Albany Park

Albany Park is a predominantly immigrant community located on Chicago’s northwestern outskirts. With the Chicago River on one side, it is one of Chicago’s 77 distinct community areas. Albany Park offers a variety of community parks with breathtaking views and calm scenery. On the east and north, it is bordered by the north branch of the Chicago River, Cicero Avenue on the west, and Montrose Avenue on the south.

Albany Park is conveniently located for commuters, being about 10.3 miles from Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. It would take approximately 15 minutes to travel to the Chicago O’Hare Airport from Albany Park. Likewise, the site is 8.4 miles from the downtown “Loop,” just minutes from the Edens Expressway and the Kennedy Expressway. In addition, the CTA Brown line passes through the area, stopping at Kimball and Kedzie.

Map

There are several traditional neighborhoods inside the official community. The North Basin of the Chicago River to the north, Montrose Avenue to the south, the north branch of the river to the east, and Pulaski Boulevard to the west define the community’s limits. Other than that, plentiful sidewalks, close-by parks (Ravenswood Manor Park, Horner Park, and River Park), and local restaurants make the Albany Park neighborhood a pleasure to live in.

The neighborhood’s heart is Lawrence Avenue and the Kimball Brown Line stop. The Albany Park area is a part of the 60625 zip code.

Population

Albany Park encompasses a culturally diverse neighborhood with one of Chicago’s most significant percentages of foreign-born citizens. The neighborhood’s main occupants were European Jews fleeing religious persecution – they inhabited the region during the twentieth century in its first five decades. The second wave of immigrants and refugees arrived in the area, fleeing military situations in Korea and Guatemala. These Korean families began shifting to the suburbs in the 1990s, around the same time that the NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) commenced transporting Mexicans north as economic refugees in 1994.

Mexican immigrants and their children still make up most of the neighborhood’s residents. Many Ecuadorians and Guatemalans and a small number of Central and South American families participate in the Centro Autónomo.

Albany Park is now one of the country’s most varied communities, with residents hailing from India and Pakistan, the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa, East Asia, and Eastern Europe.

The population of the community was 48,396 people as of 2020. It underwent a change of -6.1% since 2010. The community’s racial makeup is 45 percent Hispanic/Latino, 32.2 percent White/non-Hispanic, 14.8 percent Asian/non-Hispanic, 4.9 percent Black/non-Hispanic, and 3% other. Almost 40 distinct languages are spoken in the Albany Park region.

Real Estate

At present, there are 17,161 households in the Albany Park region. Around 25% of households comprise one person, while 28% of the Albany Park neighborhood homes comprise 2-persons. 3-person households constitute 19.2%, and 4-persons make up 27.9% of Albany Park households.

Many newcomers to Chicago have found this neighborhood to be a welcoming location. Many cultural businesses, restaurants, and churches may be found across the metropolitan region, catering to a wide range of cultures and faiths. In addition, there are a few schools in the area.

The city’s planning and development department approved a six-story affordable housing complex in Albany Park in March 2021. In April, Celadon Holdings revealed plans for an affordable housing apartment building on an empty plot at 3557 W. Lawrence Ave., after Chicago gave the project extremely competitive tax incentives.

Furthermore, Chicago residents can enjoy an annual food festival every year. “Flavors of Albany Park” is an annual culinary festival that brings together more than 40 of the neighborhood’s diverse restaurants.

Due to recent interest, homes in the Albany Park neighborhood experienced an increase in their prices by 47.3 percent last year in December 2021. These homes had a median selling price of $324K. This average selling price is slightly lower and in line with the Chicago median average price of $335,000.

Bungalows, cottages, and small apartment structures are commonly used as homes and housing units. The abundance of moderately priced homes in Albany Park is a fantastic incentive for people to shift there.

Schools

The educational attainment rate in Albany Park demonstrates good figures. From 2015 to 2019, around 24% of people had a high school diploma, 24.5% had a bachelor’s degree, and approximately 12.5% possessed a Master’s or Ph.D. degree.

There are around 16 public schools in the Albany Park region, seven private schools, and two universities.

1- Hibbard Elementary School

Rating: A-

Student population: 208 students

Teacher-student ratio: 19 to 1

2- Payton College Preparatory School

Rating: A+

Student population: 1,220

Teacher-student ratio: 16 to 1

3- Northside College Preparatory High School\

Rating: A+

Student Population: 1,078

Teacher-student ratio: 18 to 1

4- Whitney M. Young Magnet High School

Rating: A+

Student Population: 2,198

Teacher-student ratio: 18 to 1

5- Waters Elementary School

Rating: A+

Student Population: 641

Teacher-student ratio: 20 to 1

6- Lane Tech College Prep High School

Rating: A+

Student population: 4,500

Teacher-student ratio: 19 to 1

Crime Rating

The murder ratio in the District 02 had increased from 0 to 3 from 2020 to 2021. Amongst other minor changes, robbery had risen from 5 to 8. The Albany Park neighborhood reported 14 robbery cases in the last week alone. The increase in theft cases is no different. In 2020, the theft recordings were ten which increased to 15 during 2021. This year, a total of 23 theft cases have been reported in District 02.

History

The Albany Park region was developed around 1893 when various investors bought land as the population of places closer to downtown grew. One of the investors, DeLancy Louderback of Albany, New York, chose the name.

In 1896, the developers installed electric streetcars, and on December 14, 1907, the Northwestern Elevated Railroad expanded the Ravenswood branch to the Kimball station. This resulted in a construction boom in the area. The north basin of the Chicago River was incredibly meandering at this time in its development; therefore, the Chicago Sanitary District straightened it. Albany Park’s property lines and sewage lines were increased and delineated due to this project.

By 1930, the neighborhood’s population had grown to 55,000 people, and numerous schools, religious organizations, and parks had opened. Haugan Elementary School became the city’s largest elementary school, while Roosevelt High School’s overpopulation forced the conversion of Von Steuben Elementary into a high school. After WWII, residents relocated to the northern suburbs, and the population quickly fell, leaving many stores and houses vacant. Until the 1970s, a new wave of immigrants from Asia (mainly Korea) and Central America began to repopulate the country. Albany Park is now the city’s most diverse neighborhood and one of the most varied in the country.

Albany Park’s housing was constructed in three phases. During the early 1900s, the neighborhood’s apartment buildings and two- and three-flats were built. The majority of the houses in the Albany Park area are of this type; thus, renting a flat or bungalow in Albany Park is usually less expensive than in the surrounding areas. (However, it should be mentioned that the city’s present housing crisis is driving up rents.) The flats often contain three or four bedrooms and a living room that can be transformed into an additional bedroom, making the area perfect for immigrants wishing to share a home with another family or friends to save money on rent.

After WWII, there was a second housing boom, and single-family houses (bungalows) were all the rage. They were created by people who were fed up with neighbors above and below them and who were wealthy enough to avoid sharing utility expenditures. There aren’t as many bungalows as two- and three-flats in Albany Park as one might expect in a working-class area.

There is a class dynamic in the most recent housing boom. Urban renewal became a big topic in many places during the late 1990s and early 2000s housing and financial boom. Albany Park is a desirable location for a gentrifier because it is home to Northeastern Illinois University and Northpark University, as well as the Swedish Covenant Hospital, numerous parks, a diverse range of ethnic food, low rents, easy access to the metro, proximity to the highway, and common crime. Lincoln Square, a posh district to the east, and Logan Square, a hipster bastion to the south, are both close by. (Intriguingly, there is still no Whole Foods in the area.) To capitalize on this attractiveness, a number of condominiums were erected around this time.

Then, in 2008, the housing situation underwent recession, and condo building came to a halt, at least for the time being. And, as Albany Park continues to deal with the foreclosure issue (see here for more information on the crisis and community response), more people opt to rent rather than buy. What does this signify for Albany Park’s future? The solution is a mystery, and it almost certainly has as much to do with immigration patterns and the global economy as it does with the Chicago real estate market.