Meadville Lombard is located in Hyde Park-South Kenwood, a culturally rich and ethnically diverse neighborhood seven miles south of downtown Chicago. Hyde Park and South Kenwood encompass two square miles of commercial and residential districts that extend from 47th Street on the north to 61st Street on the south and from Cottage Grove Avenue east to the shoreline of Lake Michigan.

Hyde Park is a comfortable blend of the urban and suburban. There are sections of multifamily dwellings, apartments and condominiums as well as single-family homes that meet the needs of Hyde Park's diverse population, which includes area residents and university and seminary faculty, staff, alumni and graduate and undergraduate students.

Commercial strips on 53rd, 55th, and 57th Streets offer a variety of restaurants, imports, housewares, and recreation.

Area Attractions
Hyde Park has rich variety of galleries, museums, theaters and campus events to be enjoyed. Each June, Hyde Park hosts the 57th Street Art Fair, which is the kick-off event to Chicago's Community Art Fairs. In the summer, there are a series of musical of theatrical productions presented outdoors in the University of Chicago's Hutchinson Court, as well as Sunday evening carillon concerts at Rockefeller Chapel. In late September, the 57th Street Children's Book Fair brings in children's booksellers from around Illinois, storytelling, singing, dancing, and a host of child-centered activities, as well as showcasing area schools, organizations and activities available for children.

The Museum of Science and Industry, located at 57th Street and Lake Shore Drive, is internationally famous for its hands-on, interactive exhibits, Omnimax Theater, and Herman Crown Space Center. The DuSable Museum of African-American History, 740 E. 56th Place, has exhibits of artifacts and memorabilia tracing the Black experience in the Unites States and also offers workshops, lectures, performances, tours, and films. The Morton B. Weiss Museum of Judaica in the K.A.M. Temple, at Hyde Park Boulevard and Greenwood Avenue, contains artifacts of Judaica from the seventeenth century to the present.

The Hyde Park Art Center (1701 E. 53rd Street), the David and Alfred Smart Museum of Art (5550 S. Greenwood Avenue) and the Renaissance Society (5811 S. Ellis Avenue) exhibit the work of new and established contemporary artists.

Within Hyde Park-South Kenwood are a number of Chicago's fabulous parks: Washington Park to the West, Nichols Park, Bixler Park and Playlot, Harold Washington Park & Playlot located within Central Hyde Park and Jackson Park to the East. Each offers areas to enjoy the outdoors, as well as providing safe play equipment for children. Golfers will especially appreciate Jackson Park's 18-hole course. Also located in Jackson Park is the famous Osaka Japanese Garden and nature area where bird watching tours are offered twice weekly.

Restaurants
Hyde Park has a good selection of restaurants from student-priced meals to elegant cuisine. Among the favorite dining spots are the Medici restaurant, which offers Chicago pan pizza, burgers, select coffees, and other fare; Piccolo Mondo, which serves fine Italian food and sells imported food items; the Dixie Kitchen and Bait Shop which brings Cajun-influenced Southern cooking; the Calypso Café, which brings a tropical island flare to Hyde Park; and Leona's, offering a variety of Italian and American dishes. There are also a number of Thai, Cantonese, Mexican, and Middle Eastern restaurants, offering vegetarian as well as meat dishes.

Bookstores
Some of the nation's finest bookstores are in Hyde Park. Powell's on 57th Street buys and sells used scholarly, children, and fictional books. O'Gara & Wilson, the city's oldest bookstore, specializes in fine literature, history and art, and has a fresh selection of used books for sale. Ex Libris, located on 55th Street at Kenwood Avenue, specializes in used books on theology and philosophy. The Seminary Co-op Bookstore, 58th Street and University Avenue, was founded by students and offers shareholders a 10 percent discount. It carries new academic books on virtually every topic and an extensive collection of fiction. The Co-op's 57th Street Books location (57th Street and Kimbark Avenue) offers an array of children's books, literature, and cookbooks. The University of Chicago Bookstore, operated by Barnes & Noble, houses a broad collection ranging from academic to general interest titles plus a Starbucks café and comfortable reading areas.