[Chisouthside]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

that's probably what's going on.

i really like what elmuhurst is doing to improve its downtown with TOD. it absolutely should be commended for its progressive thinking about growth. however, i just don't think elmhurst has made the leap out of tier 2 burbs and into tier 1 with evanston and oak park.

that said, as far as the original question asked in the thread title, elmhurst is a perfectly cromulent answer.





yeah, berwyn has more of that traditional downtown centered around a metra station thing going on. i was really thinking more about where to put cicero in the tiers. it's the most densely populated suburb of chicago, but lacks a cohesive center. more than any other burb i can think of, cicero truly feels like an extension of the city that simply never got annexed, much like enclaved burbs norridge and harwood heights.

It might not have a cohesive downtown but Cermak avenue always seemed to me like the heart of Cicero with all the businesses on it.