Neighborhood profile: Elk Grove's Pavilion
Lorraine Herforth attributes three factors to the popularity of the Pavilion area of Elk Grove Village — location, location and location.
“The Pavilion area is in the center of town. You can walk to the Pavilion, the library, elementary school, shopping center, Coach's Corner for a beef sandwich, and the theater,” said Herforth, broker and associate with Prudential American Heritage Realty. “You can walk everywhere, and that's what people want to do today.”
The neighborhood takes its name from the 110,000-square-foot Jack A. Claes Pavilion, one of the town's best features that opened in 1994 and offers all kinds of recreation and classes. The facility includes a fitness center, 28-foot carousel, indoor playground, racquetball courts, two gymnasiums, indoor and outdoor swimming pools and a climbing wall.
Although pre-Pavilion, Bobi and James Farrell moved to the area in 1984 because they wanted to be near the elementary school. They had lived across Biesterfield Road, were familiar with the town and knew where they wanted to live.
“The Pavilion wasn't here when we moved in, but the area had the geography — close to the school and shopping. So we just fell into a great location when they built the library and village complex, and then the Pavilion,” James Farrell said.
The neighborhood includes the Centex subdivision, where home styles range from three bedrooms, 1½ baths and one-car garage up to the Citadel model, a two-story home with five bedrooms. There is a wide range of styles and prices, Herforth said. “It's well-maintained, meticulous.”
The Farrells bought a three-bedroom ranch home with a family room, full basement and two-car attached garage. “It was the right house at the right time,” Farrell said. “We enjoyed raising three kids here, and it's still a great place to live.”
The Farrells have a membership at the Pavilion and go to the health club, and their kids play basketball there, Farrell said.
Many of the homes in the subdivision have been remodeled or updated with a new roof, siding and/or windows. Some people have even removed walls because they like the open feeling, Herfoth said.
Although the Farrells didn't change the original floor plan of their home, they updated the kitchen, put on new siding and had new windows installed.
“People love living in this area, and a lot of original owners are still here,” Herforth said. “Kids grow up and want to stay here. We get them in a starter home and then keep moving them around to bigger homes. The older folks don't want to leave. And now the trend is back down to the smaller homes.”
The neighborhood is a couple minutes from one of the best hospitals in Illinois, Alexian Brothers Medical Center, Herforth said.
For those who enjoy nature and the outdoors, the nearby Ned Brown-Busse Woods Forest Preserve is just a bike ride away and features more than 6,600 acres of preserved forests, rivers and lakes. For more entertainment, the The Pavilion hosts outdoor concerts on an area known as “the green,” Herford said.
“People can just walk to the concerts in the summertime, ride their bikes to the forest preserve, and there's the sledding hill right there (in Roosevelt Park near Byrd Elementary School),” she said.
Coming up on Sept. 17 is a special event of interest to residents and prospective owners. The Centex house walk, In its third year, in its third year, is a great opportunity for people to see redesigned homes and get ideas on how they can make these tract homes different. Architects and builders will be available to talk to visitors, Herforth said.
Listing sheet
<b>Price range: </b>$200,000 to $400,000
<b>Age of homes: </b>Up to 60 years old
<b>Schools: </b>Byrd Elementary and Grove Junior High schools in Elk Grove Township Elementary District 59 and Elk Grove High School in Northwest Suburban High School District 214
<b>Parks:</b> Elk Grove Park District