Darien is OK, but our weather is oppressive.
-
2/13/2021
2/13/2021 I've lived in the Darien Illinois area for 35 years now. It's fine. Traffic is only nasty during the A.M. and PM rush hours. Thankfully, PM rush over is only about 2.5 - 3 hours long-which is excellent! The schools are very good. We've had a recent referendum which passed on it's 3rd attempt. Although the public did not want it to pass, it did eventually, so the schools just got a huge infusion of cash for improvements. I'm anxious to see how my property taxes will be impacted. If you have kids, you will LOVE it here for the excellent schools that we child-free people pay for disproportionately on your behalf. Darien is great for families! Local amenities are very good, lots of shopping, summer events & tons of parks but still a LOT of empty stores. We are close - but not too close to world renowned beautiful Chicago for excitement. Midway airport is close. Lots of health care available. Lots of green here. Low crime. The biggest problem? Our weather. It has gotten progressively worse these last 4 years due to Climate Change caused by excessive human population. Today, we are in our 2nd full week of extreme low temps and massive snow. This will continue into the 3rd week as well, breaking all kinds of records. So far in February 2021, we've received almost 3 ft of snow and we can't get out of our homes or driveways. No longer is there anywhere to put the snow. Wind chills all this month have been 20 , 30 , and 42 degrees below zero. Yes, you read that right. The weather forecasters report that these conditions will continue. We continue to break weather records in Winter and Summer. Expect snow to start just before Halloween and extend to early/mid May. Spring is short, very short and beautiful. It begins Mid May and lasts until Mid-June. It is lovely Spring weather for that one month. Breathtakingly lovely. Our hot and extremely humid & tropical summers begin Mid-June and last into the early days of October. Temps in the summer are typically in the high 80;s to the high 90's with oppressive humidity close to 95% to 100% humidity. It is extremely tropical in Darien, Illinois. You cannot open your windows in the summer ever - not even at night where it does NOT cool down. Our falls are spectacular and colorful and last about 1.5 months. We try and pack as much as living as we can into our 2.5 months of beautiful weather; then we go inside for the rest of the 9.5 to 10 months. If your choose to live here, make sure your home is well insulated and large enough to navigate our long winters and summers. Central A/C & heating MUST be hefty, sturdy and in excellent condition, and serviced twice a year for maintenance. Having a reliable HVAC contractor is absolutely essential to live here. Make sure you have her / his business card ready. Establish a good relationship with your HVAC person; you will need their services more than ever in our harsh climate. Would I like to move? Absolutely! Darien has always been a place where you have to escape in the Winter. Now with climate change, you have to escape in the Summer as well. It is most helpful to have two (2) homes in different parts of the country if you choose to live in the Midwest.
Ken | Walnut Creek, CA