little india

[personone]

It's been a while since I've been around Devon, but at least last spring/summer, it still had a strong Little India feel to it with hustle and bustle, and visible Indian/Pakistan patrons, businesses, and people. Devon, Chinatown, the Little Saigon area, parts of Urkanian Village, parts of Pilsen and Little Village, somewhat in Greektown..... have that strong,old school hustle/bustle ethnic enclave feel to them. Especially on sunny spring and summer days (there's no other feeling than to walk down the main streets in these areas on a sunny summer/spring Saturday afternoon). It would be a shame if Devon is losing some of that. Collectively, these places add so much vibrancy to the city.

[garyjohnyang]

I visited with an Indian friend this summer and he says that the biggest transformation on Devon of the past decade or so has been from primarily Hindu Indian restaurants and businesses leaving and being replaced with Muslim Indian/Pakistani businesses. There's a trend with Indians, as with most immigrant groups, of leaving the city once they have the means to do so, and a lot of those families are choosing Naperville/Schaumburg and surrounding suburbs. Either that or they are bypassing the city altogether. Overall I wouldn't say Devon is losing vibrancy, but its dominance as the South Asian center of Chicago is waning as communities develop outside of the city (esp. Route 59 on the Aurora/Naperville border).

[Chicagoland60426]

Originally Posted by garyjohnyang

I visited with an Indian friend this summer and he says that the biggest transformation on Devon of the past decade or so has been from primarily Hindu Indian restaurants and businesses leaving and being replaced with Muslim Indian/Pakistani businesses. There's a trend with Indians, as with most immigrant groups, of leaving the city once they have the means to do so, and a lot of those families are choosing Naperville/Schaumburg and surrounding suburbs. Either that or they are bypassing the city altogether. Overall I wouldn't say Devon is losing vibrancy, but its dominance as the South Asian center of Chicago is waning as communities develop outside of the city (esp. Route 59 on the Aurora/Naperville border).

I believe it's the bold, since Indians living in the city are a much smaller minority of the population in the metro.

[homenj]

Never been to Chicago. I did a google maps street view search on Devon Avenue.

It seems many Pakistanis live on Devon now.

[Master Jay]

homenj, good to see you're doing some research