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A brief history of an outside-the-box cycle shop: Urban, Uptown, and now Broadway Bikes

Urban Bikes founder Tim Herlihey, Uptown Bikes owner Maria Barnes, and Broadway Bikes proprietors Leah Plummer and Nina Hazelton. Photo: John Greenfield

There was a changing of the guard today in Chicago's Uptown neighborhood. The bicycle store launched as Urban Bikes, then transformed into Uptown Bikes, rebooted once again as Broadway Bikes, with longtime wrenches Leah Plummer and Nina Hazelton now the owners.

As it happened, when I stopped by the shop, 4653 N. Broadway, this afternoon, previous owners Tim Herlihey and Maria Barnes were visiting. So instead of me telling you how this unconventional cycle store reached its current incarnation, I'll let those four folks tell the story. (Disclosure: Tim and Maria, who are romantic partners, are old friends of mine from the Chicago bike scene.)

This post is sponsored by Ride Illinois.

John Greenfield: All right, so we've got all the past and present owners of this shop here, so let's do a quick rundown of some of the history. We've got Tim Herlihey here. Tim, you are a former bike messenger colleague of mine. [When you were unhoused,] you lived in the viaduct under Chicago Avenue and Halsted Street, where the new Bally's Casino is going to be. And yet somehow you were able to open the bike shop that was Urban Bikes. When and how did that happen?

Tim Herlihey: It opened as a soft start in 1993. But I started in the shelter I was living in, [St. Francis] Catholic Worker House [4652 N. Kenmore Ave.], which is a couple blocks from here. There was another person living there, a Hungarian guy who had a collection of bikes he started locking up in front. And then eventually he started working in the garage, and it became a shop for neighborhood kids.

It became real at some point. The kids started to become adults, and they needed a little more stability than what was an anarchist bicycle shop.

The new seating area at Broadway Bikes. Photo: John Greenfield

JG: Maria, when did you take things over, and what changed when you became the owner?

MB: 2004. We changed the name to Uptown Bikes. We incorporated. We became just like a regular, full-service bike shop, sold new bikes and accessories, and did a lot of service.

JG: As far as I know, you're the only woman of color to own a bike shop in Chicago in the modern era. [Maria is Filipina.] Have you heard of anyone else?

[Maria responded that other women-owned bike shops in Chicago currently include Cosmic Bikes in Jefferson Park and BFF Bikes in Bucktown.]

Why are moving on, and what's next for you?

MB: Well, it's been 20 years. My last season was my 20th. And Leah and Nina are young and I am old. [Everyone laughs.] That's basically it.

[After publication of this interview, Maria requested that we add the following statement: "Leah and Nina are young, enthusiastic, and energetic... They are incredibly sharp, and also very kind. They are eager to lead. To say that I am incredibly proud of them is an understatement."]

Accessories for sale. Photo: John Greenfield

JG: Thank you for your service. Leah and Nina, you've said you have a combined experience of 16 years working in this store. How would you describe the gender mix this shop has had for a long time?

Leah Plummer: I would say it's been women-owned and led, and most of the mechanics have not identified as men, in really the last eight years, if not longer than that, since I've been here. I started ten years ago and Nora [Gallagher] was the head mechanic, and she taught me most everything I know, and certainly made me a much more professional mechanic than I was when I began here.

JG: Do you think there are any advantages of having a shop with that demographic working here, that might make it appeal to certain people?

LP: We want to be a shop where everyone feels welcome and comfortable, and it doesn't matter how you identify gender-wise or, really, in any kind of way. It's just about if you need your bike to work, and you want to be treated with respect and fairly. We just want to service people's bikes and do an excellent job, and make sure people can use their bikes to do what they need to do with them.

The service area. Photo: John Greenfield

JG: You are the only store in town I can think of with a completely non-male staff. Are there any other things you think are going to be unique about the shop, or that you're trying to do differently than a typical bike store?

Nina Hazelton: We aren't, I think, the only shop [in Chicago] that's predominantly women-led and owned. Yeah, BFF is another. And there are also several shops around the city where the staff is not just men working there.

But I think what makes us different is that I think we are continuing the legacy of Uptown Bikes in our mission to serve the Uptown community. We are very dedicated to the people that live here and the surrounding neighborhoods. We care about people deeply, and their bikes, and making their bikes work for them. We have very "tailored" service. We want to work within people's budgets and figure out ways to make things work for them.

Diorama of the Uptown neighborhood in one of the shop's windows. Photo: John Greenfield

JG: Are there any particular kinds of bikes that you will be servicing here?

NH: All kinds of bikes. At the moment we don't service electric bikes. But we are kind of like a commuter-oriented shop, like Uptown Bikes. But, again, we will service all bikes.

JG: Is there anything else you'd like to tell me about what's planned?

LP: Nina mentioned the word "community." That's what keeps us going, being part of the Uptown community and beyond. And we're looking for ways to invite the community into this space, whether it be for classes, or events, or figuring out ways to make this shop both a bike shop and a spot for folks to be coming with or without their bikes. So we'll see how that unrolls in the future.

Check out Broadway Bikes' website: broadwaybikeschicago.com

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