Council douses Reid’s call for fire service fee for certain non-taxpaying entities – like Northwestern

By Bob Seidenberg Evanston City Council members have applied the brakes for now on a proposal that would require large non-property-tax-paying owners – most notably Northwestern University – to pay a fire service/utility fee for the service they now receive for free. During their session on Monday, Nov. 27, council members failed to give a…

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Beekeeper’s beehives can stay but farther away from neighbor’s pool: Report

By Bob Seidenberg/rseiden914@gmail.com Northwest Evanston resident Mary Nisi need not remove her beehives, but they should be set farther back on her property – and farther away from the pool of her neighbor, who charged that the bees have dive-bombed her property, stinging guests. In a 4-0 vote Tuesday, members of Evanston’s Human Services Committee…

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Neighbors group files lawsuit, alleging ‘backroom deal’ in city‘s approval of Ryan Field rezoning

News Release Residents of Evanston and Wilmette join the Most Livable City Association in lawsuit against the City of Evanston’s commercial rezoning of Northwestern’s new football stadium. ​ Evanston, Ill. – The Most Livable City Association (MLCA), a non-profit focused on quality of life for all communities in and aroundEvanston and advocating for accountability in…

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Less-than-inflation property tax increases could work against the city: Finance chair

By Bob Seidenberg Property tax increases are never popular, but past City Council decisions to keep the taxes flat or exceptionally low, failing to keep pace with inflation, may not be in the city’s best interest in the long run. At Tuesday’s Finance and Budget Committee meeting, committee members took a deep dive into Evanston’s…

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Aetna Better Health of Illinois establishes growing partnership with Evanston’s Connections for the Homeless 

  DOWNERS GROVE, Ill., Nov. 16, 2023 —Aetna Better Health of Illinois, a CVS Health  company, announced a collaboration with Connections for the Homeless, a local provider of services for individuals and families experiencing homelessness in suburban Cook County. Aetna has donated over $60,000 to fund Connections’ eviction prevention and food security programs. Connections partners…

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Most Livable City Association: 10 questions about Northwestern’s deal with the City of Evanston

 The Most Livable City Association (MLCA), a non-profit focused on quality of life for all communities in and around Evanston and advocating for accountability in local government, today issued a list of ten urgent questions for City of Evanston officials. It called on Mayor Daniel Biss and members of the City Council to provide answers…

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Evanston City Council members may soon receive full-time help

By Bob Seidenberg Evanston City Council members are technically part-time positions under the city’s council-manager form of government, but starting next year they may have a full-time salaried administrator whose job will be to assist them. The new post did not come without opposition, however. In the City Council’s budget discussion Monday, Council Member Clare…

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As Northwestern’s $800 million stadium project moves to a final vote, residents make goal line stand to protect neighborhood’s character

By Bob Seidenberg Evanston City Council members have typically voted on the side of residents when large projects would have a discernible impact on neighborhoods, but that record is about to be seriously tested tonight. Council members were scheduled to vote Monday on Northwestern University’s request for a planned development for a new Ryan Field…

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