Walking along Main Street in Downers Grove, one might as well be entering a Norman Rockwell painting.

Ma and pa stores line the strip joined by dining spots with outdoor seating, 500-year-old oak trees, brick streets, and, in the immediate distance, an 80-year-old theater marquee offers $4 seats for recent releases.

Yet, Main Street does more than hold the town’s commercial core; it also holds the town’s spirit.

Throughout the year, Main Street hosts a number of community events from a Classic Car show to an annual running road race on Thanksgiving morning. In recent years, residents have welcomed visitors from throughout the country to Main Street for the USA Cycling Championships. Downers Grove is a community high on energy, personality, and activity.

Incorporated in 1873, Downers Grove sprouted from the railroad line that ran west of the city, loosely hugging the present-day Ogden Avenue. Located 21 miles west of the Loop, this DuPage County village has three railroad stations, all of which encouraged early growth.

Mail-order housing from Sears began to pepper the community with residences until the expressways and the rapid ascent of the automobile made Downers Grove a prime spot for residential subdivisions, particularly in the cornfields south of 55th Street.

In the last half of the 20th century, homes popped up and the population progressed, now sitting at a robust, but stable and steady 49,000.

Given its gradual growth through the decades and long history, housing in Downers Grove remains varied. Though the average selling price in Downers Grove tops $550,000, smaller, older ranch homes hover near the high $200,000s while three-bedroom, two-bath raised ranches in 40-year-old subdivisions can be had on the south end of town for under $400,000. Teardowns and million-dollar residences are becoming increasingly common in the village given its desirable amenities.

“Downers Grove doesn’t have typical housing,” said Pam Mitrius, a veteran Realtor with Joe Pepitone Realtors. “You have homes built in the late 1800s sitting right next to homes built in the last five years. You’ll have a small, modest ranch sitting next to a million dollar home.”

Mitrius adds that residents are attracted to Downers Grove for its vital downtown area, diverse housing stock, quality schools, and commuter access, which includes I-88, I-355, and the aforementioned trio of train stops. “You can get downtown on an express train in 23 minutes, even on a Saturday,” she said.

Community pride resonates inside a pair of public high schools, South and North High. The town’s original high school, North High, sits immediately north of the historic Main Street business district while South High inhabits a spot on 63rd Street among the 1960s-era subdivisions.

Both schools claim a wealth of academic and extracurricular success from state championship football squads (South captured the Illinois state title in 2001 while North won in 2004), national-caliber speech teams, and award-winning theater programs.

Academic success appears in the district’s ACT scores as the two high schools, which serve 5,500 students, claim a combined average of 23.1, nearly three points above the state average.

What residents say

“Having small children one of the really nice features is access to a strong recreation program. My two oldest have participated in several camps offered through the park district, such as swimming, soccer, gymnastics, baseball, cheerleading. The other piece I like about Downers Grove is the ‘family atmosphere’ in the downtown area. I love going out to eat with my family and getting ice cream within the town’s neighborly feel. Lastly, it’s still somewhat affordable and gives easy access to I-355, I-290, the malls in Oakbrook and Bolingbrook, and plenty of other destination spots.”

--Jim Westphal, moved to Downers Grove in 2003

“We picked Downers because of many reasons. First, we had two young children and we wanted solid, established schools with good reputations. We also really liked the small town atmosphere and the quaintness of the downtown area. We liked the local shops and continue to enjoy the new developments in the downtown area, especially the variety and quality of the restaurants. Plus, there are community events that occur each year that seem to bring old friends and acquaintances together helping to build community spirit.”

--Jill Sparacio, moved to Downers Grove in 1989

Village of Downers Grove
801 Burlington Ave.
630-434-5500

Official Web site: http://www.downers.us/

Natural gas: NICOR, 888-642-6748
Electricity: ComEd, 800-334-7661
Phone: AT&T, 888-824-8314
Cable: Comcast, 866-594-1234

Downers Grove Area Chamber of Commerce and Industry
http://www.downersgrove.org/
630-968-4050

Population: 48,724
Median household income: $65,539
Median house price: $205,900

Hispanic origin (any race): 4%
• 91%
• 2%
• 6%
• 1%

• White
• Black
• Asian
• Other

• 7%
• 33%
• 42%
• 18%

• No diploma
• High school
• Bachelor's
• Master's & above

• 2%
• 8%
• 12%
• 12%
• 13%
• 5%
• 12%
• 3%
• 5%
• 11%
• 10%
• 2%
• 4%

• <5
• 5-9
• 10-14
• 15-19
• 20-24
• 25-29
• 30-34
• 35-39
• 40-44
• 45-59
• 60-89
• 90+
• Work@home