Business or family, Oak Brook a prestigious place to call home
Oak Brook, one of Chicago's most affluent and prestigious suburbs, features distinctive residential subdivisions, the upscale Oakbrook Center shopping mall and a thriving corporate scene.
Comprised mostly of residential areas, Oak Brook features mansions, large estates, custom homes and townhouses tucked away in leafy subdivisions with price tags from $700,000 to more than $5 million.
Established subdivisions offer beautiful open spaces, mature trees and larger homesites than surrounding suburbs, said Ginny Stewart, broker with Adams & Myers Realtors. Although most homes were built in the l960s and '70s, Stewart is marketing 30 lots in Brittwood Creek, a new subdivision in old Oak Brook.
Oak Brook has more upscale gated communities than anyplace around, said Beth Burtt, broker-owner of Brush Hill Realtors. "People who travel really like that; they feel more secure."
The village has a wide variety of homes, prices and conditions, Burtt said.
"We see a lot of redoing and renovating now because many of the homes were built a while ago," she said. "But with the excellent schools, a lot of young families are willing to come in and do some work on the homes."
Along with its premier subdivisions, Oak Brook features the illustrious Oakbrook Center with a mix of upscale retailers, excellent dining and a variety of entertainment. Its beautiful outdoor setting features fountains, beautiful mature trees and flower gardens.
The center attracts people from all over the Chicago area, Burtt said. "It's the prettiest shopping center I've ever seen."
Oak Brook is also home to more than 50 Fortune 500 companies including McDonald's, Ace Hardware and Blistex, as well as several global nonprofit organizations, such as Lions Clubs International.
The Lodge at the McDonald's campus features beautiful wooded surroundings with walking trails for the public and a distinctive venue for weddings.
The village also offers world-class hotels with luxury rooms, well-equipped health and fitness centers, meeting rooms and business centers to accommodate the business community. Oak Brook also offers exceptional cuisine with more than 50 restaurants, many the best in Chicago, located within the village.
Exceptional recreational facilities are also a benefit for residents. "The park district is phenomenal, and the bike paths are second to none," Stewart said. "I'm a bike rider, and the trails go over Route 83, all the way over to Highland and around the Midwest Club."
The park district operates the Family Recreation Center with state-of-the-art fitness center, indoor aquatic center, racket club with indoor and outdoor tennis courts, racquetball courts and other amenities and programs for the whole family.
"The Sports Core is absolutely beautiful; it's hidden away, and some people don't even know about it," Stewart said. The lush 269-acre sporting complex in the center of the village includes the elegant glass and wood Oak Brook Bath and Tennis Club and the Polo Grounds.
The Bath and Tennis Club offers excellent tennis and aquatic facilities, fine dining, meeting and banquet rooms. The Oak Brook Polo Grounds and the Open Fields, also part of the complex, host polo matches every Sunday during the summer. Polo, the sport of kings, has attracted world-class teams and dignitaries from around the world.
The Oak Brook Golf Club and Butler National Golf Course are two of many area golf courses.
Along with Oak Brook's superior amenities, a big attraction for homebuyers is the school system, Stewart said. "The schools are phenomenal - Brook Forest, Butler Junior High and Hinsdale Central High School. A lot of people move here because of the schools."
Another draw is that property owners pay no property tax to the village; village services are funded mostly by sales taxes, Stewart said.
Historical attractions include Graue Mill, the only operating water wheel gristmill in Illinois, and Mayslake Forest Preserve and Peabody Estate, which includes the Portiuncula Chapel, a replica of the chapel in Assisi, Italy.