Suburbs that are obscure or little-known (Chicago, Skokie: waterpark, camp, pool)

[Curly Q. Bobalink]

Correction: The "Leaning tower" is in Niles, not Lyons, it's a half-scale replica of the one in Pisa, including the lean. The one I was thinking about in Lyons is the "Hoffman" tower, haven't seen that thing in at least thirty years, went past it on a scooter ride once (probably going to Otto Brothers!).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hofmann_Tower

[deeman7]

TIL that Park City is a suburb near Waukegan.

[chitown202020]

lincolnwood, kind of in a wierd spot

[MillennialUrbanist]

Originally Posted by chitown202020

lincolnwood, kind of in a wierd spot

Linconlwood isn't obscure to me at all, but that's because I lived close to it my whole childhood, albeit in Chicago proper. (My family moved to Morton Grove when I started high school.) My parents went to big box stores in Lincolnwood all the time, presumably to avoid Chicago taxes, and took me along. I quickly learned where the border was, especially at night: while Chicago was brightly lit by amber-glowing streetlights, Lincolnwood was pitch black.

I always insisted on getting something from the Long John Silver's near Touhy and Crawford. Unlike for most kids, LSJ was my favorite fast food chain, rather than McDonald's.

[chitown202020]

I grew up in sw burbs and moved to north side so lincolnwood was new to me kind of just blends into chicago I like how 41 leads into lincolnwood and all the sudden you are in the burbs although the boundries are all over the place home dpot is in chicago they charge for bags

[jcp123]

Just want to drop a thank you. I love Chicagoland, and I love seeing these little quirks. Great stuff, keep feeding me!

[MillennialUrbanist]

Originally Posted by chitown202020

I grew up in sw burbs and moved to north side so lincolnwood was new to me kind of just blends into chicago I like how 41 leads into lincolnwood and all the sudden you are in the burbs although the boundries are all over the place home dpot is in chicago they charge for bags

I agree that the urban landscape looks almost the same in Lincolnwood and in West Ridge (the adjoining neighborhood). But at Chicago's northern border, the easiest tell are the streetlights: bright amber in Chicago, dim white or none at all in the suburbs, not just Lincolnwood. (This is changing, as Chicago street lighting is migrating to white LED.) The shapes are different too.

Unlike adjoining north suburbs, most adjoining west and south suburbs do have bright streetlights, and some are amber too, so the border is harder to discern there. But you can still tell where the border is if you look closely.

[Hiruko]

Originally Posted by MillennialUrbanist

Linconlwood isn't obscure to me at all, but that's because I lived close to it my whole childhood, albeit in Chicago proper. (My family moved to Morton Grove when I started high school.) My parents went to big box stores in Lincolnwood all the time, presumably to avoid Chicago taxes, and took me along. I quickly learned where the border was, especially at night: while Chicago was brightly lit by amber-glowing streetlights, Lincolnwood was pitch black.

I always insisted on getting something from the Long John Silver's near Touhy and Crawford. Unlike for most kids, LSJ was my favorite fast food chain, rather than McDonald's.

Yeah, I agree. Lincolnwood is pretty well-known for Lincolnwood Town Center in particular.

Lincolnwood has blatantly more upscale housing than some of the surroundings in Lincolnwood Towers, for example.

[MillennialUrbanist]

Originally Posted by Hiruko

Lincolnwood has blatantly more upscale housing than some of the surroundings in Lincolnwood Towers, for example.

I googled the name Lincolnwood Towers, and all I saw are single houses. Were you thinking Winston Towers, those high-rises along Kedzie between Pratt and Touhy?

[Master Jay]

I know Lincolnwood. AND I definitely love Lincolnwood. They added a walking/bike trail a couple years ago. I believe it goes from Touhy to Devon. It runs right by Lou Malnati's when you cross Lincoln Avenue. So I don't know how obscure it is. But thanks for giving it a shout out!