Cedar Isles-Dean
Cedar-Isles-Dean holds a long history of collective environmental action. Home to nearly 3,000 residents, the Cedar-Isles-Dean neighborhood is known for its many parks and lakes, which quilt the neighborhood with color and life, even during the coldest days of winter.
In Park Siding Park, bikers find respite in the cloaking shade of mature oak trees, and the neighborhood is dotted with many such tiny parks: patches of green space tucked between busy street corners, bringing community and fauna to the unused space between buildings. The neighborhood is surrounded by three lakes—Cedar Lake to the west, Lake of the Isles to the East, and Bde Maka Ska to the south—and Dean Parkway provides wide paved paths for pedestrians and bikers to crisscross the neighborhood, encouraging residents and visitors alike to engage more deeply with environmental action. As a neighborhood deeply grounded in—and shaped by—the natural world, it stands to reason that Cedar-Isles-Dean residents have long gathered in grassroots coalitions to protect their neighborhoods from environmental harm. The Cedar-Isles-Dean Neighborhood Association rose from these coalitions, and continues to advocate for the protection and enjoyment of the neighborhood’s natural resources: work that includes fostering a vibrant commercial district, connecting neighbors in social and cultural exchange, and elevating community voices. In Cedar-Isles-Dean, environmental protection is inextricable from the other acts of community that shape a neighborhood: yard sales, group workout classes in the parks, community drain clean-ups, tool and book swaps, potlucks and barbecues. Like the practice of environmental care, Cedar-Isles-Dean residents take neighboring to be a reciprocal and repeated action. Here, a neighborhood is not made only through geography—the boundaries of a lake can change with rain or drought; the shape of a park can shift with shade or sun—but through visitation: a community shaped by the people who show up, again and again, for each other and for themselves.
Cedar Isles-Dean is your go-to for:
Nightlife: You’ll have dozens of bars and restaurants to choose from in Uptown and Lyn-Lake.
Arts: Lyn-Lake has a thriving arts scene, with small galleries and independent theaters always showcasing new work.
Nature: Bde Maka Ska has amazing trails and clear water. Rent a boat or a bike and enjoy the outdoors!
Shopping: A mix of nationally-recognized chains and small local boutiques offer unique fashion.
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