North Shore Views

Wilmette's Neighborhoods: Kenilworth Gardens

This is the first in a series of posts about the individual neighborhoods on the North Shore. As they say, real estate is local, and each neighborhood has its own characteristics and quirks. So, when we look for the ideal place to live, we need to drill down beyond ” the North Shore”  or even the particular town. As your search gets more serious, you have to go to the neighborhood level.  Since I live in Kenilworth Gardens, it seemed like the obvious place to start my neighborhood series.

If you’re not from around here, the first thing you need to know is that Kenilworth Gardens is NOT in Kenilworth. It is in Wilmette, but it is right across Ridge Rd. from Kenilworth. No doubt the developers of this neighborhood of starter homes sought to give it some cache by naming it after its grander neighbor to the east.

Kenilworth Gardens was developed during the 50’s and 60’s from land that once was part of Gross Point Village.  The neighborhood is bounded by Ridge Rd. on the east, Iroquios Rd. to the south, and Indian Hill (Winnetka) to the north. The western edge is harder to pinpoint. Some say it is Hunter Rd., but most of the residents would say it stretches a little further west, as far as Harper School.

The lot size in this area is typically 50′ by 122-132′ (the lots on Chestnut Ave. are deeper than those on other streets). Most of the houses were originally built with 3 bedrooms, one and a half baths, and a one car garage, but many have been added onto over the years and now have 4 bedrooms and two and a half baths plus a family room. There are various styles but most of the homes are either colonials or Tudors. Currently, prices range from $650,000 to $1,400,000. It’s a popular neighborhood for young families moving up from the city or relocating from out of town. It has a friendly vibe and block parties are frequent during the summer. It’s the go-to neighborhood for Halloween trick or treating.

The neighborhood is served by Harper Elementary School (K-4), which is walkable from anywhere in the

neighborhood. Thornwood Park, which is catty-corner to the school, has tennis courts, a play lot and a ball field, where the Wilmette baseball teams play all spring and summer. In the summer there is an annual Thornwood Park concert, where 3-4 bands comprised of local dads play to an enthusiastic crowd of neighbors and friends.

During better markets, the houses in Kenilworth Gardens sell very quickly, but at this writing there are a 12 to choose from. You can see a sampling below. If you’d like to know more about this neighborhood or any of the homes for sale, just leave me a comment or give me a call at 847-687-5957. You can also email me. I’d be happy to help you.

Tags: Chicago North Shore, Kenilworth Gardens, Wilmette, Wilmette neighborhoods

Winnetka Story

If you’re interested in (painlessly) learning about the history of Winnetka and the North Shore, check out a new documentary by John Newcombe in collaboration with the Winnetka Historical Society, called Winnetka Story: The History of Winnetka & The North Shore. Just produced this year, the film is a little over two hours long, but it’s divided into three parts so you can enjoy it in bite-sized pieces. Part 1 is about the early settlers to the area and covers the period 1832-1871. Part 2 takes us up to the turn of the century and Part 3 deals with the period 1900-1945.   John Newcombe now lives and works in California, but grew up in Winnetka and approached the Historical Society in the fall of 2007 about making a film about the history of the area. In an interview that coincided with the release of the film, he talked about how he went about crafting a film that would be both informative and entertaining. He said that he followed four rules:

1. Focus on personal stories, not just facts and dates.
2. Recount personal anecdotes and events, especially those that were dramatic or humorous.
3. Use comparisons (then and now photographs)
4. Edit ruthlessly to prevent boredom

One of the things I liked best was the effective use of then and now photographs. He would take an old photograph of a particular place and morph it into a new photograph of the same place taken from the same angle, right before your eyes. For example, a photo of the old school house that stood at the northwest corner of the Village Green fades out as a picture of the Village Green as it looks now fades in. This cool technique really brought the history to life.

The DVD is available from the Winnetka Historical Society for $19.95 plus tax.

Tags: Chicago North Shore, North Shore history, Winnetka