Sauganash's boundaries are clear as day based on reader submissions on DNAinfo Chicago's mapping tool. [DNAinfo/Tanveer Ali]
FAR NORTHWEST SIDE — Congratulations, Sauganash.
Unlike the baker's dozen of Far Northwest Side neighborhoods drawn by residents trying to determine map borders, there was no debate about where Sauganash stops and starts.
Based on the results from the interactive mapping tool that DNAinfo Chicago rolled out a few weeks ago, which allows users to draw where they believe their neighborhood boundaries lie, pretty much everyone knows that Sauganash, the neighborhood filled with homes that routinely sell for nearly $1 million, stretches east from Cicero Avenue to Pulaski Avenue and north from Bryn Mawr Avenue to Devon Avenue.
But the boundaries of other Far Northwest Side neighborhoods are not so clear, based on DNAinfo's results.
While most agreed on Portage Park's eastern and southern boundaries, there was not much agreement about its western and northern limits. [DNAinfo/Tanveer Ali]
Pretty much everyone who submitted an answer agreed Portage Park's eastern boundary is Cicero Avenue, but there was no consensus on its northern boundary, deemed Montrose Avenue by the city's official Portage Park community area map, or southern boundary, set by the city at Belmont Avenue.
While most of those who submitted a map picked Montrose as the neighborhood's northern limit, a significant number of readers put the border at Lawrence Avenue, agreeing with the city's map, and its southern limit at Addison Street.
In addition, Portage Park's western border proved to be a tricky question. North of Irving Park Road, Portage Park stretches west to Narragansett Avenue. But south of Irving Park Road, the border stops at Austin Avenue, according to the city.
But a good portion of maps submitted to DNAinfo Chicago set the western boundary at Austin Avenue — significantly east of where Dunning starts.
No one can agree on where Jefferson Park starts and stops. [DNAinfo/Tanveer Ali]
There was even less agreement about where Jefferson Park and Norwood Park start and stop, even though, like Portage Park, they are recognized by the City of Chicago as official community areas.
As for Jefferson Park, that lack of clarity may be due to the odd shape of Jefferson Park, bounded on the north by the North Branch of the Chicago River and south by Montrose Avenue, according to the city's official Jefferson Park community area map.
While most everyone agreed Cicero Avenue was Jefferson Park's eastern boundary — including the city — some maps had the neighborhood's western boundary at Harlem Avenue, although most set it at Nagle Avenue, which turns into Narragansett Avenue near Eastwood Avenue.
And there was no clear consensus on Jefferson Park's southern boundary, either, with many participants setting it at Montrose, Lawrence and even Foster avenues, according to DNAinfo Chicago's mapping tool.
Where is Norwood Park? Most people have no clue, apparently. [DNAinfo/Tanveer Ali]
The results for Norwood Park were even more chaotic, with many submissions disagreeing on all four borders.
The southeast corner of Norwood Park is at Gunnison and Nagle avenues, according to the official community area map. It stretches north to the city's border with Niles at Albion and Milwaukee avenues before covering the area west to Harlem Avenue, the neighborhood's border with Edison Park, and south to Foster Avenue.
On its southern end, Norwood Park's official boundary juts further west to Cumberland Avenue, which only a handful of reader submissions showed.
Maps submitted to DNAinfo Chicago had the neighborhood all over the place, although most agreed Norwood Park started at Foster Avenue before hitting the city's northwest border — although many disagreed exactly where that border with Niles was, claiming much more land for Chicago than it actually controls.
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