About
Welcome to Skokie
The Village of Skokie (the “Village”) is located in Cook County, Illinois, serving a population of nearly 68,000 citizens. Skokie is located approximately 10 miles north of downtown Chicago and about 2 miles west of Lake Michigan. Incorporated in 1888 and later renamed the Village of Skokie in 1940, Skokie grew rapidly during the post-war era and reached a population of 59,432 by 1990. The Village takes great pride in the number of immigrants and culturally diverse residents who reside and work here. Within Skokie an average of 90+ languages are spoken in the homes of school age children.
Besides its diverse and highly educated workforce and top-rated schools and park systems, the Village has a number of important assets. First, it benefits from a broad and deep array of municipal services, including nationally accredited public works, police and fire departments, the first in the U.S. to have all three such certifications. Secondly, Skokie has a number of sizable employers located within Village limits (e.g., NorthShore University HealthSystem/Skokie Hospital, Westfield Old Orchard Shopping Center, Cook County Courthouse, Tenneco, and Oakton Community College), and is in close proximity to other major employers nearby, such as Northwestern University. Moreover, the Village has a number of transportation amenities unique among north suburban communities. Skokie has access to Interstate 94 at three interchanges. Metra service just west of Village boundaries, and CTA rail service with stations located at Dempster Avenue and Oakton Street, in Downtown Skokie. Over 167,000 cars and trucks pass through or stop in Skokie every day. O’Hare Airport is located only twelve miles to the west.
As a founding member of Chicago’s North Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau, Skokie offers many hotel, dining and entertainment options, and consistently ranks in the top 10 Chicagoland suburbs for retail sales. Skokie was proud to be named one of the Top 100 Most Livable Cities in the U.S. in 2013 by Livability.com and the Skokie/Evanston area was named a “Top 10 Best Neighborhoods and Suburbs” by Chicago Magazine in 2017.
In addition to such assets, the Village has many quality of life amenities. A recent Crain’s selection as a “Top 8 Suburban Best Places To Buy a Home”, the Village has a wide array of housing options, with over 350 new owner-occupied and rental units currently planned or under construction in and around the Downtown. The North Shore Center for the Performing Arts is home to the Northlight Theatre and the Skokie Valley Symphony Orchestra, which hosts hundreds of performances each year that draw from the greater Chicago area. The Skokie Sculpture Park and Holocaust Museum and Educational Center draws thousands of visitors annually. While difficult to quantify in economic terms, these cultural amenities enhance commercial areas and make the downtown area more attractive to residents and businesses alike.