By Bob Seidenberg As the city comes out of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Evanston Police Department says it expects to have a greater presence downtown, using a variety of approaches to deal with aggressive panhandling activities, said Interim Police Chief Richard Eddington said at a First Ward meeting March 24. Eddington’s remarks came as several…
Residents living around Northwestern University’s Ryan Field now have a team in place to share their questions and concerns with university officials as the school moves forward on its multiyear project to rebuild the stadium. Evanston City Council member Eleanor Revelle, in whose Seventh Ward the stadium is located, announced at the start of her…
Evanston City Council members took steps at a recent meeting to approve developers’ requests for properties that once housed businesses embedded in the city’s history. At their March 14 meeting, council members considered zoning requests for the former sites of the Varsity Theatre, at 1706-10 Sherman Ave., one of the Chicagoland’s premier movie houses when…
By Bob Seidenberg rseiden914@gmail.com Evanston City Council members now have a comprehensive plan to guide their decision-making on requests for the $43.1 million in federal American Plan Recovery Act (ARPA) money awarded to the city nearly a year ago. Council members approved the report, to be placed on file, at their March 14 meeting. Compiled…
By Bob Seidenberg With the city preparing to resume water shut-offs after a nearly two-and-a-half year break, members of a city committee are pressing officials for alternative measures to cutting off service. At the City Council’s Administration & Public Works Committee meeting March 14, members and staff agreed to hold at least one more meeting…
By Bob Seidenberg rseiden914@gmail.com The wife of the victim in a fatal fire at 1516 Brummel St., March 10, attempted to get her 87-year-old husband to leave the burning building but was unable to do so, Evanston Fire Department investigators said in an updated report today. The man was at home the entire morning while…
By Bob Seidenberg Longtime Second Ward City Council member Peter Braithwaite has taken a job as Director of Procurement, Diversity and Community Engagement at Northwestern University, marking the first time in recent city history two members of the Council are employed by the University. Braithwaite, previously in a sales job with Grainger Industrial Supply, disclosed…
By Bob Seidenberg Evanston City Council members have removed limits on service fees that third-party delivery systems were charging on delivery or take-out orders from restaurants, maintaining the measure was never meant to be permanent. Council members had in November 2020 passed a resolution that prohibited third-party delivery platforms from charging restaurants more than 15%…
By Bob Seidenberg A mixed-income housing project planned to be built on what is now a city-owned parking lot at 504-14 South Boulevard is moving forward, with the Council member who represents the Ward responding sharply to a suggestion that affected residents have been left out of the project. Evanston City Council members voted 7-1…
Interim City Manager Kelley Gandurski today announced the appointment of Audrey Thompson as the City of Evanston’s interim parks and recreation director. Thompson has served as the City’s community services manager since January 2020, where she has overseen the City’s Youth & Young Adult and Senior Services programs. Recently, Thompson has focused on programs designed…
