Homewood, Illinois

Homewood is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 19,463 at the 2020 census.

The village sits just a few miles south of Chicago proper. It is bordered by Chicago Heights and Flossmoor to the south, Hazel Crest to the west, East Hazel Crest and Harvey to the north, Glenwood to the east, and South Holland to the northeast.

Geography
According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Homewood has a total area of 5.26 sqmi, of which 5.22 sqmi (or 99.11%) is land and 0.05 sqmi (or 0.89%) is water. A south suburban village, Homewood is 22 mi due south of The Loop/downtown Chicago at 800 west and 18300 south on the Chicago grid system.

Homewood lies on the Calumet Shoreline. The ancient shoreline can be seen clearly as the sand ridge along Ridge Road.

Economy
Its historic downtown centered at the intersections of Dixie Highway and Ridge road has a number of small businesses including coffee shops and restaurants, salons, a music shop, bookstore, boutique hotel, and the Homewood Science Center. Homewood's other main commercial corridor is located along Halsted street between 183rd and 175th street and is home to a number of large national chain retailers.

Large employers

 * American headquarters for Canadian National Railways. Homewood's CN campus has hosted over 15,000 CN employees and has a training facility.
 * Global headquarters for Tempo Global Resources (formerly Hunter Douglas Metals).
 * Corporate offices for Carl Buddig & Company.
 * Headquarters for Homewood Disposal residential, commercial, and industrial waste service.

H-F Parks
Homewood's "H-F Park District" spans over 365 acres with 32 parks and recreation spaces. Homewood's unique parks include Lion's Club Park and Pool, H-F Ice Arena, Irons Oaks Environmental Learning Center, H-F Racquet Club, Rover's Run Dog Park, Extreme Scene Skate park, Millennium Park Splash Pad, Patriots Park Frisbee Golf Course, and Dolphin Lake Park and Clubhouse.

Izaak Walton Preserve
Homewood's Izaak Walton Preserve is a 193 acre open space filled with woodland, lakes, and diverse wildlife carved out from an ancient glacial lake and sandy shoreline. Roughly 4 miles of gravel walking path wind through the scenic and rolling prairie throughout the preserve. Fishing, biking, running, and dog-walking are common activities along the preserve's trail system.

Newspapers
The HF Chronicle is a local newspaper serving the Homewood and Flossmoor communities that started in June 2014.

Radio
WHFH (88.5FM) - Viking Radio is Homewood-Floosmoor Highschool's radio station based on campus.

Homewood Village Board
Source:

Village President - Rich Hofeld

Village Clerk - Marilyn Thomas

Trustee Anne Colton

Trustee Vivian Harris-Jones

Trustee Jay Heiferman

Trustee Lisa Purcell

Trustee Lauren Roman

Trustee Julie Willis

Trustee Allisa Opyd

Village Manager, Napoleon Haney

State legislature
Illinois State Senate
 * State Senator Napoleon Harris D-Flossmoor, Illinois, 15th Legislative District

Illinois State House of Representatives
 * State Representative Will Davis D-East Hazel Crest, 30th Representative District

Federal
United States House of Representatives
 * Congresswoman Robin Kelly D-Chicago, Illinois's 2nd congressional district

United States Senate
 * Senator Dick Durbin D-Illinois (elected 1997)
 * Senator Tammy Duckworth D-Illinois (elected 2017)

Education
Children in grades K-8 attend schools under the jurisdiction of Homewood public school district 153, although some may attend Flossmoor School District 161 if they live west of Western Avenue and south of 183rd street. School District 153 has three schools: Winston Churchill Elementary, Willow Elementary, and James Hart Junior High School. Children in grades K-2 attend Willow, then move on to Churchill for grades 3-5, then move on to finish grades 6-8 at James Hart. Homewood School District 153.

The majority of students in the area then go on to attend the local public high school, Homewood-Flossmoor High School. Homewood-Flossmoor High School is its own school district, school district 233. H-F is a three-time winner of the U.S. Department of Education's Blue Ribbon Award for excellence. HF also owns WHFH 88.5, the highest powered high school radio station with 1,500 watts.

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago operated a Catholic school, St. Joseph School. It closed in 2017. It had 64 students in 2017.

Demographics
As of the 2020 census there were 19,463 people, 6,964 households, and 4,910 families residing in the village. The population density was 3,698.08 PD/sqmi. There were 8,003 housing units at an average density of 1,520.62 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 44.87% African American, 43.17% White, 0.18% Native American, 1.29% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 3.23% from other races, and 7.25% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.35% of the population.

There were 6,964 households, out of which 35.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.32% were married couples living together, 17.29% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.49% were non-families. 27.28% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.73% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.26 and the average family size was 2.63.

The village's age distribution consisted of 26.1% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 25.4% from 25 to 44, 25.5% from 45 to 64, and 16.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.4 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $77,013, and the median income for a family was $91,704. Males had a median income of $58,214 versus $40,314 for females. The per capita income for the village was $33,243. About 5.8% of families and 7.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.8% of those under age 18 and 11.3% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation
Amtrak provides rail service to Homewood. Amtrak Train 59, the southbound City of New Orleans, is scheduled to depart Homewood at 8:54 pm daily with service to Kankakee and points south through Tennessee and Mississippi to New Orleans. Amtrak Train 58, the northbound City of New Orleans, is scheduled to depart Homewood at 7:44 am daily with service to Chicago Union Station. Homewood is also served by Amtrak Train 390/391, the Saluki, daily in the morning, and Amtrak Train 392/393, the Illini, daily in the afternoon/evening. Both the Saluki and Illini operate between Chicago and Carbondale, Illinois. Metra also provides commuter rail service on the Metra Electric line between Millennium Station and University Park. Homewood is the American headquarters of Canadian National Railways including a large freight classification yard and major shop facilities.

Pace provides bus service on multiple routes connecting Homewood to destinations across the Southland.

Notable residents

 * Sarah Bloom Raskin, 13th United States Deputy Secretary of the Treasury
 * J Harlen Bretz, geologist, best known for his research that led to the acceptance of the Missoula Floods
 * Brian Colin, video game designer (Rampage, Arch Rivals, General Chaos)
 * John Doody, member of the Illinois House of Representatives. He served as Mayor of Homewood prior to his tenure in the Illinois House
 * Peter Doran, geologist specializing in Antarctic climate and ecosystems. He is a native of Homewood
 * Manny Hoffman, member of the Illinois House of Representatives. He served as Mayor of Homewood prior to his tenure in the Illinois House
 * George Nolfi, scriptwriter and producer (Ocean's Twelve, The Bourne Ultimatum, The Adjustment Bureau)
 * Susan D. Page, 1st United States Ambassador to South Sudan. She was raised in Homewood
 * Eugene Parker, solar astrophysicist who developed the theory of the supersonic solar wind. He lived in Homewood while a professor at the University of Chicago
 * Quintin E. Primo III, co-founder of Capri Capital Partners, LLC
 * Steve Sarowitz, founder of Paylocity Corporation. He was born and raised in Homewood
 * Jermaine Stewart, an American R&B singer best known for his 1986 hit single "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off", which peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot 100. Died in Homewood
 * Juice Wrld, rapper, singer, and songwriter. He was raised in Homewood after his family moved there in 1999