Where did Chaka Khan go to elementary school? Where did Rand McNally’s family live? Where did the St. Patrick’s parade originate? Where is the former home of Blues artist Willie Dixon? Where was the first location of Operation Breadbasket?
Where?Auburn Gresham, a quiet family community that is “Chicago’s Best Kept Secret.”
Brief History
Auburn Gresham is located a short nine miles south of the Loop. It grew out of a cluster of three original settlements on Chicago’s Far South Side. The earliest settlers were German and Dutch followed by Irish railroad workers. Auburn Gresham's accessibility to transportation made the neighborhood an easy sell to attract families who were trying to escape older and more congested sections of the city. The community thrived with a bustling commercial activity along 79th Street and Halsted; beautiful parks, quality schools, plentiful jobs, and five Catholic Churches, including the still powerful St. Sabina Parish.
In the 1960s a major demographic shift occurred as 47,000 African-Americans replaced 40,000 whites. Between the mid-1980s and the mid-1990s Auburn Gresham experienced a downward shift including disinvestment in the once thriving 79th & Halsted commercial strip, which was reduced to a string of boarded-up storefronts. Isolated pockets of residential areas became victim to drugs, gangs and crime.
The community’s revitalization started with local leaders, like Bettye Jo Swanson and other heroic residents, then-Alderman Terry Peterson and Fr. Mike Pfleger of St. Sabina Church. These forces mobilized and worked hard to regain control of the neighborhood and bring back viable retail stores, restaurants, banks, and new housing. In 1997, Neighborhood Housing Services opened its office to serve the residents by helping them purchase homes, complete home repairs and avoid foreclosure.
One of the most distinctive features of Auburn Gresham is Auburn Lakes, which was once a swampy land that was turned into a series of three fishing lagoons by a successful developer in the 1890s to entice families to purchase homes in this area. Auburn Gresham residents live in Chicago Classic housing, a mixture of Historic Chicago Bungalows, other types of single family homes, including old-style Victorians; 2 - 4 unit owner occupied buildings; and large multi-family buildings that anchor the residential corners. More than 50% of the properties in Auburn Gresham are owner-occupied, helping to sustain this family-oriented community.
The image of the entire community is critically important in influencing current residents to make investments in their homes and community which will support the revitalization of the neighborhood. There were many developers and developments that were attracted to the area between 1996 and 2006 and the community experienced a renewed sense of achievement. These commercial developments included the new 6th District Police Station, Bank of America Branch, Sav-A-Lot Grocery Store, two Senior Housing facilities, Catholic Charities, Walgreen Drug Store, BJ’s Market, and other eating establishments. Washington Mutual and Chase have opened small banking centers along 79th Street and Citibank opened a branch at 79th & Damen. On the residential side, at least 100 new homes were built and hundreds of home rehabs were completed and available for sale. These homes sold fairly quickly as Auburn Gresham was “hot.”
Resident Influence
The residents continue to be the strength of the Auburn Gresham community with their involvement in political and civic organizations, homeowners’ associations and religious institutions. Individual block clubs are active and homeowners participate in their local CAPS organization. Several monthly newsletters circulate in the community.
Sales Trends
The median sales price for homes in Auburn Gresham from September 2009 to November 2009 was $120,000. This represents an increase of 30.4%, or $28,000, compared to the prior quarter and an increase of 20% compared to the prior year. These increases are welcome because sales prices had decreased 11.1% over the last 5 years in Auburn Gresham, mirroring the drop in real estate prices throughout Chicago.
The median sales price of $120,000 for Auburn Gresham is 51.02% lower than the median sales price for Chicago, which makes Auburn Gresham an attractive and affordable neighborhood for first-time home buyers. The average listing price for homes in Auburn Gresham was $128,750 for the week ending January 20, 2010, which represents a decline of 2.9%, ($3,900) compared to the prior week and a decline of 11.2%, ($16,289) compared to the week ending December 30, 2009.
For More Information
Call (773) 488-2004 or stop by our local NHS office located at 449 W. 79th Street and we will be happy to address all of your homeownership questions.
