Halsted Street ! (Chicago, Urbana, Campus: lofts, house, dorms)

[StRoNg-WiLLeD]

Hi , all.

How ya doin .. : ) ?

this is the first post fo me .. and I need ur help nam sorry if it's already posted and i didn't catch o somethin ?

I want to study in the University Of Illinois in Halsted Street ?

I'm just wondering how the area nearby is with respect to safety (Most important factor) and entertainments ..ect ..

I'm kinda afraid of CHICAGO as I've neva been there before ?>


Thank you so much in advance.

BR,
StRoNg-WiLLeD

[breer23]

Originally Posted by StRoNg-WiLLeD

Hi , all.

How ya doin .. : ) ?

this is the first post fo me .. and I need ur help nam sorry if it's already posted and i didn't catch o somethin ?

I want to study in the University Of Illinois in Halsted Street ?

I'm just wondering how the area nearby is with respect to safety (Most important factor) and entertainments ..ect ..

I'm kinda afraid of CHICAGO as I've neva been there before ?>


Thank you so much in advance.

BR,
StRoNg-WiLLeD

Are you talking about the Univ. of Illinois-Chicago, which has an eastern border along Halsted? The area is pretty nice, considering you're pretty much in the heart of the city (though not in the Loop area). It's also right next to an area affectionately known as GreekTown.

[NearWestSider]

There are approximately 5000 students who live in on-campus housing at UIC. In addition to that, there is private, non-affiliated student housing (350 beds, IIRC) at the Automatic Lofts on Morgan and Van Buren. The surrounding areas break down roughly into the following neighborhoods:

1. West Loop / Greektown - immediately to the north across the expressway
2. Taylor Street - immediately to the West
3. University Village - immediately to the South
4. Pilsen - just south of University Village

Conservatively, there are probably 2000 students living in the surrounding areas, bringing the total number of students residing in the area to just under 7000, so the bottom line is somewhere between 35-40% of the east (Circle) campus students reside on the campus or in the surrounding neighborhoods. That includes 50% of the freshman class.

If you've done your homework on UIC, you've noticed that the school is majority female, meaning there are conservatively 2500-3000 college-aged girls living in that area. That should tell you all you need to know about personal safety, but if it doesn't, I can add that the area is patrolled both by Chicago and UIC police.

I have been told, but cannot confirm, that rape and assault are reported more frequently on the Urbana campus, something usually attributed to excessive consumption of alchohol by some of the students. Although I have heard outrageous stories about drinking in the dorms at UIC, from what I have actually seen with my own eyes, UIC students tend to be fairly subdued in that department, at least when it comes to public intoxication. That makes sense in a big city.

As far as nightlife, there frankly isn't a whole lot around there. There are restaurants, there are bars, and that's pretty much it. To see a movie or concert you have to leave the neighborhood. But I wouldn't necessarily hold that against the area because truth be told, how many people live near a concert venue, anyway? How many would even want to?

Another thing you should be asking about is access to the lakefront. UIC has it via Roosevelt Road which takes you to the Museum Campus.

My advice to you is come check out the school for yourself and ask lots of questions. UIC seems to evoke pretty strong responses from people, they either love it or hate it, so I don't think you'll get many neutral opinions.

One warning: I wouldn't pay a great deal of mind to people who never attended it, or attended it even 10 years ago. The school and the neighborhood have changed so dramatically over the last *five years* that those opinions, while well-inteded, are meaningless within the context of today. Your only reliable source of information is people who are there now.

good luck.

[StRoNg-WiLLeD]

Thank you so much, breer23 .

NearWestSider,
No words can express how gratful i'm for your help , efforts & time .

[garvey]

i go to uic right now. nearwestsider is pretty much on the dime about everything.

however, regarding women's safety: the area is not particularly unsafe, but the taylor street area, as well as the campus, are totally deserted after 5 pm. so it's pretty intimidating to walk around after dark. my girlfriend reports pretty regular harassment along taylor (where she lives) and halsted (the east of edge campus) when she walks to my house or to her work.

also, the uic police are a joke when it comes to sexual assault. though, to be fair, all campus police forces seem to be that way, as there is significant pressure from the administration to make the school appear "safe" for u.s. news ratings.

my biggest beef with the school is the total lack of anything to do in the area. mostly, my friends and i make our own fun (a la nearwestsider's stories of wild dorm parties) or venture outside the neighborhood. it helps that the blue line is approximately 100 feet from campus.

all in all, it's a decent area, but i won't be staying very long after i graduate next year. pilsen is probably your best bet if you're looking to live near campus - lots of uic kids, cheap rent, good mexican food and other cool stuff.

[NearWestSider]

Originally Posted by garvey

i go to uic right now. nearwestsider is pretty much on the dime about everything.

however, regarding women's safety: the area is not particularly unsafe, but the taylor street area, as well as the campus, are totally deserted after 5 pm.

Have you ever been to the rec center after 5:00? What you said is totally NUTS, there is ALWAYS a stream of students going to and from the Rec Center and Stukel/TBH/MRH at that time.

And I see it EVERY SINGLE DAY, not occasionally, because when I'm not biking to work I take the Roosevelt Bus to the Red Line.

If your girfriend is sensitive or fearful, that is one thing, and if you don't personally like UV, that's fine too, but there are plenty of people on the street at 5:00 P.M., so don't be silly.

Maybe you'd like to add a 5:00 P.M. report to your previously-scheduled 8:30 report. I'll be there at 5:30, and we'll compare notes, OK?

[Avengerfire]

That does not make his girlfriends experiences untrue.

[NearWestSider]

Originally Posted by Avengerfire

That does not make his girlfriends experiences untrue.

"totally deserted" at 5:00 P.M. is total nonsense. Go there for yourself and you'll see.

[Avengerfire]

Originally Posted by NearWestSider

"totally deserted" at 5:00 P.M. is total nonsense. Go there for yourself and you'll see.

I did not agree with him on that. Did you read what I said? Apparently not.

I do not think you read threads all the way through and you do not know what you are responding to.

Jeez, get to bed. You walk your pup at 4-430 am? How in the hell are you still awake? WTF. Seems like someone here is full of it themself.

[memo92]

Dont go to pilsen place is hell on earth