West Rogers Park's Layered Identity: How the Jewish Neighborhood Development Council Is Keeping History Alive in One of Chicago's Most Diverse ZIP Codes

By Socialhood News · Il/Chicago/West Rogers Park · May 14, 2026

West Rogers Park has always been a neighborhood of many stories — and one of its most enduring is the one told by the Jewish Neighborhood Development Council of Chicago (JNDC). As the 2026 West Ridge Community Directory spotlights, the JNDC remains a quiet but powerful force in the neighborhood, working to enhance community life and safety in coalition with West Ridge's many other ethnic and cultural groups.

The neighborhood's Jewish roots run deep. According to the Community Directory, Jewish residents began settling in what is now West Rogers Park in the 1930s, and by the 1960s accounted for nearly 75% of the population — a period locals fondly recall as Devon Avenue's 'Golden Age.' Today, while the Jewish community is smaller in size, West Ridge still holds the distinction of being the longest-standing Jewish neighborhood in Chicago history, teeming with more synagogues, schools, and social services than ever before. JNDC president Beverly Siegel — who grew up in the neighborhood and produced the award-winning documentary 'Driving West Rogers Park: Chicago's Once and Future Jewish Neighborhood' — puts it plainly: 'We work to enhance the neighborhood, and we often work in coalition with other groups to achieve mutual goals.'

That coalition spirit is exactly what makes West Rogers Park tick in 2026. With the West Ridge Chamber of Commerce's newly published 2026 Community Directory celebrating a neighborhood of 65,000 residents speaking over 40 languages, the JNDC's collaborative approach is a model for how heritage and diversity can coexist and strengthen each other. Explore more at westridgecommunity.org and westridgechamber.org.

Sources:
1. https://chambervu.com/westridge26/
2. https://www.westridgechamber.org/