Greenbelt Cultural Center

WHERE IS THIS?

1215 Green Bay Road
North Chicago,IL 60064

Hours:
By appointment only

Facility Map

Greenbelt Cultural Center

Facility Reservations

Dates are still available for 2025, and we are now booking for 2026!

This expansive 18,500-square-foot venue is the perfect setting for any occasion, offering indoor and outdoor spaces. The cultural center can be reserved for business meetings and retreats, showers, weddings, Quinceañeras, Bar and Bat Mitzvahs, family reunions and a host of other social gatherings.

Fill out an inquiry form to learn more about reservations.

To schedule an appointment for a facility tour, send us an email at [email protected] or call 847-968-3477.

Amenities

Bridal Suite/Green Room with Private Bathroom
Catering and Beverage Kitchens
Tables and Indoor/Outdoor Chairs
Custom Floorplans and On-Site Event Producer
Climate Control and Adjustable Lighting
Free Parking
Dancefloor, Stage, Bar and Podiums
Three Projectors and Three Built-In Screens
Free Wi-Fi
Built-In Sound System with Wireless Microphones
BYOB

Reserve Shelter

Gospelfest

July 27 • 3–7 pm • FREE

Feel the spirit of gospel music come alive during this inspiring annual event. Enjoy a dynamic headliner, local choirs and solo performances. Seating provided. Purchase food from a local vendor. Drop-in for a nature play activity and build a cozy animal home.

Learn More

Afrofest

August 16 • 12–8 pm • FREE

Don’t miss a high-energy festival packed with live music all day. Indulge in delicious offerings from local food vendors. Interested in becoming a festival vendor? Contact us by email at [email protected] or fill out the vendor application.

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Event Inquiry Form

Please fill out the request form below to inquire about hosting an event at the Greenbelt Cultural Center. If you are unable to fill out the form or would prefer to inquire over the phone, please contact us at 847-968-3477 or by email at [email protected].

*Required

Full Name *

Phone Number *

Email Address *

Occasion *

Description *

Event Types

Weddings & Ceremonies

Greenbelt Cultural Center is the perfect setting to host your special day! Offering unique event spaces for indoor and outdoor ceremonies, our event spaces are designed for breathtaking weddings. Private wedding suite, 300 guest capacity and floor to ceiling windows overlooking the Forest Preserve makes the venue an ideal space for one of a kind ceremonies and receptions.

Birthdays, Bar & Bat Mitzvahs and Quinceañeras

Celebrating life's special occasions are a natural fit at Greenbelt Cultural Center. Our built in sound system, adjustable lighting, video projectors and dance floor make the perfect place to party well into the night.

Meetings and Corporate Events

Greenbelt Cultural Center is an excellent venue for hosting all types of corporate events. Our versatile spaces are equipped to host seminars, conferences, board meetings, team building, product launches, company milestones and appreciation events. Providing state of the art A/V equipment, free wifi and parking allowing your guests to enjoy the events.

Galas, Fundraisers, Awards Programs and Cocktail Parties

Greenbelt Cultural Center is an excellent choice for hosting large social events. Offering tables and chairs, expansive catering kitchens and a unique BYOB policy, the venue provides a seamless design for galas and fundraisers. Inquire about unique ways we can transform your event.

Showers, Birthdays, Graduations & other Private Events

Greenbelt Cultural Center is an ideal location for hosting private and intimate events. Our banquet hall can be transformed to accommodate events from 10 to 300 people. Reach out today to our experienced onsite event producers to create a custom floor plan and suggestions for creating a memorable event.

More About This Facility

The Natural Scene

Set within the native landscape of Greenbelt Forest Preserve, this community gathering place expresses the relationship between culture and the natural world through events and nature and history education programs. The trails around the Center lead to an interpretive nature pond and link to additional preserve trails.

The building also offers exceptional indoor and outdoor spaces. Large windows offer panoramic views of the surrounding natural setting.

Programs and Events

A variety of programs and events celebrating Lake County’s rich cultural diversity and natural world are offered here year-round. Subscribe to our e-newsletter.

Be inspired by Lake County's best gospel voices at the annual Gospelfest.
Enjoy an afternoon of outdoor nature activities. Engage in fort building, insect netting, creative nature art, exploration, crafts and live animals. Fun for the whole family at Kids Nature Funfest.
Monthly community campfires in the spring and fall offer a chance to experience nature at night.
The annual Profiles In Excellence program honors black history and African-American achievements each February.

Education Programs

Fun and educational opportunities are offered in the form of classes, camps, music, plays, and performances.

School & Scout programs offer topics ranging from Illinois pioneers, to cultural experiences, to nature, and use our two large indoor classrooms and the surrounding preserve as a natural classroom.
Summer Camps are themed around fishing, art and acting.
Outdoor nature classes taught by our environmental educators. Many are free, drop-in sessions.

History

The long-held dream of a community gathering place was first given life by a voter-approved referendum.

An advisory committee of residents, government officials and local leaders oversaw the development of the Cultural Center to meet such goals as bringing people and nature together, providing a venue where everyone can enjoy and learn about the arts and the environment, and offering a place where the community and businesses can host meetings and special celebrations.

The Greenbelt Cultural Center opened in June 2000 through the support of the community and assistance from corporate partners Abbott Laboratories and Grainger. A building expansion was completed in October 2011.

Location

The Cultural Center is located within Greenbelt Forest Preserve, which provides year-round outdoor recreation. The prairies, rolling hills, oak forest, marshes and lake make the preserve perfect for evening strolls, afternoon barbecues, cross-country skiing and other activities.

Free Parking

The entrance to the Cultural Center is on the east side of Green Bay Road (Route 131), between 10th and 14th streets, south of Route 120 (Belvidere Road).

For access to trails and fishing on the east side of Greenbelt Forest Preserve, use the Dugdale Road parking lot.