Overview
The North Shore suburbs of Chicago are stunningly attractive places to live – so much so that many nearby suburbs lay claim to the North Shore’s superior status.
The North Shore communities – from south to north along the shore of Lake Michigan – are Evanston, Wilmette, Kenilworth, Winnetka, Glencoe, Highland Park, Highwood, Lake Forest and Lake Bluff.
Westward lies a host of wannabes: Skokie, Glenview, Northbrook and so on. Lacking beaches, they fail the first critical test of whether they're part of "the Shore."
The North Shore is as much about attitude, affluence, achievement and ancestry (and, some might say, anxiety and anorexia) as it is about geography. The wannabes have isolated pockets that share some of the attributes of the North Shore communities, but all fall short in critical ways.
What sets the North Shore apart, more than anything else, is its timelessness. If you returned to the North Shore today, after a 30-year absence, almost all of its scenes would be instantly familiar, and many of the people you left behind would still be here, aging in place. The North Shore is a destination for most of its residents rather than a way-station.
The permanence of the North Shore has a huge and hugely enriching impact on the experience of living here, especially for children. College-age kids from the North Shore have friends they've known since kindergarten, not just Facebook friends. North Shore schools have teachers who taught their students' parents, famed alumni who return to give back, and citizens who support them rather than begrudging them their property tax dollars.
For all their affluence and attitude, Chicago's North Shore communities are surprisingly welcoming places that offer a range of housing options – from affordable studio apartments and ranch homes to mini- and mega-mansions. The wealthy thrive here, but you don't need to be wealthy to live well here.
The best of The Shore
This is just one man's opinion on which suburbs are best in each of the following categories.
Apartments, condos: Evanston
Beaches: Lake Forest, Wilmette
Beachfront housing: Winnetka, Lake Forest
Boating: Wilmette
Commute to downtown Chicago: Wilmette
Dining: Evanston, Winnetka, Highwood
Friendliness: Wilmette, Kenilworth
Housing, upper bracket: Winnetka, Lake Forest
If you're homeless: Evanston
If you're single: Evanston
Kid-centric: Wilmette
Nightlife: n/a. This is the North Shore.
Open lands: Lake Forest
Parks: Wilmette, Winnetka
Public schools: Kenilworth
Public transportation: Evanston, Wilmette
Scouts, boys and girls: Kenilworth
Swimming pool, public: Wilmette
Shopping: Evanston, Winnetka
Urban feel: Downtown Evanston
Village hall: Winnetka
Diversity
The joke in Santa Barbara is that "diversity means 60 shades of blonde." The North Shore isn't that much different.
With the exception of Evanston, which is home to Northwestern University, diversity is not the North Shore's strong suit. That said, there's nothing exclusionary about Chicago's North Shore suburbs. African-Americans, Asians, Latinos and every other nationality live comfortably and feel welcome throughout the North Shore.
Government
Evanston, Glencoe, Kenlworth, Wilmette and Winnetka are in Cook County. Highland Park, Highwood, Lake Bluff and Lake Forest are in Lake County. Municipal government is outlined in more detail in the knol for each suburb.
History
The North Shore is rich in history, but we don't think that much matters to most people who are trying to decide where to live. If you're curious, follow the links to the historical societies in the individual suburb knols.
Housing
The North Shore suburbs offer a wide array of housing options, from Evanston's courtyard apartments and condo high-rises to sprawling estates in Lake Forest and Winnetka mansions.
Apartments and rental homes, though limited in number in most of the North Shore, are readily available.
New construction on the North Shore is limited to smaller, infill developments and teardowns / replacements of single-family homes. See NewHomeNotebook for lists of new construction projects and user ratings and reviews.
Media
Pioneer Press, a part of the Sun-Times News Group, publishes the following weeklies, each with a rich and dense variety of community news: Evanston Review, Wimlette Life, Winnetka Talk, Glencoe News, Highland Park News and Lake Forester. North Shore Magazine is a glossy publication that appears monthly, usually to an indifferent reception.
Schools
For families with children, the North Shore's generally excellent public and private schools, some of the best in the nation, are often the major reason for moving to the area. New Trier High School, which serves Wilmette, Kenilworth, Winnetka, Glencoe, a small part of Evanston and most of neighboring Northfield, is a destination for many who place a premium on education.
Schools are discussed in more detail in the knol for each individual suburb.
Shopping
The North Shore suburbs, with the exception of Evanston and Winnetka, have very limited retail areas.
All of the North Shore suburbs have easy access to several major upscale regional shopping centers: Old Orchard (Bloomingdale's, Lord & Taylor, Macy's, Nordstrom and many more) and Northbrook Court (Lord & Taylor, Macy's, Neiman Marcus, etc.)
Transportation
The Edens Expressway (I-94) is easily accessible from Wilmette, Kenilworth, Winnetka, and Glencoe. US Route 41 and I-94 connect Highland Park, Highwood, Lake Forest and Lake Bluff to the Edens Expressway. Travel times to downtown Chicago can range from 20 minutes at off-peak hours from Wilmette to over an hour, during busier periods, from Lake Bluff.
The North Shore spans an area that's more than 20 miles from southern Evanston to northern Lake Bluff. If access to downtown Chicago is important, consider the Cook County suburbs. In order of proximity to the city, they're Evanston, Wilmette, Kenilworth, Winnetka and Glencoe. Evanston and Wilmette, in that order, have the best public transportation. It's generally quicker to drive to downtown from Wilmette than from Evanston.
Related knols
You'll find more information about each of the North Shore suburbs at their individual knols.
Municipal Web sites
All of the North Shore communities have official Web sites that are worth visiting.
A work in progress
This knol is a work in progress that will be updated and expanded. Please add your comments and suggestions for making this and related knolls more useful to anyone considering a move to the North Shore..
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