Cheaper Dog Beach design should be explored, commissioners say

One commissioner ‘horrified’ at potential ‘million-dollar ramp’ cost;

Issue returns to the Council July 8

By Bob Seidenberg

Evanston city staff, working with a consultant, have produced a “beautiful’ design to create access for wheelchair users at the city’s Dog Beach, members of the Preservation Commission told officials at a meeting Tuesday.

But the project goes well beyond what people use the Dog Beach for and comes at too high a cost, commissioners said in their discussion.

“As a taxpayer, not just [as] the commissioner,” said Amanda Ziehm, “I’m kind of horrified at, like $800,000 for construction and $100,000 on design. Taxes are expensive, and a million-dollar ramp just feels extra. And I just would really like to see projects like this bid with a budget in mind so that they can tailor the solution to the budget that we have.”

Members of the citizen commission didn’t take a vote at their nearly two-and-a-half-hour discussion. But they shared common concerns about the project as recommended, and proposed that other options be explored.

Some users urge ramp this summer

Several Dog Beach users spoke at the meeting in support of a portable and modular access ramp as a possible solution that could be in place this summer.

“We don’t want to wait months and months and months, which is going to be the case with this plan the city has,” said Mike Meyers, chair of the Evanston Dog Beach working group, which has 1,200 members on Facebook.

This discussion almost didn’t take place. Staff was moving forward, requesting City Council approval at the June 24 Administration and Public Works Committee meeting for a contract with John Keno & Company on the beach access project at a cost of $693,000.

With urging from Preservation Commissioner Carl Klein, A&PW committee members sent the issue to the commission, which under code is empowered to review and comment on city-initiated projects or activities that might affect registered or historic resources, such as the Lakeshore Historic District, where the beach is located.

But the project goes well beyond what people use the Dog Beach for and comes at too high a cost, commissioners said in their discussion.

Some users urge ramp this summer

Several Dog Beach users spoke at the meeting in support of a portable and modular access ramp as a possible solution that could be in place this summer.

Stefanie Levine, senior project manager, told commissioners at Tuesday’s hearing that the switchback design was viewed as more expensive, relying on “much more hard infrastructure because we’re dealing with a very, very narrow strip of land” as well as a 6-foot drop in elevation.

Levine said she and her team took several walk-throughs of the area, including one in May with Meyers and First Ward Council Member Clare Kelly.

The proposed boardwalk “was an attempt to further get people away from these plants [in the small natural habitat area just north] on their way to the beach and also an attempt to [make] as little impact as possible.”

At the concept level, “it’s not even a ramp,” she said of the path meandering from the Clark Street Beach restroom. “It’s actually a walking slope.”

It’s conveniently located next to the beach house, so pet owners could wash down their animals after a visit to the beach, she said.

Wednesday, Kelly confirmed joining the groups at the site to get a look at the officials’ plan. “And we all essentially said, ‘There are better, more appropriate options for users than their proposed plan,’” she recalled.

Less expensive solution?

During public comment at the meeting, though, Meyers, deemed the unofficial “mayor” of the Dog Beach site, said the city’s plan “is amazing, but it’s $800,000 [counting the extra $100,000 design fee already allocated to SmithGroup], and it goes through that great natural preserve just north of of the Dog Beach.

“It’s beautiful,” he said, referring to the preserve, “and we think it needs to stay that way,” he told commissioners.

He drew attention to an alternate plan drawn up by longtime resident John Kennedy, which he maintained would be “fast, affordable, effective,” without impacting the nature area.

In that proposal, Kennedy wrote in a memo sent to the commission in advance of the meeting, “our idea is to provide ADA access by utilizing the current Dog Beach entrance gate and installing a portable and modular ADA access ramp in the space between the existing entrance and the metal break wall.”

The ramp would accommodate a 3-foot drop in elevation, he said at the meeting.

“And once you get down to the end, you could have a nice beach mat for wheelchairs, bringing them 50 feet away from the water,” Kennedy said.

The structure is “far less expensive, costing approximately $30,000, versus the permanent structure at $800,000,” he said, and could be in place as early as this summer.

Other speakers also stressed the need for a simpler solution.

Desire for easy beach access

Priscilla Thomas, a resident of the Mather, told commissioners she goes to the beach every day with her 14-year-old Labradoodle.

“I just love it,” she said. “I come from New England, and it reminds me of the Maine coast.”

Thomas said she uses a walker because of stenosis. She said she was able to use it to get nearly to the end of the beach, resting on the rocks. But with a fence separating the beach from the habitat area, she’s no longer able to do that.

Being able to reach the end of the beach is important, she said, “because you want to stay with your dog, to be with them if they go to the bathroom or they get in a scuffle with another dog.”

Another speaker, Jeff Boarini, read into the record a letter from Jane Hampson stating concerns. Hampson wrote that she incurred a spinal cord injury in May 2020 and four years later is learning to walk again.

“For those of us who are disabled, but not in wheelchairs, our ability to remain upright for extended periods of time is usually limited,” she wrote. “If such a ramp happens, I would want it to be as short as possible so I could use my energy when I got to my destination, not in getting to my destination.”

In discussion, some commission members picked up on the public comments, but also drew from their experience reviewing historic projects in detail.

Commissioner Ziehm, leading off, said that in thinking about preservation standards for the project, “one that popped out to me was reasonable effort to adapt a site, requiring minimal alteration and just looking through a preservation lens.

“It just doesn’t feel like that is happening,” she said.

‘Beautiful design’ – for another beach, says commissioner

Commissioner Thomas Ahleman, who is an architect, suggested a third option. He said in speaking with people who have looked at the situation, he was told there isn’t a light solution to the problem without spending the $800,000.

At the same time, he said, “I’m not convinced that we need to cut through the dune either.”

He suggested not spending $100,000 on another study by SmithGroup, “but maybe looking at the problem a little different in-house.”

Charles Smith, a landscape designer and another commissioner, added that this “beautiful design that was done with this gentle ramp, do that in some other beach. I’m sure South Boulevard Beach folks would like to have an ADA access like that.”

In terms of the Dog Beach, though, “I think that structure should be done within the Dog Beach in order not to have a severe impact on all these other areas.”

Several commissioners raised concerns about the project’s approval process, and the initial bypass of the commission.

“I would like to highlight for the council that the process needs to adhere to the ordinance,” Commissioner Beth Bodan, chairing the meeting, said. “It’s not an option [to skip the Preservation Commission]. It’s not a potential task to check off the list. We are tasked with providing [feedback], and again, best practice is early in design, when you can take best advantage of these different inputs.”

And Klein, whose call for a public-facing discussion led to the issue being sent to the commission, said he was also concerned that “the impacts of the historic district and the historic nature of the lakefront was not taken into consideration.”

He said the city should work to keep the scope and cost of the project down by exploring other options.

Bob Seidenberg

Covers Evanston and the North Shore

Cheaper Dog Beach design should be explored, commissioners say

One commissioner ‘horrified’ at potential ‘million-dollar ramp’ cost;

Some users urge ramp this summer

Some users urge ramp this summer

Bob

Post Comment Cancel reply

One commissioner ‘horrified’ at potential ‘million-dollar ramp’ cost;

Some users urge ramp this summer

Some users urge ramp this summer

Bob

Share this post

Recommended for You

Leaning elm to remain standing in first test of city’s private tree ordinance

Evanston resident on mission to end ‘Wild West’ bikes on sidewalks

Drastic’ zoning changes concern some residents

Council OKs $400K in ARPA funds for program to improve health outcomes

Post Comment Cancel reply