Sauk Village is a "quiet, walkable" place.
A small town situated along the historic Sauk Trail, 30 miles south of downtown Chicago, Sauk Village features oak-lined streets and an abundance of natural greenery. “It’s a quiet and walkable village, and proximity to the highway makes it super easy to get to nearby amenities in both Illinois and Indiana,” says local real estate agent Margaret Banks. While homes in the area sit close together on small lots, front-yard gardens and foliage provide a degree of privacy. Walking along the village’s shaded sidewalks will take you past a selection of modest houses, with common styles including brick ranch-style homes, Cape Cods and split-levels.
Community offers affordability
“Sauk Village's prices are quite affordable compared to surrounding towns,” Banks says. When looking to buy a home, you can expect prices to range from $70,000 for investment properties and fixer-uppers to $200,000 for spacious ranch-style homes with updated interiors and modern appliances. Additionally, most houses in the area were built between the late 1950s and early 1980s and sit on quarter-acre lots. Traveling south toward the village’s surrounding woodlands and agricultural fields, you’ll start to see more private residences on larger lots, with some boasting up to 5 acres.
School activities include movie nights and cooking classes
On Torrence Avenue, you’ll find Rickover Junior High School, home of the Raiders. Here, students choose from numerous extracurricular activities, including clubs centered around STEM, anime and environmental studies. Younger students of Sauk Village may attend one of the area’s two K-5 schools: Wagoner Elementary and Strassburg Elementary. After picking up the kids from school, stop by the McConathy Public Library on Jeffrey Avenue to check out a new read or attend a movie showing, a story time or a children’s cooking class. Right outside the library’s doors, you’ll find a community garden, where locals can harvest produce from its eight raised beds.
Dining options include steak and Indian cuisine
When you’re running low on household essentials, you can check off everything on your list with a quick trip to the nearby Walmart, Jewel-Osco or Aldi. After stocking up your fridge, satisfy your appetite at Woo Woo’s Bar B Que, where you can savor tender rib tips, hot links or a juicy steak burger. Just a few doors down, you’ll find Black Salt Indian Bar & Restaurant, where patrons can enjoy authentic Indian cuisine alongside a refreshing hand-crafted cocktail.
Community has year-round activities
Just east of Sauk Village’s residential streets is the Plum Creek Meadow forest preserve. Here, you can go for a 2-mile walk along a peaceful loop trail that winds past Plum Creek as it flows downstream. The trail is open to hikers, bikers, cross-country skiers and equestrians alike, all of whom can enjoy the natural serenity of the 1,000-acre preserve. Plum Creek Meadow is also a great spot for birdwatching, with a variety of species calling the oak woodlands home, from robins and woodpeckers to Canada geese and sparrows. Once you’ve had your fill of the trails, enjoy a picnic lunch in one of the park’s two covered pavilions.
Route 394 goes to downtown Chicago
When you want to head into the city for work, shopping, dining or simply to explore, you can easily hop on Route 394 to experience everything downtown Chicago has to offer.
Photography Contributed By
Brett Bulthuis
