West Elsdon is among the most residential neighborhoods on the Southwest side, and has continued to be a quiet, blue-collar community with a high rate of homeownership for most of the second half of the 20th century. But as the older white ethnic generation aged and homes were vacated, Hispanic families with young children moved to the area. Mexican residents increasingly settled in the eastern part of West Elsdon. As the population of children classified as Hispanic increased in the public elementary schools in the early 1990s, the number of black children from other communities admitted to the district by a school desegregation consent decree rapidly declined.
Many of the homes that were built in the 1940s and 1950s are still inhabited by the original owners and are now beginning to appear on the market. If you are shopping for a calm residential area but still want easy access to downtown Chicago, West Elsdon may be the place for you. Rehabilitation of neighboring Midway Airport and the opening of the CTA Orange Line in 1993 have made this district more inviting. Locals of West Elsdon are serviced by the Archer Avenue bus and Orange Line park-and-ride stations at Midway Airport and at 51st Street and Pulaski Road, providing access to the Loop.
A two-bedroom raised ranch that asked under $100,000 a few years ago can now get $150,000, and three-bedroom ranches have increased from $135,000 to over $185,000.
Recreational facitilies at Pasteur Park include baseball, in-line skating, a gymnasium, tennis courts, auditorium and community meeting rooms.
Elementary schools serving the area include Pasteur School and Peck School, both of which offer magnet programs in world languages and math and science. West Elsdon lies in the Curie Metropolitan High School attendance area; it offers an international baccalaureate program and magnet program in fine arts.