(McElroy Associates partnered with Dr. Charles Shanabruch, a business school professor, to produce “Times of Change and Challenge: Metro Southwest Chicago in the New Century.” Commissioned by the president of Saint Xavier University in Chicago, the research project identified how one part of the region could address a wide variety of economic and social challenges. This is the executive summary.)

Just as ships need anchors, so do communities. For city neighborhoods or suburbs, anchors are usually major employers. Three of the anchors in metropolitan southwest Chicago are Saint Xavier University, Little Company of Mary Hospital, and Advocate Christ Heath Center. Combined, these three institutions employ approximately 10,000 people.

In the past five years, all three institutions have made major investments in their facilities. Saint. Xavier has invested more than $30 million in its campus on the southwest side of Chicago, building residence halls, a field house, chapel, conference, and upgrading other buildings. Little Company of Mary, partnering with the University of Chicago, opened a cancer center at its Evergreen Park campus, while Advocate Christ added a children’s hospital in Oak Lawn.

These institutions are interdependent with their surrounding communities. Major institutions do best when their surrounding neighborhoods are stable and prosperous. Therefore, it is in the best interest of the institutions to help keep their communities economically and socially healthy. That is why Saint Xavier University commissioned this report, written following two focus groups, personal interviews with leaders from government, hospitals, banks and other business leaders. Most of the demographic information resulted from census data provided by the Northern Illinois Planning Commission.

Key Findings:

• Approximately 280,000 people live in the 40-square-mile study area, bounded by: 79th Street on the north; 135th Street and Interstate 294 on the south; Ashland and Beverly Avenues and Interstate 57 on the east; and Harlem Avenue on the west. The study area includes 10 municipalities and four City of Chicago neighborhoods.
• During the past 20 years, the population has declined slightly. Non-Hispanic whites comprise 47 percent of the residents, while 27 percent are African-American and more than 20 percent are Hispanic. During the 1990s, the Hispanic population increased 36.5 percent.
• Estimated median home value is $150,489, a 47 percent increase from 1990.
• The area’s major strengths include: strong family values and personal loyalties; churches, schools and hospitals; effective public officials; strong work force; good access to downtown Chicago. In some places, rapidly rising home values are also a plus.
• Weaknesses include small, aging buildings—both residential and commercial—that are not conducive to modern tastes and shopping habits. This leads to scarcity of upscale retailers. Scarcity of locally owned financial institutions is a problem, as is a lack of townhomes for singles and empty nesters.
• The quality of race relations is both a strength and weakness. It is strength because the situation is much better today than 25 years ago, but problems remain.
• Opportunities for improvement include: revitalization of 95th Street; development of housing for older adults; a new interchange at Int. 294 and Route 57; and housing renovation programs.
• The issues cited in this report could be addressed informally — through further research or more meetings—or more formally by establishing a community development corporation.

This report is the university’s initial effort to help foster community development. Initiating research and discussion is a natural role for Saint Xavier’s to undertake. But cooperation from other major institutions, along with government and corporate leaders, is essential for this effort to succeed. Together we can ensure that our neighborhoods and communities remain strong.