How safe is the UIC area?

[zizu]

I attended UIC 5 years ago and never once felt unsafe. That being said, don't be an idiot and walk home drunk and alone at 3am. The little italy neighborhood is charming in its own right.

By the way, UIC is an excellent public institution--don't throw your money away on private schools unless you get lots of scholarship money.

[urza216]

Areas around Universities are always safe. They are MADE safe for the students by any means necessary.

[chicago103]

I actually heard a few years ago that the UIC police reported lower rates of crime than the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign downstate.

[TINKERBELL50]

This is my son's first year attending UIC. I will tell you I was pleasantly surprised that the atmosphere overall was very comfortable and I felt pretty safe. I grew up on the Southside and when I had my first child I decided to leave because I wanted a better chance for her. I had not been back to Chicago in over 30 years until this past summer to attend my son's White Coat ceremony. I must say I had a wonderful time. We stayed at the Alisse Hotel downtown and I felt very safe. The room was much smaller than we thought but I slept very well. My son absolutely love the UIC area and has not had any problems so far. I always tell him the key is to watch and pray, never totally let your guards down because things can happen anywhere no matter how safe you may feel. The UIC area has improved tremendously and the difference is night and day compared to 30 years ago. If UIC is where you want to attend don't let anything or anyone stop you. Go for it!

[glass_of_merlot]

Originally Posted by TINKERBELL50

This is my son's first year attending UIC. I will tell you I was pleasantly surprised that the atmosphere overall was very comfortable and I felt pretty safe. I grew up on the Southside and when I had my first child I decided to leave because I wanted a better chance for her. I had not been back to Chicago in over 30 years until this past summer to attend my son's White Coat ceremony. I must say I had a wonderful time. We stayed at the Alisse Hotel downtown and I felt very safe. The room was much smaller than we thought but I slept very well. My son absolutely love the UIC area and has not had any problems so far. I always tell him the key is to watch and pray, never totally let your guards down because things can happen anywhere no matter how safe you may feel. The UIC area has improved tremendously and the difference is night and day compared to 30 years ago. If UIC is where you want to attend don't let anything or anyone stop you. Go for it!

Hi, I know you are a new poster. This thread is 7 years old. It's from 2010 and OP has moved on, probably graduated UIC by now.lol
Anyways, maybe somebody else can find it helpful.

[Dport7674]

104% chance of getting shot. And that's during the day.

[BRU67]

Originally Posted by glass_of_merlot

Hi, I know you are a new poster. This thread is 7 years old. It's from 2010 and OP has moved on, probably graduated UIC by now.lol
Anyways, maybe somebody else can find it helpful.

And perhaps pushing retirement? Hopefully! Anyway, I would break the "UIC Area" into three parts. First and most famous is Little Italy. This area has a lot of great amenities on Taylor Street, great L access to downtown (via the Blue Line) and is quite safe, though there is some subsidized housing (largely on the north end near I-290) where there have been some problems. A lot of UIC kids live in this neighborhood. The drawback is it is somewhat expensive.

The second part is Tri-Taylor. This area is west of the Medical District between Ogden and Western. I live here and it's largely safe. It is a bit cheaper than Little Italy and there are fewer amenities, but it is starting to develop nicely and is definitely in the gentrification stages.

The third part is West Tri-Taylor. This is a small area which west of Western Avenue up until the railroad tracks which divide the Near West Side and North Lawndale. It's not as pretty as the other two areas because it was hit by the 1968 riots and just recently started to rebuild, meaning there are a lot of cinder block style town homes there and few trees.

This used to be no-man's land but students are living over there now because they can get very low rent deals in a newer building. The main drawback is that the Walkscore crime index turns "orange" in that area, versus the "green" of the areas. Then it turns beet red in the violent North Lawndale just west of it. So you are taking more of a safety risk in exchange for the lower rents.

[edsg25]

Originally Posted by Dport7674

104% chance of getting shot. And that's during the day.

it's that nasty extra 4% that are the real sociopaths.