Bucktown, Wicker Park, and Ukrainian Village

Know one knows for sure how the trendy Bucktown neighborhood got its name. However, it is rumored that the name originated from the area’s primarily Polish population’s penchant for raising goats in the early 1800’s, the male of which is called a buck.

Bound by Fullerton and North Avenues, Bucktown, until recently was for a long time an affordable residential option. However, since the mid-90’s, home prices within this once Bohemian environment have been steadily rising.

With no shortage of entertainment, Bucktown, featuring a steady diet of in-demand restaurants, hip boutiques and trendy nightclubs and bars, appeals to both young professionals and real estate developers. Yet, if you look beyond the modern facade, a more historic Bucktown, that of century-old buildings and cobblestone walks, reveals its true form.

A haven for artists and the artistic-minded, Bucktown includes Gallery Point, a colony encapsulating the highest concentration of artists within the entire Midwest. On the artistic front, the neighborhood plays host to the Bucktown Arts Fest and the Around the Coyote Festival, both are annual events held to celebrate the area’s creativity.

While every street in Bucktown seems to have its own grouping of neighborhood watering holes, Damen Avenue, with by far the largest number of taverns and bars, reigns as the Central Street of Bucktown.

Transportation-wise, the “El” is conveniently located on both North Damen and Milwaukee Avenues and CTA buses are commonplace on most of the major streets.

A related neighborhood familiar to all Bucktown residents is Wicker Park. In fact, the boundaries are so hazy between the two that if you asked five different people where one begins and the other ends, you would be likely to receive five different responses. Just like Bucktown, Wicker Park is a Mecca for counter-culture and art, featuring many galleries and working artists.

A variety of attractions mark the area and make Wicker Park the recognizable name it is today (even sharing its moniker with a recently released major motion picture.) Many trendy bars, vintage clothing shops, and used-furniture stores line the streets of Wicker Park. The Double Door, featuring alternative and independent music, was another key movie fixture in the popular John Cusack film, “High Fidelity.” Wicker Park’s proximity to the Loop, along with its eclectic collection of shops and single professional and young family residents, has resulted in an appreciable increase in area housing costs.

Nearby, another neighborhood, in which century-old properties and on-going renovations are considered to be mainstays, is the East Ukrainian Village, also referred to as simply the “East Village.” Comprised of residential neighborhoods with quaint tree-lined streets, apartments, rehabbed houses, and flats, the East Ukrainian Village, though reminiscent of old world style is quickly moving into the new millennium. Parking in the East Ukrainian Village is permit-free, and transportation is easily accessible via the “El’s” Blue Line and Metra commuter train.

Combine all of these stellar qualities with close proximity to the Loop, and the prospect of living in the East Ukrainian Village starts to look mighty attractive, indeed.