A grid that runs three blocks ahead
South Holland has its own street numbering quirk: its numbered streets run three blocks ahead of Chicago’s. The road Chicago calls 159th Street is 162nd Street here. Online maps usually sort it out, but when you tell us the cross street, use the South Holland name.
The village covers about 7.25 square miles with 21,465 residents (2020 Census), all in ZIP code 60473. Dolton is north, Harvey and Phoenix are west, East Hazel Crest is southwest, Thornton is south, and Calumet City and Lansing are east. Dutch settlers founded it in 1846 on low ground by the Calumet River, and by the 1940s it was known as the “Onion Set Capital of the World.”
From 13720 S Lowe Ave our truck takes 138th Street to Indiana Avenue, then State Street south and 162nd Street (US-6) across: about 5.1 road miles, eleven minutes in light traffic. The Bishop Ford Freeway’s exit 73, at US-6 and 159th Street, is inside the village, and South Suburban College’s main campus makes a handy landmark.
Almost every home has a driveway
South Holland is one of the most single-family places we serve. About 95 percent of homes are single-family detached houses and about 83 percent are owner-occupied, by the Census Bureau’s 2020-2024 estimates. Nearly every pickup is from a driveway, an attached garage or the street in front of a house.
That makes the village’s lot rules the ones to know:
- Driveways only. On residential lots, parking is allowed only on designated driveways and parking areas, never on lawns, landscaping or porches. Violators may be impounded.
- Big vehicles. Oversize vehicles, boats and trailers can’t be stored in front of the house’s living area. An old box truck or long van counts.
- Plates and sticker. No standing or parking on a public street without a current license plate and, if registered in the village, a current village sticker. A car you’ve already taken the plates off shouldn’t be left at the curb.
- Alleys. Where there is one, an alley parker must leave 10 feet clear and not block a driveway.
No inoperable cars, anywhere
South Holland’s code goes further than most. A vehicle that can’t run under its own power for 7 days or more is inoperable, and one that’s in disrepair, or unmoved for 7 days and apparently deserted, is abandoned. No inoperable vehicle may be parked, stored or left on any public or private property; it’s declared a public nuisance. The exceptions are a car inside a building, a business operating in the right zone, an antique vehicle 25 or more years old, and public storage. The police chief can order removal after a 7-day wait with notice and a hearing, or tow at once if the car is a traffic hazard.
In other words, a dead car in a South Holland driveway becomes a code problem after about a week. We compare the village’s rule with its neighbours’ in inoperable car notices in the south suburbs.
Snow, flooding and the village sticker
When snow on the street passes 2 inches, only short loading stops are allowed on any street, from the start of the snowfall until 8 hours after it stops and through snow removal.
Flooding is a real issue in parts of the village. The county hazard plan notes overbank flooding along the Little Calumet River and Thorn Creek, record flooding in 2008, and specific trouble spots including the 162nd Street and Wausau underpass, 157th Street and Woodlawn West, 170th and Cottage Grove, and 173rd and Dodson. A car that took on water is still a car we’ll buy; flood-damaged and stripped vehicles fall under scrap car removal.
The village vehicle license costs $40 for a passenger vehicle, expires June 30 and goes on sale May 1, with late charges after July. If the car is leaving before then, skip the renewal.
Paid while the truck is there
We take non-running cars, wrecks, flood cars, pickups, vans and SUVs. The tow is free. The driver checks the car, you sign the paperwork, and you’re paid by cash, Zelle or Cash App before the truck pulls away. No title? Tell us what papers you have; Illinois rules decide which work for a scrap sale, and we’ll confirm on the call.
Next to South Holland
Phoenix borders the west side and Dolton is directly north. See every area on the towns page.