a different part of Illinois), what will happen if I don’t buy a city sticker?

My wife and I recently moved to the Oak Park area with our 15 month old. We would love to meet other families in the area. Would anyone be interested in doing a community playdate at the Scoville park playground on 8/15 at 10 am? Would love to get a group together!

If you’ve got a place you take it to that you really like, I’d like to hear that as well - but for this time I’m looking for someone that will come to my house.