NewBo and Czech Village are often celebrated today for their culture, art, and revitalization.

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But their story begins with labor.

 

In the late 1800s, immigrants, first from places like Lebanon and Italy, and later from Czech-speaking regions, settled near the Sinclair plant and along key transportation routes.

 

This area became a center of immigrant life:

• Social halls like CSPS and Sokol

• Ethnic schools

• Small businesses along “The Avenue”

 

But it was also shaped by industrial zoning and economic pressures.

As parts of downtown were rezoned for industry, immigrant communities were pushed outward—into neighborhoods like Czech Village and NewBo. Later, redlining reinforced patterns of disinvestment in these areas.

 

In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, a new phase began: reinvestment and revitalization.

Buildings once used for industry became artist spaces. Former low-income housing sites became condos. What had been disinvested became desirable again.

 

This is the complex legacy of redlining and gentrification, where neighborhoods once excluded from investment are later rediscovered, often raising questions about who benefits from change.