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About Edgewater
Edgewater is a north Chicago, Illinois,
community seven miles north of downtown bordering the neighborhoods of Rogers
Park to the north, Uptown to the south, Lincoln Square to the west and south and
West Ridge to the west and north. Edgewater has the highest population density
of any of the neighborhoods in Chicago. According to the 2000 U.S. Census the
zip code 60640, one of two zip codes in Edgewater (the other being 60660), had
the highest concentration of gay and lesbian couples in the city, and fifth
highest in the country.
Edgewater was first developed around the 1890s as a summer home for Chicago's
elite. With the exception of pockets acknowledged as historic districts (like
the Bryn Mawr Historic District), Edgewater boasts a skyline of apartment
buildings, condominium complexes, and mid-rise homes. Edgewater is highlighted
by two main corridors: North Winthrop Avenue and North Kenmore Avenue to Loyola
University Chicago. Winthrop and Kenmore are rehabilitated areas with homes
touched up to harken back to Edgewater's glory days of the past.
Uptown's population declined in the 1950s as
Chicago's suburbs were developed and opened, absorbing Chicago's middle and
upper classes. With the flight of residents came disrepair and high crime rates
for what once was one of the most affluent districts of Chicago.
In the 1980s, the Chicago Board of Aldermen and local business owners
orchestrated a revival for the Edgewater community. Edgewater seceded from the
Uptown community and once again called itself its own community. New businesses
were brought into the community, old buildings were refurbished and homes
touched up to harken back to Edgewater's glory days of the past.
The highrise condominiums that line Sheridan
Rd. and the Lake were known to have large numbers of retired and elderly
persons, many living on fixed incomes. The prices have been more affordable than
Lake Shore Drive addresses farther south. Meanwhile, Kenmore and Winthrop
streets a couple blocks west suffered in mixed conditions of poverty and crime
that were a far cry from their prior prestige. Recognizing the value of
lakefront living close to the Red Line elevated train, conditions began an
improvement and influx of residents. Many of Edgewater's new residents are from
Africa and the former Yugoslavia. The area has a great density of Bosnian, Serb
and Croat residents. These people, troubled by civil war and tough conditions in
their homeland, have been encouraged to settle in the area. The city is known
for accepting new, thriving enclaves of ethnicities in centuries past. This new
settlement of Europeans is a modern revival of that tradition.
Meanwhile, Edgewater is also home to a large African community. Ethnic
Ethiopians, newly independent Eritreans, and Nigerians, to name a few, live and
socialize in Edgewater. Due to increased restrictions on the industry, taxis
must park on main (non-residential) streets or spots with meters. Consequently,
Broadway Avenue is often full of taxis parked there by their African immigrant
operators. (The African community also extends farther north into the Rogers
Park and Loyola University areas.) Walk the streets of Edgewater and one will
mix with women in traditional African costume and Serbian grandmothers strolling
with their grandchildren while the middle generation is out making a living in
the new world of Chicago.
Native Americans, former Yugoslavians, Africans of every part, young hipsters,
new parents, first-time homeowners, students and many more make their home in
Edgewater. The average resident is beyond classification.
An unexpected influx of gay and lesbian residents has recently moved in and land values have skyrocketed. The community now boasts one of the largest gay and lesbian populations in the United States. It shares that distinction with neighboring community areas of Lakeview, home of Boystown, and Rogers Park. Edgewater is home to the Gerber/Hart Library, the largest gay and lesbian library and archives in the Midwestern United States.