LINCOLNWOOD, IL

Lincolnwood (formerly Tessville) is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 13,463. An inner suburb of Chicago, it shares its southern, eastern, and a small section of its western boundary with Chicago, also bordering Skokie to the north and west.

Geography

Lincolnwood is located at (42.005331, -87.734283).

According to the 2010 census, Lincolnwood has a total area of , all land. The North Shore Channel lies on its eastern border.

Demographics

2020 census

Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.

2000 Census

As of the census of 2000, there were 12,359 people, 4,482 households, and 3,446 families residing in the village. The population density was 4,599.7 people per square mile (1,773.9/km). There were 4,593 housing units at an average density of 1,709.4 per square mile (659.2/km). The racial makeup of the village in 2010 was 69.3% White, 1.1% African American, 29.1% Asian, 1.23% from other races, and 0.2% identified as Other. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7% of the population.

There were 4,482 households, out of which 30.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.2% were married couples living together, 7.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.1% were non-families. 21.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75, and the average family size was 3.22.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 22.9% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 19.8% from 25 to 44, 26.7% from 45 to 64, and 23.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.4 males.

In 2008, the median income for a household in the village was $84,474, and the median income for a family was $128,437. Males had a median income of $52,708 versus $40,098 for females. The per capita income for the village was $35,911. About 1.9% of families and 2.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.5% of those under age 18 and 3.3% of those age 65 or over.

Although Lincolnwood is small, it is sectioned off into neighborhoods. The most notable is "The Towers", located west of the Edens Expressway. Another neighborhood is called the Terraces.

Government

Lincolnwood was established as Tessville in 1911 and has a village form of government with a president and six trustees elected at-large. A village manager professionally oversees day-to-day municipal operations. The Lincolnwood Economic Development Commission has been established to ensure the continued enhancement of the local economy and improved tax base.

According to the Village of [http://www.lincolnwoodil.org/our-community/village-history/ Lincolnwood's website history section]:

Mayor Henry Proesel ended his 46 years in office in 1977, a record mostly unmatched by any other mayor in American history. Succeeding him was John Porcelli, who served two terms. Porcelli was followed by Frank Chulay, who also served two terms.

Lincolnwood's first woman mayor, Madeline Grant, succeeded Chulay, and in 1995 created a nine-member Economic Development Commission.

Peter Moy served as village trustee from 1995 to 2000, then as village president until 2005. He was the first Asian American to serve any municipality in Illinois as its president.

In 2005, Jerry Turry was elected mayor. Before serving as mayor, Turry served as village trustee from 1995 to 2005.

In April 2017, Barry Bass was elected mayor, after serving as a trustee since 2015.

In April 2019, Assyrian American activist Atour Sargon was elected as a village trustee. She became the first ethnic Assyrian in the village's history to be elected to the board of trustees.

In April 2021, Jesal Patel was elected mayor after serving as Trustee since 2007.

In politics, Lincolnwood leans Democratic. In 2012 59.4% of voters voted for Barack Obama, while 41.1% of voters voted for Mitt Romney. In the 2016 presidential election 64.5% of voters voted for Hillary Clinton, while 35.5% of voters voted for Donald Trump.

Public safety

Lincolnwood has a police station staffed by 34 personnel. The Lincolnwood Fire Department is housed in a facility operated by 28 full-timers. The Lincolnwood Fire Department was established through private contract in 1990. (Previously, village fire protection was provided through the City of Chicago.)

Public library

The Lincolnwood Public Library, established in 1978, is located in the center of the village at Pratt and Lincoln Avenues. Madeline Grant was the main driving force behind founding the library, and served as the first library president and later village president.

The library is governed by a Board of Trustees that meets monthly to make decisions about Lincolnwood Public Library's services, finances, policies, and other business. The Board of Trustees is made up of trustees elected to four year terms. As of 2021, the Lincolnwood Public Library District's Library Director is Josephine Tucci and the Deputy-Director is Chris Renkosiak.

The library has a substantial Historical Collection that includes materials that address the Village of Lincolnwood's history from the time of the Village of Tessville until the COVID-19 pandemic. The library is also home to a Library of Things, where Lincolnwood residents can check out items not traditionally found in libraries, including bike repair kits, Dungeon & Dragons kits, Rokus, photography equipment, and more.

Education

Lincolnwood is served by Lincolnwood School District 74, which has a one-campus setting with three main facilities named after the Lincoln family. Todd Hall serves as the education facility for preschoolers to early grade school students, Rutledge Hall serves elementary school students, and Lincoln Hall serves primarily junior high students. High school students attend Niles West High School in neighboring Skokie, part of District 219. Lincolnwood is part of the Oakton Community College District, which has a campus minutes away in Skokie. Northwestern University in Evanston, Loyola University in Chicago, Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, and North Park University in Chicago are all within of the village.

In September 2012, there was much controversy about the village board's consideration of approving a zoning law change to allow the establishment of a public gun range and store in Lincolnwood 1/2 mile from schools and parks. In March 2013, the gun shop decided to sue the village in response to its denial of their shooting range proposal. A primary concern of residents is that the gun shop, one of "A small handful of gun stores, three from Cook County and one from Gary, Indiana, continue to be responsible for a disproportionate number of crime guns recovered from Chicago's streets."

Recreation

The village's Recreation Department operates several recreation programs: an outdoor pool complex, 9 tennis courts, 11 baseball diamonds, a community center, as well as 13 parks (34 acres in total).

In the early 1970s, Lincolnwood's Boys Baseball program produced two Big League World Series champions, (1970 and 1973), runner-up in 1972, a fourth-place finish in the Senior League World Series (1972), and was a Big League World Series participant again in 1974, finishing third.

Shopping and food

Lincolnwood is home to the Lincolnwood Town Center, an indoor mall containing over 100 shops including Room Place, Kohl's, Champs Sports, Gap and Old Navy. Neighborhood shopping is available in the village along Lincoln Avenue, Devon Avenue, and Touhy Avenue. Additional shopping is just a short drive away at the Westfield Old Orchard, Golf Mill Shopping Center and Village Crossing Center.

Lincolnwood is also home to many dining options, one being L. Woods. A scene from Ocean's Twelve was filmed there; the room in which it was filmed was renamed the "Ocean's Twelve room".

Hospitals

Evanston Hospital (NorthShore University HealthSystem, affiliated with the University of Chicago Medical Center) has a facility in Lincolnwood, at the intersection of McCormick and Pratt. NorthShore University HealthSystem is composed of Evanston Hospital, Glenbrook Hospital, Highland Park Hospital, Skokie Hospital etc.

Saint Francis Hospital operates a health center in Lincolnwood. Its main hospital and medical center are about 2 1⁄2 miles and about 6 minutes east in Evanston. Other area hospitals that serve Lincolnwood are Skokie Hospital, formerly Rush North Shore in Skokie and Swedish Covenant Hospital in Chicago. Resurrection Hospital and Evanston Hospital, a teaching hospital, are also minutes away and serve Lincolnwood.

Notable people