
Evanston candidates push back against proposal for increased density, Envision Evanston
Candidates for Evanston mayor and City Council debated what the next four years, and the next 20 years, should look like in the city at a forum hosted at the former site of Second Church of Christ on Feb. 9.
The city's proposal for a new zoning ordinance, called Envision Evanston, quickly emerged as a lightning-rod topic for the candidates. The zoning proposal would permit increased density in the city, even outside the downtown, according to previous reporting.
At the forum, most candidates balked at a proposal to allow four-unit buildings to be built on lots currently designated for single-family homes. That provision is outlined in Envision Evanston 2045, for which the timeline for implementation has recently been dramatically extended.
In the April 1 election, all but one of the seats on the City Council is being contested, and challenger Jeff Boarini is taking on incumbent Mayor Daniel Biss for the mayoral seat.
The Envision Evanston proposal has turned into a political talking point for many of the candidates vying for a seat on the City Council, as some residents have protested its proposals to increase housing density. At the forum, 8th Ward City Councilmember Devon Reid was the sole candidate to publicly advocate for more housing to be built in that ward.
During the portion of the forum dedicated to mayoral candidates, Boarini threw political punches at Biss's record in his opening remarks.
'I'm running because Evanston deserves a mayor who focuses solely on Evanston and is not focused on his next political job,' Boarini said, perhaps poking at Biss's previous roles as a state senator and representative, as well his bid for governor in 2018.
Boarini also referenced the emergency evacuation of elderly Black residents from an apartment complex that left 24 without a permanent home after the city's inspectors deemed the property unsafe to live in. 'How do you justify your silence on that, and what can Black residents and other residents believe in your leadership to protect them from displacement?' Boarini asked.
Biss said, 'Those buildings were not unsafe because of anything the city did, but they were, unfortunately, so unsafe the city had to take action to keep the residents safe.'
'This is an unimaginable situation that the residents are being put through, and so we have a responsibility to do what we can to help them,' Biss added. 'We've provided a lot of support, rental assistance for two years for most residents, moving costs, storage costs, working with Connections for the Homeless and other entities across the community to help the residents being displaced find other housing, most of them in Evanston. And so this situation was created by a third party that's not part of the city.'
For his question, Biss took a lighter note.
'What's your favorite thing to do in Evanston on a Sunday afternoon?' Biss asked Boarini.
'It would be take a nap,' Boarini said, adding in other leisurely activities.
In regards to Envision Evanston, Boarini said the city should have taken more time than the year-long campaign for Envision Evanston so far. He also took a jab at Biss for his comments to another Evanston news publication, when he told it in December that it was 'immoral' to extend Envision Evanston's timeline.
'You have to get all the right people into the room at the beginning of any project, and that's how you achieve success, particularly the people who might object to what you're doing,' Boarini said when asked how he would implement Envision Evanston. 'Everyone who is a stakeholder must be involved, and so that's where I would have begun the process.'
Biss said his comments to the other publication were 'stupid' and they 'generated a headline that left an impression that I really regret.'
Biss fleshed out his comments at the forum:
'It's a mistake to go too fast because we need to get it right, because it's complicated, because there's a lot of different neighborhoods in Northwestern (sic), I mean Evanston, including some near Northwestern, where there's certain considerations, and others where there aren't. And each of those neighborhoods needs to have a different set of eyes on this,' Biss said.
'At the same time, it's a mistake to go too slow… what we're trying to achieve here is important,' Biss continued. 'I want an Evanston where District 65 teachers can afford to live, where our police officers, our civil servants, our nurses who work in the hospital, can afford to live. And that requires dealing with our affordability crisis across all income levels, and it requires a diversity of types of housing stock.'
The comprehensive plan also has language in it to help the city achieve its climate goals, revitalize downtown and to freeze or lower property taxes, Biss said.
City Council seats
Candidates for City Council seats, with the exception of 9th Ward City Councilmember Juan Geracaris, who is in the only uncontested race, also took questions on Envision Evanston.
In the 1st Ward, City Councilmember Clare Kelly is running for re-election against Stephen Hackney. Kelly has previously spoken against Envision Evanston's process as being 'rushed and reckless.'
In the 2nd Ward, incumbent City Councilmember Krissie Harris is facing off against Jacqueline Mendoza and Darlene Cannon.
In the 3rd Ward, current City Councilmember Melissa Wynne is not running for re-election. Three candidates, Gennifer Geer, John Kennedy and Shawn Iles are competing for that seat. Iles did not attend the forum.
In the 4th ward, incumbent City Councilmember Jonathan Nieuwsma is running unopposed on the ballot, but resident Margaret Welch is running a write-in campaign.
'We need to try something different downtown,' Welch said of booming developments which could greatly increase density to Evanston. 'I moved to Evanston because I wanted to live in a suburb.'
'It's not a dog whistle to say you want to live in a suburb,' Welch continued. 'I happen to know a Black woman who told me once that (they) grew up here and said, 'We don't go south (of) Howard (Street).' It's a little less dense, it's a little less noisy, it's a little more safe.'
Nieuwsma said downtown Evanston is heading in the right direction, and cited vacancy numbers from before and after the pandemic. 'I think encouraging residential development downtown is one very important thing we can do to bring back some vitality to our downtown,' he said.
In the 5th ward, candidates Carlis Sutton and incumbent Bobby Burns spoke about the incoming Foster School, affordable housing, and the emergency removal of residents from an apartment complex at 2018 Wesley Avenue.
In the 6th Ward, candidate Candance Chow is challenging incumbent City Councilmember Tom Suffredin. The two did not speak to each other in a single session as the other candidates had, however, because of scheduling conflicts.
Unlike much of Evanston, the sixth ward does not have a Metra or CTA Purple Line 'L' train station stop. Suffredin said that should be taken into consideration when the city considers developments involving parking lots, as much of the ward's residents drive.
'It's critical that the needs of areas of Evanston like Northwest Evanston are considered because it's unrealistic for people up here to be dependent on transit and be able to do all the things that people do in their cars,' Suffredin said.
In the 7th Ward, City Councilmember Eleanor Revelle is not seeking re-election. Parielle Davis and Kerry Alexander Mundy Williams are running against each other for the seat.
Mundy Williams said single-family homeowners felt blindsided by Envision Evanston and its zoning proposal.
'I think there are places where we can add density, but they need to be looked at very seriously. And I think that the single family homeowners who chose that lifestyle and pay property taxes and worked hard to buy their homes deserve to be heard when they say that they don't want something else happening in their neighborhood,' Mundy Williams said.
For a potential removal of single family zoning, Davis said the city should adopt that policy with the particular needs that Evanston has.
'(Zoning) decisions impact what we have the property taxes to do with regards to affordable housing, but also what we can do with regards to transportation and making public transit more accessible,' Davis said.
In the 8th Ward, City Councilmember Devon Reid is running against the former chair of the city's Land Use Commission, Matt Rodgers. Rodgers did not attend the forum.
'Unlike my colleagues on the north end of town, they (business owners) are actually calling for more density,' Reid said.
'They want to see more housing units along Howard Street, because they know that the more people that live on Howard Street, and the more that we can diversify the income demographics of our area, the more that their businesses will be supported, the better that Howard Street will be, the safer Howard Street will be.'
Still, Reid was skeptical as to whether an overhaul of the entire city's zoning code would be the 'panacea and the cure for all our affordable housing issues.'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Miami Herald
an hour ago
- Miami Herald
Detroiters call for Job Corps fund freeze to be lifted
DETROIT - When Michelle Alston's son asked if four of his Job Corps classmates could stay with them because they had nowhere else to go, she didn't hesitate. She learned that students had been sleeping in two cars parked outside of her Detroit home. "Just come in," she recalled telling them. "Just come in." Alston recalled the panic she felt when she learned last week that the Job Corps program was facing a funding halt ordered by the Trump administration. The mother of six sons ages 10 to 29 said it has helped one of them, Mikal Alston, 23, turn his life around. After struggling for a year to get him to enroll, she said Mikal finally joined in January, and has remained drug free. "I need Job Corps to help me with just one," she said. On Monday, Alston joined State Rep. Joe Tate, Pastor Maurice "Pastor Mo" Hardwick, Job Corps students, parents and community members to urge the Trump administration and Congress to reverse a federal funding freeze they say is impacting young people across the state. The roundtable held Monday afternoon at Lip Movement Headquarters on Livernois Avenue brought together concerned residents and advocates who warned that the freeze would deny students access to trade training, housing and support services that are essential for helping young people, particularly those from Black, brown and low-income communities, build stable futures. Tate criticized the action for "breaking families" by freezing Job Corps operations, a program that provides opportunities for young people who might otherwise fall through the cracks. He said Job Corps has helped not only Detroiters but people across the state, including his own brother, who is a program graduate. "It's something that should be unacceptable," he said. "To put a freeze like that and put all these students and families in turmoil." Job Corps, started in 1964, gives free training in trades like construction and health care to over 35,000 students a year. Late last month, the U.S. Labor Department said it would pause many Job Corps centers by June 30 due to budget shortfalls and concerns about the program's effectiveness. According to officials, 217 students were enrolled at the Detroit Job Corps Center on Woodrow Wilson Street when the freeze began. Nineteen were referred to the city for housing assistance. There were 212 students affected at the Grand Rapids center and 147 students impacted in Flint. This includes 120 living in dorms and 60 others waiting to enroll. Tate said the funds for Job Corps have already been approved by Congress, which is why the issue is currently before a district court judge in New York. "So I'm hoping the district court judge in New York may rule that they can't take away funding that's already been appropriated by Congress and signed by the president," he said. Tate said the next step is finding a way to support students who may be displaced from the program. "We know it's a couple of students right now just in the Job Corps campus here in Detroit," he said. "So how do you find ways to support them, help them to build a foundation after the rug has been pulled from under them with stopping these courses? So there's still an opportunity, there's still light at the end of the tunnel, but I think we need to raise this issue up to make sure that people are hearing this and to tell people this is unacceptable." Tiffany Davis enrolled her 16-year-old son, Carleton, in Job Corps to give him a better future. The Detroit teen began training as a cable installer last fall alongside his friend, Camarin Jenkins, 18. But late last week, both were told that federal funding for the program would be cut, leaving their futures uncertain. "I've been watching kids break down by the droves every day," Davis said. "And as a mom, it's hard to see these kids cry. Not just because they have nowhere to go, but because they've formed bonds and enjoy what they're doing. They know they're held accountable, and that their progress is up to them." Tiffany Davis said she chose Job Corps because it offered a safe environment where her son could earn a high school diploma and learn a trade. Since joining the program, she said her son has has gained confidence, built strong friendships and bonded with his teachers. "His confidence is up there," she said. "He has friends - you know. Those are really his brothers. He loves his teachers." Like Alston's experience, Davis said the disruptions have some of the youth concerned about where they will live. She said she's taken in her son's friend Camarin Jenkins into her home as one of her own. Carleton Davis admitted he wasn't doing his best when he arrived at the program, but with the support of his friend Jenkins, things began to improve. He said he lost weight and that the program has helped him feel more confident about his job prospects. He said he hopes he can continue to earn his high school diploma through the program. "I felt like it was a good experience for me in a place I could be more open," he said. Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.

Elle
2 hours ago
- Elle
Doechii Addresses the Los Angeles Protests During Her BET Awards Acceptance Speech
Doechii used her platform in a major way at last night's BET Awards. After stunning on the red carpet in a Miu Miu set and cascading braids, the rapper won the first award of the evening, for Best Female Hip-Hop Artist. At the mic, she took the time to acknowledge the current protests against the ICE immigration raids in Los Angeles. She started off her speech by thanking BET and shouting out her fellow nominees, which included GloRilla, Cardi B, Doja Cat, Latto, Megan Thee Stallion, Nicki Minaj, Sexyy Red, and Rapsody, before turning the spotlight elsewhere. 'As much as I'm honored by this award,' she said, 'I do want to address what's happening right now outside of the building.' (The BET Awards took place at L.A.'s Peacock Theater). 'There are ruthless attacks that are creating fear and chaos in our communities in the name of law and order,' she continued. 'Trump is using military forces to stop a protest. And I want y'all to consider what kind of government it appears to be when every time we exercise our democratic right to protest, the military is deployed against us. What type of government is that?' She ended the speech by reflecting on using her platform. 'I feel it's my responsibility as an artist to use this moment to speak up for all oppressed people: for Black people, for Latino people, for Trans people, for the people in Gaza.' Read her full speech below:


Politico
2 hours ago
- Politico
Mayoral candidate Brad Lander burns through cash, putting him at home-stretch disadvantage
NEW YORK — Brad Lander's day job is overseeing the city's cash. As a mayoral candidate, he is burning through his own. The city comptroller had spent nearly $1 million more than any other candidate in the Democratic primary for New York City mayor, as of the latest data through May 19, yet he's still polling a distant third. And with a mandatory spending cap of roughly $8 million and just two weeks until the election, Lander finds himself at a significant disadvantage to opponents with more money for voter outreach in the final stretch of the race. The fiscal steward vying to replace Mayor Eric Adams has dropped $4.7 million on two television ads, a stable of consultants and staff salaries totaling more than $700,000, according to records from the city's Campaign Finance Board. He's left with $2.8 million, as of the latest disclosure period in May. By comparison, front-runner Andrew Cuomo had $5.7 million and second-place Zohran Mamdani, the democratic socialist lawmaker, had $4.5 million. Also in financial distress is City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, who got into the race late and has $2.3 million in the bank. The candidates' updated finances will be published Friday. Lander paid $226,500 to fundraiser Jenny Galvin, $195,650 to pollster Global Strategy Group and $161,644 to consultancy BerlinRosen. Digital marketing and fundraising firm Authentic Campaigns netted $135,451, and the campaign even paid $35,677 to a firm that helps campaigns optimize spending. The spending hasn't really helped all that much. Lander is polling significantly behind Mamdani — the state assemblymember who has captured the progressive movement Lander hoped to tap into — and Cuomo, who is benefiting from more than $10 million worth of ads coming from two super PACs and the gratis services of a prominent lobbyist quietly powering his campaign. A government reform group has requested an investigation into Cuomo's use of that firm, Tusk Strategies. 'Conventional campaign wisdom is you unload most of your spending six to eight weeks out from the primary,' said Democratic strategist Trip Yang, who is not affiliated with any of the mayoral candidates. 'Brad is doing what he needs to, but for some reason it is not really breaking through in the polls.' Lander has banked more on broadcast and digital ads than Mamdani. That strategy is reminiscent of former Mayor Bill de Blasio's 2013 campaign, which did not feature a single piece of direct mail. The city comptroller has dropped $2.5 million on TV ads via Great American Media that feature him at the controls of a frontloader crushing Teslas in a junkyard and riding Coney Island's famed Cyclone while calmly taking notes on a legal pad. 'We will be up on broadcast, streaming, and digital every day through June 24th thanks to the grassroots support for our campaign from every corner of this city and a hunger from New Yorkers to end the Adams-Cuomo nightmare of corruption,' said Alison Hirsh, Lander's campaign manager, in a statement. A Lander spokesperson argued he has less cash than other top contenders because he started running earlier. Lander began raising money in February 2022, one month into his and Eric Adams' tenures, when each was presumably planning to run for reelection. As the mayor's political standing faltered, the comptroller started to see an opening to challenge the brash, Trump-aligned Democrat. By the time Lander announced his candidacy for mayor last summer, he had already spent a half-million dollars, public records show. In the ensuing three months before Mamdani announced his candidacy in October, the comptroller dropped another $200,000. Taken together, that accounts for the bulk of the discrepancy between Lander and Mamdani, the next-biggest spender in the race. As of last month, Mamdani had dropped $3.9 million, leaving him with $4.5 million in his war chest. Once he maxed out on fundraising, he cut a video suggesting his prospective donors give to Adrienne Adams, instead — a nod to the city's ranked-choice voting system that encourages partnerships to damage the front-runner. The democratic socialist Mamdani is employing a different strategy than the city comptroller, evidenced by a substantial investment in mailers as he inches closer to Cuomo in the polls. Mamdani's campaign paid direct mail firms Moxie Media and Century Direct Solutions — along with a printing company and a sticker firm — more than $400,000. A spokesperson said the campaign wanted to balance the success Mamdani has had producing viral social media videos with an effort to reach more analog voters. (The average age of the city's most active voters suggests they are not on TikTok.) In the home stretch with a significant polling advantage, Mamdani had $1.8 million more to spend than Lander. The comptroller announced May 20 that he had maxed out on fundraising, but some of that cash won't come through until June 20, the next public matching funds payout. Both are chasing Cuomo, who does not have money troubles, despite his disastrous turn before campaign finance regulators. After initially denying him matching funds based on systemic paperwork errors, the Campaign Finance Board fined the former governor $756,994 for improper coordination with a super PAC supporting him called Fix the City. The outfit has raised $10 million and spent around $8 million boosting Cuomo with television ads. A separate super PAC affiliated with the New York Apartment Association pledged to drop $2.5 million supporting the governor. Cuomo has spent $1.9 million and has $5.7 million left in the bank. Adrienne Adams was worse off than the city comptroller as of last month's filing. She entered the race late and has been scrambling for cash since. The board awarded her $2 million in matching funds last month, which led her to announce a broadcast ad shortly afterward. Even without sufficient money, she has been polling near Lander on the strength of endorsements from municipal labor union DC 37 and state Attorney General Letitia James. On Thursday, U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez endorsed Adrienne Adams as her second choice behind Mamdani, making the impact of her remaining cash reserves harder to predict.