NEAR WEST SIDE, CHICAGO

'Near West Side (Chicago, Illinois)'

'Community Area 28 - Near West Side' Chicago Community Area 28 - Near West Side Location within the city of Chicago
Latitude Longitude
Neighborhoods	★ Columbus Circle ★ Greektown ★ Little Italy ★ Museum Park ★ Medical Center ★ Near West Side ★ Tri-Taylor ★ University Village
ZIP Code	parts of 60606, 60607, 60608, 60610, 60612 and 60661
Area	14.89 km² (5.75 mi²)
Population (2000) Density	46,419 ''(up 0.48% from 1990)'' 3,117.0 /km²
Demographics	White Black Hispanic Asian Other	25.3% 52.9% 9.51% 10.5% 1.87%
Median income	$29,588
Source: U.S. Census, Record Information Services

The 'Near West Side', one of the 77 official community areas, is located on the west side of Chicago, Illinois, directly adjacent to the downtown central business district (the Loop).

Contents

Neighborhoods

Greektown

The West Loop

Tri-Taylor

Little Italy

Illinois Medical District

University Village Chicago

Landmarks

External links

Neighborhoods

Greektown

The 'Greektown' section of Chicago is located roughly between Van Buren and Madison Streets, along Halsted Street, within the Near West Side community area of Chicago. It was popularized in the movie "My Big Fat Greek Wedding," which was actually filmed mostly in Toronto. The neighborhood is known for its plethora of excellent Greek restaurants, including the famous Parthenon, and its 24 hour foodspots.

The West Loop

The 'West Loop,' sometimes called 'West Loop Gate,' makes up the northeast quadrant of the Near West Side, just west of Chicago's Loop. It is bordered by the River to the east, Lake Street on the north, Congress Parkway to the south, and either Halsted or Ashland to the west, depending on who you ask. Comparable to New York City's Meat Packing District, the West Loop is a former manufacturing corridor turned art-edgy neighborhood. The West Loop is made up primarily of warehouses that are still in use or recently converted to loft condominiums, newly constructed "loftominimus," restaurants, night clubs, a growing number of art galleries, and some retail. The West Loop is also the home of Harpo Studios, owned by well known talk show host Oprah Winfrey, and the production site of her syndicated show. Chicago Union Station, the city's only remaining intercity rail terminal and the Richard B. Ogilvie Transportation Center (formerly Northwestern Station), a major commuter rail terminal, are well known West Loop landmarks.

Tri-Taylor

Tri-Taylor consists of the area bordered by Harrison Street to the North, the diagonal Ogden Avenue to the East, Roosevelt Road on the south and Western Avenue on the west. It is shaped vaguely like a triangle and hence "Tri-Taylor." The neighborhood is traditionally an extension of the Little Italy neighborhood to its east, although it has consistently been one of the most diverse 'neighborhoods' in Chicago as it was situated on the borders of heavily African American, Irish, Hispanic, and Italian areas. Recently it has been composed mostly of Mexican-Americans and students from nearby the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). The neighborhood is also home to the Chicago Technology Park research center as well as the West Side Center for Disease Control, the office for the Medical Examiner of Cook County, and the Chicago Hope Academy (a private high school which opened in 2005).

Little Italy

Main articles: Little Italy, Chicago

The Little Italy neighborhood is a fraction of what it once was, but it still has a marked presence in Chicago due to its famous restaurants. Encompassing about 12 blocks on Taylor Street and the nearby area, Little Italy is home to the landmark restaurants Rosebud, Pompei and Francesca's. Those coming for the full Italian-American experience should enjoy a visit to the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame (and nearby Joe DiMaggio plaza), a frozen lemonade from Mario's Italian Lemonade, a beef at Al's No. 1 Italian Beef, a visit to ''Conte di Savoia'' Italian grocer and deli, buy some pasta and cannoli at Scafuri's bakery and a stroll in Arrigo (Peanut) Park to see the statue of Columbus. The neighborhood lies between the Illinois Medical District and the UIC campus.

Illinois Medical District

The Illinois Medical District is the 6th largest medical district in the United States (after the Texas Medical Center in Houston). John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County (formerly known as Cook County Hospital), one of the largest county-run hospitals in the U.S. and inspiration for the TV shows ''ER'' and ''The Fugitive'', is located here. The District had its start in the 1870's when Cook County Hospital, Rush Medical College, and the College of Physicians and Surgeons were established on the Near West Side following the great Chicago Fire of 1871. The cornerstone for the Medical Center was the building of Cook County Hospital in 1876. In 1877, Rush Medical College erected a building next to County at Harrison and Wood. Presbyterian Hospital (affiliated with Rush) was built in 1883. The University of Illinois at Chicago's origins in the District can be traced to the College of Physicians and Surgeons, founded in 1881. In 1917, the State acquired the vacated West Side Park located at Polk and Wolcott for the University.
The district is also home to: University of Illinois hospitals, Rush University Medical Center, Rush University, University of Illinois College of Medicine, UIC College of Dentistry, UIC School of Pharmacy, Jesse Brown VA, The Neuropsychiatric Institute, Rothstein CORE Center, Chicago Lighthouse for the Blind & Visually Impaired, Illinois Forensic Science Center, West Side CDC, Chicago Dept. of Public Health and the Cook County Coroner's Office. Recently, the FBI Division Headquarters for Chicago was erected on Roosevelt Road.

University Village Chicago

Main articles: University Village, Chicago

University Village is a renamed near west Chicago community consisting of newly constructed residential and retail properties. The community is home to mixed-income residents from ethnically diverse socio-economic backgrounds as a result of immigration, urban renewal, gentrification and the growth of the resident student and faculty population of the University of Illinois at Chicago. University Village, Chicago consists of major developments such as the Ivy Hall development, the University Commons development, University Station and the Roosevelt Square development. The area also includes the established neighborhood of Little Italy. University Village surrounds the University of Illinois at Chicago, located south and west of the campus. The Illinois Medical District borders the area on the west. The Pilsen community borders the south, the Dan Ryan expressway I-94 borders the area on the east.
University Village Chicago encompasses the old Maxwell Street neighborhood. From the late 19th century until the 1920s, the Maxwell Street neighborhood was an important Jewish neighborhood for many Jews who had escaped government organized "pogroms" in their countries of origin. They established an outdoor market both to replicate many of the traditional markets from their countries of origin, but also as a way to make a living when starting out in the United States with very little. Once the "Great Migration" of African Americans from the south began in 1919, the neighborhood became increasingly African American though many of the businesses remained in Jewish hands. It is at this time that the music known as "Chicago Blues" originated and was performed on Maxwell Street.
Beginning in the late 1990s, the neighborhood was razed and the residents displaced to make room for new construction and new residents. Today, University Village at Maxwell Street is generally a middle to upper middle-class neighborhood that also serves the University of Illinois at Chicago, which has built a number of residence halls in the neighborhood.

Landmarks

Designated Chicago Landmarks in the Near West Side include:

★ First Baptist Congregational Church

★ Groesbeck House

★ Hull House

★ Jackson Boulevard District and Extension

★ Metropolitan Missionary Baptist Church

★ St. Ignatius College Prep Building

★ Union Station

External links

★ Official City of Chicago Near West Side Community Map

★ Chicago Arts District

★ Chicago Greek Town