A suburb of Chicago, South Barrington is located in Cook County and consistently ranks as one of the best places to live in the state of Illinois. There are plenty of good reasons to move to South Barrington if you’re searching for a great place to raise your family while enjoying both rural calm and big city amenities. Deciding where to move is a big decision, so Crème de la Crème of South Barrington rounded up some of the advantages of living in our hometown to get you started.

Rural Feel Combined With Easy City Access

Image by Shaik Sheezan is licensed with Unsplash License

South Barrington’s population is around 5,000 people and has been growing since 2020. You can expect a rural feel when you live in South Barrington, where most residents own their own homes. In addition to being a great place to raise a family, South Barrington has many retirees.

You’ll have all the perks of rural surroundings without giving up easy access to a city. After all, South Barrington is a suburb of Chicago, so you can head into the city whenever you want to enjoy the city life, then head back home to South Barrington for a rural pace of living and lots of outdoor spaces.

Great Network of Parks and Outdoor Space

You’ll find a variety parks in South Barrington, making it easy to enjoy the great outdoors with your family without traveling far from home. Along with Marvin Dunteman Park and New Community Park, you’ll want to check out South Barrington’s nature center: Stillman Nature Center. This private, non-profit center for environmental education provides an oasis right in South Barrington.

Head to the nature center to experience 80 acres of woods, lake, and prairie. The variety of habitats provides cover and nesting for wild animals. You can enjoy educational programs throughout the year, or simply plan a day out with the family on a Sunday or a Monday, when Stillman Nature Center is open to the public. Many birds of prey that can’t be released into the wild because of injury or other issues call Stillman home, including barn owls, barred owls, broad-winged hawks, eastern screech owls, great horned owls, red-shouldered hawks, peregrine falcons, snowy owls, and turkey vultures.

That’s not the only place to enjoy nature right in town. South Barrington offers easy access to the Paul Douglas Forest Preserve, located in the neighboring Hoffman Estates. This is the place to go for recreational activities like bird watching, nature walks, biking, and jogging. Over 21 miles of unpaved and paved trails mean fun outdoors for the whole family. You’ll also find picnic areas perfect for a family outing. As for the birding opportunities, the 1,800-acre preserve is a top spot thanks to the open grasslands, restored wetlands, and heron rookery that draw in a range of nesting species.

Located in a Vibrant Metro Area

Even though South Barrington delivers a rural feel, it’s located in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area. That means you’ll have the best of all worlds when you move to South Barrington. Chicago is a major national hub and is the biggest regional center in America’s heartland, so you’ll enjoy the perks of living close to a world-class cultural, commercial, and industrial center. Chicago got its start as a transport center where agricultural products going east and cargo going west traveled, and it has maintained its role as the country’s top passenger and freight transportation hub.

Chicago still sees the most rail traffic and air departures in the country, so its economy stands out in the commercial and manufacturing realms. Various industries and more than 30 Fortune 500 companies have headquarters in the city. Chicago also boasts a thriving scene for small businesses and manufacturing, with warehouses and factories extending from the city. All in all, it’s one of the country’s more diverse economies, meaning you’ll have a range of employment and other opportunities close to home.

Close to a Major City

Without sacrificing the low-key lifestyle of the rural South Barrington area, moving here means you’ll have all the perks of living close to Chicago. That goes well beyond the economic opportunities living in the wider metro area provides. You’ll have easy access to a major airport and can enjoy all the cultural offerings Chicago features.

The proximity to Chicago — the major city is only about a 40 minute drive from South Barrington — means you’ll never run out of things to do. Into art? The Art Institute of Chicago is one of the top art museums anywhere. Want to explore space and science? You can’t go wrong with Adler Planetarium or the Field Museum. Even if you just want a change of pace for a family day walking and enjoying the sights, you’ll have Millennium Park and Navy Pier waiting to deliver the ideal setting for a stroll.

Highly Rated Schools

You’ll know your children will have ample educational opportunities when you move to South Barrington. The public schools here rank highly across all of Illinois, and the elementary schools deliver high math proficiency and high reading and language arts proficiency. The public schools spend $16,632 per student, higher than the average $12,383 per-student expenditure in the United States.

Public schools serving South Barrington include William Fremd High School and Barrington High School, both ranked in the top 20 public high schools in the state. Top elementary schools in the area include Hough Street Elementary School, Barbara B. Rose Elementary School, and Grove Area Elementary School — the second best public elementary school in all of Illinois.

There you have it, Crème de la Crème of South Barrington just gave you five great reasons to move to South Barrington. We offer a range of educational opportunities for your kids to make the decision to live here even easier. Whether your kiddos are too young to attend the top-rated area elementary schools or you’re looking to complement their education with after-school and summer camp programs, Crème de la Crème of South Barrington has you covered. Contact us today to schedule a tour and learn about our infant care, toddler care, preschool, and other offerings.