Facts & Statistics

A Quick Overview

Welcome to Chicago The third largest urban area within the United States, with a 3 million.

Chicago is the home of…

2,716,450 residents
50-year-olds and upwards
77 community zones
100 neighborhoods
8 major league sports teams including two MLB teams.
United States President Barack Obama

Chicago is a well-known melting pot…

36 parades annually
40 film festivals per year
74 music festivals
Professional dancers from 200 companies
There are more than 200 cinemas
Live music in 250 venues
40+ film festivals per year
Twenty-plus film and director non-profit organizations
12+ art cinemas, independent and house
13,000 film and television production jobs
400+ films and TV productions

^{(Sources DCASE Choose Chicago)}

Chicago is an American city set in the landscape…

600 parks
500 playgrounds
70 bird and nature sanctuary
307 fields of soccer football, lacrosse, and much more
250 field houses
534 tennis courts, and 6 courts indoors
80 pools for swimming
29 beaches
26 miles of lakefront open

^{(Source: Park District)}

Chicago is a bike-friendly city…

Chicago has the second highest proportion of commuters who ride bicycles to commute
Cycling commute times in the region average just 23 minutes
303 miles of bicycle lanes
19,3 km of waterfront bicycle trails along Lake Michigan
303 miles of bike paths
More than 13,000 bike racks
A 40-acre bike trail to BMX and trail-riding

^{(Source DPD)}

Chicago is a culinary destination…

There are more than 7300 restaurant locations
Seven AAA Diamond-rated eateries
26 Michelin-starred restaurants
The James Beard Awards have awarded 40 eateries, and hosts each year’s James Beard Awards
54 Bib Gourmand winners
144 dog-friendly restaurants

Sports A City for Sports Fans

As as Chicagoans love to play sports, we also like to watch professional athletes do it. Chicago was named as one of”the” Best Sports City by Sporting News three times. It has also been a part of TSE’s international Ranking of Sport Cities every year since 2012.

Greatest Chicago Sport Moments

1837 1837: Invention of Softball

1905: Chicago White Sox win World Series

1907: Chicago Cubs win World Series

1908: Chicago Cubs win World Series

1917. Chicago White Sox win World Series

1935: Chicago Cubs secure a record for the third longest unbeaten MLB streak, with 21 consecutive victories.

1935. Chicago born Jay Berwanger was the first to win the Heisman Trophy.

1977: Walter Payton Sets Record

1986: Chicago Bears win Super Bowl

1991-93 Chicago Bulls, 3peat

1996-98 Chicago Bulls, 3peat

1998: Chicago Fire wins MLS Cup

2005: Chicago White Sox win the World Series and break 88-year title drought

2010. Chicago Blackhawks win Stanley Cup Championship

2012. Chicago Red Stars win National Women’s Open

2013. Chicago Blackhawks win Stanley Cup Championship

2015. Chicago Blackhawks win Stanley Cup Championship

2016 2016: Chicago Cubs win World Series and end a 108-year drought and ended the “Curse of the Billy Goat”

Sport Locations

Wrigley Field – Lake View
GuaranteedRate Field (Formerly Comiskey Park) – Bridgeport
Soldier Field – South Loop
United Center United Center Near West Side
Wintrust Arena – Near South Side
Toyota Park – McKinley Park

Major League

Chicago Cubs – baseball
Chicago Bears – football
Chicago Bulls – basketball
Chicago White Sox – baseball
Chicago Blackhawks – hockey
Chicago Fire – soccer
Chicago Sky – basketball
Chicago Red Stars – soccer

NCAA

DePaul Blue Demons
Loyola Ramblers
Chicago State Cougars
UIC Flames

A melting pot of art & Culture

Dance

More the 200 top professional dance groups which include dance companies like the Joffrey Ballet and Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Chicago delivers an array of events on stages in the downtown area as well as in parks and neighborhood venues. Chicago is the home of a hip-hop movement that is influential and has also spawned innovative dance styles and music like Chicago the juke and footwork. For over two years, Chicago has hosted Chicago SummerDance the largest annual outdoor dance event throughout the U.S. Don’t forget that every April is “Chicago Dance Month’ in the city.

^{(Source DCASE)}

Film

Affordable, top-quality staff and talent, as well as modern facilities and suppliers have created Chicago an area of excellence for TV and film that dates all the way to The Blues Brother. Some notable studios include Cinespace Studios, which is the biggest North American soundstage outside of L.A and Music Box Films, one of the largest distributors of foreign-language films and documentary films across the U.S. For those who love films there’s the no-cost Millennium Park Summer Film Series and all-year-round film festivals such as Chicago International Film Festival, the Chicago International Film Festival, the Latino, Black Harvest, Reeling (LGBTQ), Underground, Midwest Independent, and Children’s International film festival.

40+ film festivals per year
Film and film organizations with 20+ members. non-profit organizations
12+ art cinemas and independent cinemas

^{(Source DCASE)}

Music

Chicago is the home of gospel, electric blues the juke, house, footwork and drill. The unique sounds created in Chicago remain a constant source of inspiration for musicians all over the globe. Chicago is also home to world-renowned artists such as Louis Armstrong, Jennifer Hudson, Earth, Wind and Fire, Chance the Rapper, Common Smashing Pumpkins, Rise Against, Muddy Waters as well as Kanye West. Chicago can be described as a place that is of festivals, which celebrates every genre of music. Explore Chicago’s most renowned music festivals like those like the Chicago Blues Festival, the Chicago Jazz Festival, Lollapalooza, Pitchfork Music Festival and Riot Fest.

Live music in 250 venues, including the famous Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Lyric Opera as well as Joffrey Ballet.
The 74 festivals of music include the Chicago Blues Festival, Pitchfork and Lollapalooza
Thalia Hall – Pilsen
Vic Theater – Lakeview
Riviera Theater Uptown
House of Blues – River North
Green Mill – Uptown
Aragon Ballroom – Uptown
Chicago Symphony Orchestra – Downtown
Created by Chicago: World Class Jazz
Ravinia Festival
Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island
Metro – Lakeview Metro – Lakeview

^{(Sources DCASE. ChooseChicago)}

Theatre

Chicago is the capital of theatre in America. U.S.– birthplace of theatre in storefronts and improv comedy, host to long-running Broadway productions and the most world-premieres of any city in America. The city’s theatre companies, which number more than 250, are on stage in over 200 theaters to present work that is as diverse and varied as their audience. Theater-goers can select from thousands of shows each year which range that ranges from Shakespeare to variety, and in numerous languages. From the grand, historic theatres in downtown to those hidden behind a storefront in the neighborhood or in a church basement, patrons will find theater with the best quality across the city. Discover the more than 150 buildings that offer behind-the-scenes tours.

^{(Sources, DCASE, ChooseChicago)}

Long-Staying Chicago Theaters

Second City – Old Town
Music Box Theater – Lake View
Goodman Theater – Loop
Chicago Theater Loop Loop
Mayne Stage – Rogers Park
Lifeline Theater – Rogers Park
Blue Man Group at Briar Street Theater Blue Man Group at Briar Street Theater Boystown
Apollo 2000 (Formerly Marshal Square Theater) Little Village Little Village
Gateway Theater The Gateway Theater Jefferson Park
Steppenwolf Theatre Company
Victory Gardens Theatre
Chicago Shakespeare Theatre
Lookingglass Theatre Company

A Garden in a City

The appeal of Chicago is not just found in its stunning architecture however, it is also evident in its vast, open and green spaces that are preserved. Chicagoans have more than 580 parks as well as 8,300 acres of green space available to them. With ice skating rinks, beaches and bike trails it’s not hard to find recreational activities outdoors for Chicagoans.

Parks district – https://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/

^{(Sources: DPD, Park District)}

606/Bloomingdale Trail

A $95 million upgrade of the former rail line into an 2.7-mile elevated area that stretches through four lively, Chicago neighborhoods. A new expansion will add 32 acres of park land on the Chicago River, 10 acres of fields for sports and recreation as well as seventeen acres of wetland parks.

Chicago Riverwalk

The award-winning $108 million project is a 1.25-mile promenade that runs along the southern bank of Chicago River downtown. The future expansion plans will take the Riverwalk south by an further 1.8 miles stretching from Lake Street to Ping Tom Memorial Park in Chinatown.

Lincoln Park

Lincoln Park, on Chicago’s North Side, attracts 20 million visitors each year. Visitors come to the oldest zoo in America, explore exotic plants in the magnificent Victorian glass conservatory, take in performances in the outdoor theater as well as row through the canal, walk around the North Pond Nature Sanctuary and Butterfly conservatory, take a picnic on the fields of play, and play on North Avenue Beach.

Millennium Park

Millennium Park is the most popular tourist attraction in Chicago and throughout the Midwest in the year 2017, Millennium Park offers 25 acres of stunning architecture, tranquil landscapes, majestic pavilions and stunning fountains that shape water and light, as well as pathways for walking. Millennium Park is home to an ever-changing program of cultural events that are free for everyone all through the year.

Jackson Park

Jackson Park offers more than 500 acres of parkland that runs along the lakefront including flowers, watercourses, wooded isles, sporting facilities as well as stocked fish ponds. 18 miles of hiking and biking routes, and is the proposed location of the Barack Obama White House Center.

Most Stunning Bike City of America

Chicago is ranked as America’s Top Bike City in a survey conducted by Bicycling Magazine in 2016. Chicago’s determination to invest into better bicycle infrastructure has made biking safer and more accessible for everyone in Chicago regardless of age or level.

In 2011, Chicago was added to the…

Over 115 miles secured bike paths
The network stretches for 303 miles
There are 255 miles of street bike lanes
5 miles of trails off-street.

Facts & Statistics About Chicago