We define Chicago’s “near west” neighborhoods to include the West Loop, Fulton River District and River West. You’ll find all of your major apartment options in these neighborhoods on our at-a-glance list of downtown apartments.
Our goal is to help you find the apartment that best fits your needs. Renters simply have so many differing priorities – and budget constraints – that singling out an overall best building would be a pointless exercise.
Our first posts in this series focused on location. We spotlighted the buildings with the best views, most convenient grocery shopping, and the best access to public transit, parks, the expressway grid, the Loop, dining and nightlife and retail shopping.
We turned our attention to aspects of the buildings themselves, starting with affordability. Our current topic: building amenities.
The newer buildings all have lavish amenities packages, but two stand out: K2 and Alta, with Echelon at K Station a close runner-up.
If you’re a dog owner, you might be swayed by K2’s dog run – the city’s largest.
If you have a small child, the playground adjacent to Echelon and Alta may be the deciding factor.
Presidential Towers (PT) has a 52,000 square foot Fitness Formula Club on-site. If you include that in the building’s amenities package, and factor it in as part of your rent, then PT is also a contender in this category.
Chime in with a comment if you disagree with our selections.
You’ll find links to our objective, visually-rich apartment reviews of near west buildings, and links to near real-time availability checks for most of the buildings, at our downtown apartments at-a-glance list, and some tips and advice at our Guide to renting in Chicago’s near west neighborhoods.
We’ve also spotlighted the best apartments in River North, Streeterville and the South Loop.
Next topic: Boutique ambiance.
Note: K2 and Echelon are YoChicago advertisers.