| Settled by | Provide info |
|---|---|
| Year infiltrated | 1989 |
| Crime impact | Part |
| Worst areas | Provide info |
Hoffman Estates…the very name sounds luxurious and as a kid growing up in the Chicago area suburbs, I always thought this northwest suburb was upper class, but only because of the name. As a child I never visited Hoffman Estates, but as I grew older, I ventured into this village but only to pass through to reach other communities. When I would drive through this town, I thought to myself that this does not look like a luxury town, it looks like any ordinary town, not dangerous, not wealthy…just common. I was shocked to learn there was some gangbanging madness in this suburb that still happens currently. Although there is gang activity currently and, in the past, it is important not to panic about the gang issue and if you are considering buying a house in this village…I think you will be just fine. The gang issue effects only certain areas and as I researched Hoffman Estates crime and gang I felt it was enough to talk about.
I could not find much early history for this Cook County suburb due to the fact it was a rural and sparsely populated area of Schaumburg Township. Through time, German farmers settled these lands, and the most concentrated area was where the present-day Remington Lakes apartments is located, and that area is part of Schaumburg. This area remained barren with little interest until the 1940s when gentleman farmers moved here which may have slightly increased the population if they built their own farms. These farmers were wealthier individuals that farmed for a hobby which is basically the definition of a gentleman farmer. By the early 1950s The most populated area of Schaumburg Township was in present day Schaumburg at the intersection of Roselle Road and Schaumburg Road where 25 houses stood and small stores (Fact source: www.Encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org). It seemed as if there were no houses close to each other in Hoffman Estates back then and there were no subdivisions and possibly no businesses in the area of Schaumburg Township that is now Hoffman Estates.
It would take until 1954 for a serious building company to become interested in these lands. Sam and Jack Hoffman, a father and son building team, purchased 160 acres between Higgins Road and Golf Road just east of Roselle Road. This subdivision is in the Birch Park area and is the oldest of subdivisions. The Hoffmans donated two park sites and four church sites and were getting ready to build a town as they purchased another 600 acres and built the first school. The first homeowners moved in, in late 1955. Not everyone was satisfied with the Hoffman’s work. Residents from Shaumburg’s Schaumburg Centre protested this growth because it was larger than a 5-acre purchase per transaction. These residents fought back by annexing land near the Hoffman’s purchases. In what would later become Hoffman Estates, residents struck back at Schaumburg Centre by forming a homeowner’s association then filed a lawsuit against Schaumburg Centre to overturn their annexations, the lawsuit was lost. This was a war between Schaumburg and the rest of Schaumburg Township. The rest of Schaumburg Township incorporated in 1959 as “Hoffman Estates,” named after the Hoffmans. By the time of incorporation Hoffman Estates had about 8,000 residents (Fact source: www.Encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org). After annexation, Hoffman Estates greatly grew through the 1960s and 1970s. Eventually the community would house over 50,000 residents.
Much of Hoffman Estates is open land, parks, a large golf course and shopping centers. There are many single-family houses in multiple subdivisions throughout the village and there are higher income townhouse subdivisions. The village also has multiple lower income areas in condo complexes, townhouse complexes and apartment complexes. Gangs and higher crime in Hoffman Estates is confined to one area of town only and the rest of the village would not experience gang activity and higher crime. Overall, Hoffman Estates is considered one of the safer villages in the Chicago area. Street stories tell of all the gang activity occurring in a certain area of town. Crime reports and crime maps like Neighborhood Scout show most of the crime within the same area as street legends; therefore, there is a part of town where all the gangs and most of the crime is confined to. This is the area of Interstate 90 on the north, Golf Road on the south, Barrington Road on the west and Roselle Road on the east. Also included are the Highland Crossing condominiums just south of the intersection of Higgins Road and Golf Road. The rest of Hoffman Estates is almost completely exempt of gangs and elevated crime. To narrow it down more, the areas with gangs and elevated crime is all west of Jones Road. To understand the origins of Hoffman Estates gangs it is important to know exactly where they live. The lower income area of the village is where the gangs almost exclusively stay.
In the year 1970, construction began on a larger townhouse complex off Higgins Road. This was the construction of the Barrington Square townhouses. This complex was constructed between Hassell Road on the north to Higgins Road on the south and from Governor’s Lane on the west to Jamestown Circle/Queensbury Circle on the east. This construction would last until 1972. In 1977 construction resumed through 1978 in a second phase. These townhouses were designed to be simple and affordable for budgeting families. Landlords could also purchase these to rent out.
During the period when construction halted on Barrington Square, construction would begin in 1974 to build the Barrington Lakes apartments that are located at Hassell Road on east, Hassell Road convenient store complex on the west, Hassell Road on the south and, Pembroke Ave on the north. These were simple apartments that were more affordable for lower income residents.
In the year 1976, the Steeple Hill condominiums were built through 1978. These condos are located at Heritage Drive on north to Mesa Drive on the south, Higgins Quarters Drive on the west and Valley Lane on the east. These are now known today as Highland Crossing Condominiums. These condos were built for those looking to purchase or rent affordable housing.
The Moonlake Village Condominiums were built in 1977 and are located at Higgins Road on the north, Cresent Court on the south, Bonnie Lane on the west, Robin Lane on the east. This is another affordable condo complex built for lower income residents.
In the year 1979, the Hilldale Condominiums were built at Fayette Walk on the north, Higgins Road on the south, Manchester Drive on the west and Huntington Boulevard on the east. These condos were also built for affordable living.
Directly north of Hilldale condos two large buildings were built in 1985 that housed several affordable condos. These condo buildings are along Huntington Boulevard at 1800 and 1840. The condo buildings ended up becoming immediate low-income housing that honored section 8 vouchers. It almost seems to me as if the housing authority worked in conjunction with Hoffman Estates to build these towers.
Now that I have introduced the troubled complexes let’s delve into how and when these complexes developed an influential Chicago gang influence. I will come right out and say the Gangster Disciples are the largest and most storied Chicago gang to ever live in this suburb. For decades they have had a major influence. The Gangsters Disciples may have been the first Chicago gang here but if they were not the first, they were at least tied with being first to Hoffman Estates.
Before Chicago began demolishing several public housing projects they were slowly moving more project residents to other areas of the city or into the suburbs. In the year 1988, the Victor A. Olander public housing project became the first housing project to face demolition in Chicago history. Legend says that the first African American families moved into the 1800 and 1840 buildings and the Gangster Disciples moved in alongside these families in 1988 or 1989. This was the beginning of the Hoffman Estates Gangster Disciples and legend has it that the Hoffman Estates GDs are oversaw with Evanston GDs and were made official from Chicago. Many of these African American families moving to 1800 and 1840 were impoverished which made the gang more enticing to join for impoverished youths that were alienated from the rest of the village. Hoffman Estates middle-class residents have had less connection with the lower income complexes starting in the late 1980s.
It took a very short time for the Gangster Disciples to spread their influence outside of the 1800 and 1840 buildings. Gangster Disciples infiltrated the Hilldale condos, especially on Bristol Walk. Gangster Disciples would also venture to the Barrington Square condos and dig into these complexes deep. This area is often referred to as “Governor’s Lane.” Gangster Disciples would also hang out at the pond in the subdivision and many other residents would hang out there and drink lots of beer. Gangster Disciples could be seen on the basketball courts at Barrington Square Basketball Court which is nicknamed “The cage.”
Gangster Disciples also made their way into the Steeple Hill condominium complex (Highland Crossing Condomiums) having a large presence along the main road in the complex, Hill Drive. This complex has also housed Hispanic families and among some of the first Hispanic families in Steeple Hill was the Latin Kings that were here by 1989. Latin Kings and Gangster Disciples would engage in violent gang wars in the complex by the early 1990s.
By 1989-1990 more Chicago gangs arrived in Hoffman Estates but I am not familiar with where their territories were or how strong they have been in Hoffman Estates. I have only heard street legend and news article information about Gangster Disciples and Latin Kings. The Gangster Disciples of Hoffman Estates were well documented by the Arlington Heights Daily Herald March 27, 1991, edition. This extensive article detailed an eight-month sting operation that sent Special Agent Michale Callahan of the Illinois State Police Division of Criminal Investigations undercover to become connected with Gangster Disciple drug operations, burglary and auto theft rings. The article verifies that the Hoffman Estates GDs were connected to Evanston GDs and Evanston GDs had authority over them. The article points out that GDs were selling marijuana, LSD and cocaine. The article also shares that the GDs were involved in selling stolen goods and firearms. The GDs would work with criminals that were not members of the gang as well and Callahan was an undercover agent posing as a criminal that was not a GD. Callahan connected to the “Black Gangster Disciples” as they were known as at the time the article was written, through James D “Dewitt” Reckley, a criminal connected to the GDs through drug sales, but he was not a GD. Callahan also connected with Clint Nash who was connected with the GDs through burglary, stolen goods and auto theft rings. Nash was not a GD but was that neutral contact Callahan could use to get to the GDs. Another connection was Chris Edwards who was a recent high school graduate and a star football player and team captain. It was shocking when he was connected with a drug trafficking ring with the GDs. He was mentioned in the paper and his photo was allegedly shown in the paper as a white teenager. Turns out the newspaper used the wrong yearbook photo of the wrong Chris Edwards which had led to a 14-year lawsuit against the Herald for using the wrong photo and damaging the man’s reputation. The undercover surveillance was part of operation “Errinyes” that purchased $75,000 worth of mostly cocaine from the Gangster Disciples. The operation also confiscated $352,000 in stolen cars and $250,000 worth of stolen property. The operation paid $30,000 for most of the items including a Mercedes Benz sports car that was sold for $500 to undercover agents. Lloyd Atkins and his brother Antoine Atkins were heading these operations and were leading the GDs in a certain area, but the article would not say where in Hoffman Estates. Lloyd Atkins was age 23 at the time of the 1991 article and his brother Antonie was 19 (Fact source: Arlington Heights Daily Herald March 27, 1991). The article was uncovering a hardcore element of a gang presence in Hoffman Estates which shows the gang life in Hoffman Estates was no joke.
In the same complexes as the Gangster Disciples are rival groups like Conservative Vice Lords and Black P Stones. These other African American gangs have been in these same GD dominated complexes since gangs started in the village. It could be possible that these groups may dominate Bartlett Lakes apartments and the Moonlake area. Latin Kings struggled in Steeple Hill and legends say this group left Steeple Hill, but they may still be on these streets presently but not a large gang according to other sources. A list of other gangs may have once claimed territory in Hoffman Estates like Two Six, Latin Counts, Surenos, La Raza and Spanish Cobras but I know not much else on those groups. Latin Pachucos branched out here in the early to mid-1990s by three Arab brothers, but this branch did not last long and I do not have any more information on where in town they were posted.
In the early 1990s Hoffman Estates put in cameras in Barrington Square because of the high crime and dangerous gang activities. These cameras would come and go since the early 90s. Graffiti and fights were not the only issue in Barrington Square, so was drug trafficking and shootings. Even in recent years you can still come across an article almost annually about a shooting in Hoffman Estates and many times it is in Barrington Square. Barrington Square has struggled with crime and gang activity that goes through many spiking periods in the 1990s, 2000s, 2010s and in the 2020s. I would not say Barrington Square or the other lower income developments are highly dangerous to live in, but these areas need to be approached with caution.
Gangster Disciples of Hoffman Estates had been known for engaging in violence with gangs from neighboring communities, especially Hanover Park, Streamwood and Elgin gangs. Hoffman Estates GDs tend to travel into other communities since their inception in the late 80s brawling in local festivals and visiting rival gang hoods and shooting at them. As a result of Gangster Disciple aggression, rival gangs from other towns tend to hit them back on Hoffman Estates soil.
Other than the complexes between Golf Road and I-90, Hoffman Estates is one of the safer towns in Chicago area and is a highly recommended community to live in. I am not saying Barrington Square and these other complexes are no good, I am just saying if you are thinking about living in those complexes or visiting them, just do so with caution and understand there are gangs there and always will be and to use good judgement. It is also best to watch over your personal property and pay attention to who your children associate with after moving into these complexes. These parts of Hoffman Estates are livable but only if you absolutely must live there and have no other choices.
I will post more info on the gangs when I can, for now there isn’t that much out there to find.