All Stories
City to place cameras to monitor activities around Howard Street viaduct
By Bob Seidenberg Evanston City Council members on Tuesday held off approving a plan that calls for a $500,000 allocation to address some issues around an encampment that has formed near the Howard Street viaduct, with some maintaining a more…
Converting office space to residential? Evanston officials mull moving in that direction with downtown office vacancies at an all-time high
By Bob Seidenberg rseiden914@gmail.com Evanston’s downtown office space vacancy has hit its highest mark since the financial crisis of 2009/2010. The city might want to look at converting office space to residential as a strategy to fill the unused space,…
John ‘Jake’ Allen Bleveans, former council member, has died at age 85
Alderman played a leading role in adoption of city’s first Indoor Clean Air ordinance in 1988 By Bob Seidenberg John “Jake” Allen Bleveans, familiar for his natty bow tie, measured words and flippant humor, would depart at times from the…
Fire pension official criticizes city for moving money to general fund
By Bob Seidenberg Members of the city’s finance and budget committee closed an open wound when they voted to completely fund public safety pensions by 2040, the president of the city’s firefighters pension board said last week. But they are…
Council members prefer to increase revenue, but reach no consensus on how
By Bob Seidenberg With $43.1 million in federal COVID recovery funds at the start of their terms, Evanston City Council members weren’t pressed to find revenue to meet budget goals in their first three years in office. That may not…
‘A rough couple of years’ for Main Street businesses
By Bob Seidenberg Everything feels lush and green. A warm blanket of foliage surrounds you on entering Louise Rosenberg’s plant shop, the Cultivate Urban Rainforest & Gallery, at 704 Main St., snug in the Main Street business area. The business’…
Tenants in Wesley apartments forced to vacate early
By Bob Seidenberg Tenants were relocated from 2018 Wesley Ave., one of the Wesley buildings the city has determined needs major renovation work, four days earlier than the original May 13 deadline, with police and a board-up crew making a…
Video gambling proposal heading to City Council
By Bob Seidenberg A proposal that would allow local businesses to obtain video gambling terminals is heading to the full City Council with some members of the city’s Human Services committee arguing in support of the ordinance’s benefit to local…
Public works employees call on city to honor contract rights, address staffing levels
By Bob Seidenberg Members of the union that represents Evanston’s public works employees are expected to meet with city officials next week to discuss their concerns about potential violations of contract rights, and that low staffing levels have led to…