By Bob Seidenberg
Nina Wade, the co-owner of the Free Flow Kitchen restaurant, said she and her panini press have been “hand-in-hand” since the restaurant opened May 20.
She produces breakfast sandwiches with it in the morning, and then turns back, cranking out Tuscan sandwiches, to-go soups and salads for lunch.
She and co-owner Nichole Pinkard say they are limited in that regard. The two appeared before the city’s Economic Development Committee on Wednesday, requesting assistance to cover the cost of a fire suppression system that will allow the restaurant to move into full gear.
EDC members recommended in favor of the owners request for an $82,510 loan for the system.
But committee members, particularly those new on the committee, conditioned their support on EDC officials adding detailed documentation in support of the loan when the issue goes to the full council, possibly in a few weeks.
“I’ve applied for loans through the SBA, and I had to give them more than this,” said Councilmember Parielle Davis (7th Ward), a new member of the committee, who said she would like to see the project move forward. “So I’m not expecting as much, but I do expect two or three pages of context and background information.”
Money to be drawn from city’s newest TIF
Pinkard, a professor at Northwestern University in the School of Education and Social Policy and also and also new District 65 School Board member, sits on the city’s Five-Fifth’s TIF (Tax Increment Finance) Advisory Committee chaired by Councilmember Bobby Burns (5th Ward)
A TIF district is a designated where a municipality diverts future property tax revenue increases from a defined area toward public improvements or economic development projects within that district.
Established, in October 2021, this TIF — which encompasses approximately 284 parcels of land in the city’s Fifth Ward — has already amassed close to $1.3 million in incremental revenues as of March of this year.
Much of the early revenues have ome from the nine-story Trulee Evanston senior living development located at 1815 Ridge Ave.
With Burns backing, Pinkard and Wade, who are leasing the space, are seeking financial assistance totaling $82,510 to cover the cost of installing a fire suppression system and exhaust, noted Paul Zalmezak, the city’s Economic Development Manager in a memo on the issue.
“The extent of the hood and fire suppression system upgrade was not anticipated at the start of the project,” he wrote, “and therefore was not budgeted. The business owners have used up the entirety of their construction/renovation budget ($100,000) and seeking financial assistance to add the hood/black iron to expand their menu and make the business profitable.”
$59,510 forgivable loan?
The proposed improvements are TIF-eligible, he told committee members. “The state of Illinois defines the eligible expenses for TIFs and renovation of leasehold improvements is one of the eligible expenses, as is public infrastructure, land acquisition, private property acquisition.”
Burns, meanwhile, has recommended a loan with two components — a $36,883 loan and a $59,510 forgivable loan.
At the meeting, Pinkard and Wade, whose background is in management and catering, said they saw the need for a breakfast-community gathering place after moving to the community, and the Fifth Ward, in 2017.
“One of the things we discovered is there is no place to randomly meet anyone in the Fifth Ward,” Pinkard said.
With a new school on the way, and Double Clutch Brewery and Soul & Smoke new arrivals to the area, it was “like why don’t just do something that focuses on breakfast and lunch,” she said.
Simpson Street, their destination, was a like “a restaurant desert,” said Wade, with plenty of churches but bereft of restaurants.
“So to me, personally, I like to go out and eat and, you know, find new communities to go into and see what’s new,” she said.
Leasing former space of Jennifer’s Edibles
Their opportunity to reshape their new environment came when the owners of Jennifer’s Edibles, opted to go out of business, in March of last year. The two, supporters of Jennifer’s, had talked with the owner of the property, Pinkard said, and said they would be interested in the space if it ever opened up. “We took over the lease,” Pinkard said.“We knew we had to do the work.”
“So we’ve done all the plumbing, all the electrical, floors,” she told committee members.
Behind the work, there was just a “feeling that the community needs a space,” she said. “Our goal was to do this all on our own. We did not initially assume we were going to need to ask for funds.”
The exhaust system was another matter, with the new code requiring not only replacing the hood, but also extending the exhaust up the side of the building.
Burns told committee members that several meetings were held with city staff, trying to find a workaround. Because there was a life safety issue — residents live above the restaurant — that wasn’t feasible, he said.
With no solution at hand, Pinkard and Wade have had to operate the restaurant, which recently opened for breakfast and lunch, in a more limited fashion, turning to her panini press, Wade told the committee.
“We have staff of about three because of the limitation,” she said.
Speaking in support, Burns said that the assistance the city is being asked to make is an investment in this business district, in a business environment that everybody will be able enjoy.”
He used as an example the city’s investment in bringing a restaurant here, which on the surface would seem to support argue against the city’s case for assistance.
The city issued a $200,000 loan to purchase property at 2424 Dempster St. and bring Chicago’s Home of Chicken & Waffles to Evanston.
The restaurant, which opened up to much fanfare, ended up closing three years later, the city recovering 30% of its investment.
While the matter might have been handled in a better way, said Burns, “because the city’s made those investments it made it easier for somebody else to see value in the space.”
The property ended up being sold to Kabul House, then located in Skokie, and brought the popular restaurant to Evanston.
“I don’t think that transition would have happened, from one failed business to a business that we have now had close to twelve years if the city hand’s made that investment in the space,” he said. “And so we have another opportunity here to make an investment in this building and make it usable for Free Flow, to get them up and running, and to add to business district,” he said.
Some committee members have concerns
Councilmember Jonathan Nieuwsma (4th Ward) appeared ready to move ahead with the motion, recommending approval of the request, when several committee members raised concerns.
Committee member Lisa Dziekan, an economist, asked whether the agreement would include a “clawback” measure in the event the business didn’t move forward.
Davis asked for more details on how staff came up with the loan terms. “I don’t know why half a loan has to be forgivable as well,” she said.
Another new committee member, and newly-elected Councilmember Matt Rodgers (8th Ward), also suggested the need for a little more explanation “as to why you ended up here (at the EDC).
“I mean, there’s one sentence that basically says, you know, ‘this wasn’t anticipated,” he said, referring to the staff memo in support of the loan. Rodgers said he used to manage restaurants, and was surprised at the cost involved in extending the exhaust system, in a much longer run than is typical. “When I initially saw the cost, I’m like ‘whoa, that’s pretty expensive. But then when I saw and read more about it and everything , it made more sense.”