Situated at the northern extent of the City of Chicago, the communities of West Ridge and Rogers Park were annexed by Chicago in 1893. Encompassing an area of just over five square miles between Lake Michigan and the North Branch of the Chicago River, the area presents both the urban and the suburban. Rogers Park, with 34,000 people per square mile, presents an urban face, with apartments and condominiums predominating, while neighboring West Ridge, with a mere 20,700 people per square mile, is a neighborhood of single-family homes and townhouses. The area is served by the CTA’s Red Line, Metra’s Union Pacific North Line, and a number of CTA and PACE bus lines serving the 136,700 residents of the two communities.

Having grown first as suburbs of Chicago, each community has its own character and history. Rogers Park developed primarily as a bedroom community for Chicago, having little industry of its own. In contrast, the West Ridge community developed around farmers who realized that raising flowers was far more profitable than raising vegetables and traded in their plows for greenhouses. The area has a rich history that includes Loyola University, which grew with Rogers Park from the late 1800s in to the 21st century, a strong tradition of architectural diversity that includes landmark properties designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, and contemporary cultural attractions that include a number of independent theaters and cultural venues reflecting the diversity of the area.

The businesses along the major thoroughfares reflect the area’s diversity: Clark Street, from Devon to Howard Street, provides an array of established businesses dating from the early part of the 20th Century which share the street with many restaurants and shops reflecting Hispanic and South American heritage. The areas around Howard Street and Morse Avenue are more eclectic, again presenting businesses with long histories alongside recently opened artists’ spaces, coffee shops and specialty stores. Businesses along Howard Street stretch from the shores of Lake Michigan in Rogers Park into West Ridge, and extend south down Western Avenue and west on Touhy Avenue. The West Ridge neighborhood relies more on the automobile than on public transit, and is the home of a number of parks, including Warren Park and Indian Boundary Park. Warren Park once served as the exclusive Edgewater Country Club and now includes the Robert A. Black Golf Course, while Indian Boundary Park, established by the Ridge Avenue Park District in 1915, includes a cultural center listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The area’s cultural diversity includes the mile-long stretch of Devon Avenue that is the home of many Asian and Middle-Eastern concerns, including restaurants and shops of all kinds.

The Rogers Park and West Ridge neighborhoods clearly reflect their historic development in both their architecture and businesses, while at the same time allowing for a unique cultural diversity in their thriving business and cultural districts and many fascinating venues for visitors to explore as part of openhousechicago, 2011.

Indian Boundary Park, its fieldhouse and adjacent apartment complexes may be West Ridge's greatest hidden treasures. At one side of the park sits a duck-filled lagoon, and on the other is a public zoo home to goats, sheep, and chickens. Standing guard over it all is a quaint 1929 Tudor-style field house designed by Clarence Hatzfeld. The building features Native American-themed ornament inspired by the Treaty of 1816 between the Pottawatomie Indians and the U.S. government over a territorial boundary line running through the land that now makes up the park. By 1833 the Pottawatomies were forced entirely off the land.

Indian Boundary Park forms the ideal backyard for two neighboring apartment complexes: Park Gables and Park Castle. The first is a 1927 Tudor-style building designed by James Denson. The latter looks, as the name suggests, just like a castle and was completed two years earlier in 1925. Crenelated towers give the building, designed by renowned architect Jens Jensen, a commanding presence over the park. Inside Park Gables and Park Castle are two of the most charming indoor pools in the city – complete with canopies, painted murals, and mosaics of classical European designs.

The Indian Boundary Park fieldhouse, and both Park Gables and Park Castle’s pools will be open for visits during OHC 2011.

To learn more about Indian Boundary Park visit the Chicago Park District's website.

Uncommon Ground on Devon has a lot to brag about: tasty food made from organic, seasonal and locally grown produce; an always changing collection of art from local artists on the walls; and live music just about every night of the week. But that’s just what’s found inside the building on ground level. The real excitement of Uncommon Ground is found not on the ground, but on the roof.

According to the M.O.S.A. (Midwest Organic Services Association), Uncommon Ground is home to the 1^st Certified Organic Roof Top Farm! It was also the winner of the 2010 Governor’s Sustainability Award and the 2010 Mayor’s Landscape Award. But what’s really important is that a number of these organically grown plants (think heirloom tomatoes, peas, beans, squash, heirloom lettuce and mustard greens to name a few) and herbs (such as rosemary, chives, mint, cilantro, basil and Italian parsley) end up mixed into the food served down below. Of course the roof also boasts solar panels and bee hives too.

During OHC 2011 Farmer Dave and his assistants will welcome you atop the restaurant’s roof to guide you through everything that makes this rooftop so very uncommon.

For more information on the green features of Uncommon Ground and to take a peek at their menu and schedule of events visit their website: http://www.uncommonground.com 

60 years and three generations ago the Hansen family first opened the Fish Keg, which has been a family business and neighborhood institution ever since.  The Fish Keg staff offer up an assortment of hand breaded shrimp, fish (of all kinds), other seafood and chicken too.  Everything comes priced by the pound and prepared for you to take home yourself and cook. Or they’ll cook it for you on the spot in five minutes or less.

The Fish Keg will be celebrating OHC 2011 by giving shrimp shelling and breading demos all weekend long for you to taste.  Monty and Thor will be on hand to help you with all of your seafood cooking questions and eating wishes.

Visit the Fish Keg’s website for more information: www.thefishkeg.com

When Chicagoans think of Frank Lloyd Wright, the Robie House in Hyde Park or his numerous homes just outside of Chicago in Oak Park are what come to mind. There are few Wright homes in the city, but brothers Emil and Otto Bach (of the Bach Brick Co.) owned two of them – both in Rogers Park.

The brothers were both great admirers of Wright’s designs.  When Otto moved into a Wright home at 7631 N. Sheridan (the Oscar Steffens House -- since demolished), Emil couldn’t resist – he had Wright design one for him too. In 1915 Wright completed one of his last small urban commissions and one of his very last buildings in Chicago – the Emil Bach house at 7415 N. Sheridan. Like most Wright homes it features wide overhanging eaves, prairie-style windows, hidden away entrances and great attention to details. Unlike many Wright homes, this one sits on an urban lot – making the Bach house smaller than many of his early commissions.

Neighboring the Emil Bach House is another historic home dating back to 1919 which was designed by Edgar M. Newman in the American Four Square style with distinct Prairie style elements. The home was recently restored and most of its original touches – art nouveau wall paintings, mosaic rooms, and stained glass windows – remain in pristine condition.  Today the home operates as a Bed & Breakfast under the name Cat’s Cradle. 

Both the Emil Bach House and Cat’s Cradle will be open for visits during OHC 2011.

Rogers Park/West Ridge is one of Chicago’s most diverse communities, and Devon Avenue is one of the area’s most vibrant streets. The avenue between Broadway and the North Branch of the Chicago River is home to many businesses operated by immigrants from countries ranging from Croatia & Pakistan to Georgia & Russia but, above all, India. Indian restaurants, sweet shops, clothing stores and grocers line the street which attracts an ethnically rich mix of shoppers. 

Hema’s Kitchen, in business for nearly twenty years, is one of the area’s most popular Indian restaurants. It was the first Indian restaurant to be featured on WTTW’s Channel 11’s show Check Please and was voted “Best Indian Restaurant in Chicago.”  Hema Potla grew up in Hyderabad, India, otherwise known as the City of Pearls. Since 1992 she has worked as the chef and owner of Hema’s Kitchen. Her chicken korma, pakoras and biryanis are unparalleled, and her curries have just the right touch of spice. For OHC 2011, Hema will welcome you into her kitchen to show you exactly how naan bread is made in an authentic tandoor oven. Then she’ll paint them with butter before offering the bread to hungry visitors to taste! (For more information and a peek at their menu visit Hema’s Kitchen’s website: www.hemaskitchen.com). 

Just down the street from Hema’s Kitchen is Patel Brothers, another neighborhood institution. Patel Brothers sells every spice under the sun – from the floor to ceiling – as well as anything else you might need to cook up an Indian feast of your own. The brothers have stores scattered across major cities in the Midwest and East Coast of the US. During OHC 2011, seasoned chefs of  Indian cuisine will guide you through Patel’s aisles of spices advise you on what you might need to make delicious Indian meals of your own. (To learn more about Patel Brothers and to find their locations all over the country visit their website: www.patelbros.com)

And just steps from Patel Brothers is Regal Traders – a favorite place to buy sarees and suits on Devon since its opening in 1983. Every square inch of the store is covered in luxurious fabrics which Regal’s staff will wrap around all willing OHC 2011 visitors.