City In Review: Chicago

West Ridge · Then vs Now

West Ridge: 2025-02 vs 2026-02

A side-by-side look at how West Ridge shifted between two periods.

2025-02 2026-02 Change
Building permits 26 23 -12%
Construction value ($) $2,043,916 $4,253,638 +108%
New business licenses 201 25 -88%
Business closings (proxy) 0 0
311 service requests 1,079 1,220 +13%
Reported crimes 192 188 -2%
Violent crimes 58 61 +5%
Failed food inspections 6 3 -50%

2025-02

West Ridge permit value drops 84% to $2M

Permit value in West Ridge fell from $12.7M to $2M in February, an 84% drop, though the number of permits rose slightly from 23 to 26. Most were express permits (19 of 26). Crime dropped sharply: total incidents fell 33% to 192, with violent offenses down 29% to 58. Service requests also declined 18% to 1,079. Abandoned vehicle complaints led 311 calls with 127, closely followed by pothole reports at 122. Food inspection failures dropped from 17 to 6.

2026-02

West Ridge sees 150 abandoned vehicle complaints in February

West Ridge logged 1,220 service requests in February, up 46% from January. Abandoned vehicle complaints led with 150, followed by 115 tree trim requests and 93 pothole reports. Crime reports jumped 66%—188 total, with 61 violent incidents. The neighborhood added 25 new businesses, including Manna Bakehouse, a wholesale food operation, and George's Fade Salon. Permits climbed 21% to 23, though their combined value fell 9% to $4.25 million. Three food establishments failed inspection, one more than the previous month.

New businesses — 2025-02

  • CHANDNI EXCLUSIVE (Limited Business License)
  • POPULAR ELECTRONICS INC. (Limited Business License)
  • MAAZ TRADING, INC. (Limited Business License)
  • OVERSEAS ELECTRONICS (Limited Business License)
  • DOVE 1 CLEANERS (Limited Business License)
  • ILLINOIS THERAPEUTIC AND NURSING SERVICES, LLC (Limited Business License)
  • CHICAGO ACCEPTANCE, LLC (Limited Business License)
  • ROYAL STUDIO & ALBUM CO. (Limited Business License)
  • INDO-AMERICAN CENTER (Limited Business License)
  • ETERNAL YOUTH (Limited Business License)

New businesses — 2026-02

  • NORMUS TECH (Regulated Business License)
  • MANNA BAKEHOUSE (Wholesale Food Establishment)
  • TARGET STORE # T-2079 (Retail Food Establishment)
  • TARGET STORE # T-2079 (Package Goods)
  • GEORGE'S FADE SALON (Limited Business License)
  • 7-ELEVEN (Tobacco)
  • Mkon Group Inc. (Limited Business License)
  • THE HOOKAH JOINT/THE HOOKAH JOINT LOUNGE (Tobacco)
  • MY HOOKAH CAFE (Tobacco)
  • ASTORIA PLACE LIVING & REHAB (Regulated Business License)