SearchChicago Homes: Chicago: Far South

Your local news source ::
Select a community or newspaper »

Chicago: Far South

In 1886, Robert Givens constructed this castle, a well known Beverly landmark, as an ode to his native Ireland.

Beverly

Twelve miles south of the Loop, Beverly’s official boundaries are 87th Street on the north; 111th Street on the South; Sacramento on the west and Ashland to the east. Residents of the community, however, have long pushed the borders out, particularly to the south, and subsequently redefined its limits.

Host to approximately 20,000 residents, Beverly has long been characterized as the soul of Chicago’s Irish-American population and with good reason.

For many years, until its final march in 2009, the annual South Side Irish Parade drew thousands of residents and guests who lined Western Avenue from 103rd to 115th Street. The nation’s largest neighborhood parade pulled in over 15,000 marchers and over 250,000 spectators.

But that annual March event is hardly the whole story of Beverly’s diversity, which includes different racial, socioeconomic, and professional backgrounds within its borders.

In addition to a plethora of Chicago’s city workers, such as fireman and police officers, the neighborhood claims teachers, lawyers, doctors, and journalists living side by side in a community with a $70,000 median household income.

Generic cookie-cutter housing does not exist in Beverly, a neighborhood with three distinct Chicago landmark districts.

On the same block, one can find Georgians, Colonials, Tudors, Victorians, and the traditional Chicago bungalow. Longwood Drive, one of the city’s premier real estate strips, remains expensive and exclusive.

East Beverly, meanwhile, claims Prairie-style homes from the early 20th century. In fact, the neighborhood has every housing type one could imagine at a wide range of price points.

“That housing diversity is really one piece that makes Beverly so attractive to such a wide spectrum of people. With the exception of new construction (most of Beverly’s homes were built pre-1960), you can find any type of home you’re looking for here and that’s why so many people with different tastes gather in this community,” said Barb Thouvenell, president of PRS Realtors and herself a Beverly resident.

While modest two bedroom ranches or Georgians in need of updating might start in the low $200,000s, most Beverly homes will sit in the $300,000-$450,000 window. Prospective buyers will generally enter homes with at least three bedrooms, fireplaces, and unique architectural details.

“Most houses will have 1-1/2 baths, but anything more than that is a real luxury given the age of the housing here,” said Thouvenell, adding that many Beverly homes sit on oversized city lots.

In addition to the character of its residents, Beverly claims much historic and cultural character as well. A community staple since its founding in 1967, the Beverly Arts Center is one of Chicago’s premier cultural centers, offering classes in the arts, rotating exhibits of contemporary art, live entertainment programs, and the annual Chicago Irish Film Festival.

Constructed in 1886, the Givens Castle pays homage to Ireland’s architectural gems and survives as one of Chicago’s most legendary haunts.

“Beverly is home; it’s not just a house," says Tom Marren, who has lived in Beverly since 1973. "It’s a community with churches, schools, and neighbors who take care of one another. We’re seeing kids raised in Beverly come back to raise their own families here. Many of us feel so fortunate to have the opportunity to live in a community like this.”

Beverly’s motto, "Village in a City" is pretty accurate, said Marcia Walsh, who moved from the western sbuurbs to Beverly in 1984. "You have all the amenities you’d expect of an urban environment with the Metra stop and expressway, but you also have that small-town feel with the closeness of the neighbors and the activity of the residents at events like ‘Music under the Stars’ and the home tour.”

Beverly’s community spirit is buoyed by the activity of the neighborhood’s five Catholic parishes—St. Barnabas, St. Cajetan, Christ the King, St. John Fisher, and St. Walter. Lectures, discussion groups, fish fry dinners, and bingo at the various parishes connect Beverly’s residents throughout the year.

2000 CENSUS DATA

(Percentages might not total 100% because of rounding)

AGE OF RESIDENTS

Median age: 38.1