Joyce Elias had one question for Tom Roszak to answer when he came to the April 10 meeting of the Evanston Planning and Development Committee: “Where have you been?”

Elias, of 1210 Sherman Ave., had been petitioning to stop Roszak’s company’s development at 1208 Chicago Ave. since fall, claiming vibrations caused by the construction at the site contributed to cracks in the walls of her house.

Elias worked for months with little feedback. When word came from Roszak, it was not what she wanted to hear.

In a letter to the city, Roszak said the 300 yards between the site and the houses is too far for his company’s work to cause the damage.

Elias said the distance was not too great for her to feel.

“Our house shook every day they did the demolition,” Elias said. “It would wake us up.”

Elias said she contacted Roszak and told him that the walls of her house were cracking. Later, a supportive beam split and the family had to put up a makeshift post.

“If we take that out, the floor is caving in,” Elias said.

Roszak did not return phone calls.

The city told Elias to document any damage to the house. She could not afford a seismologist, so she used the next best thing – a fishbowl. Elias videotaped the ripples along the surface of the water caused by vibration from the construction.

In the months since, Elias has talked to aldermen and fellow residents in an attempt to stop Roszak’s company from getting the permits to move the development into its next phases.

But the process has been slow.

Community activist Peggy Tarr, an unsuccessful Fourth Ward candidate in the recent aldermanic elections, became involved when she began to hear complaints at a meeting for Nichols Neighbors. She spoke at the April 10 meeting to spur Evanston to action.

Tarr said she has been disappointed by the city’s lack of responsiveness.

“Why is the city dragging its feet?” Tarr asked.

Tarr said she would like to see Roszak give residents the name of his insurance company so claims could be filed. So far, Roszak has only presented his lawyer.

Ashraf Manji, who rents out property at 1206 Sherman Ave., said he is looking to cooperate with Roszak.

Although he would like to see Roszak take responsibility for any damage he has caused, Manji said he also recognizes the good Roszak has done for the neighborhood.

Penny Miller, Manji’s wife, cited concessions made by Roszak, which include setting the building back to preserve sidewalk and changing the design on the suggestion of neighbors. Miller said the developer lost a unit in the complex in making these accommodations.

“We were ecstatic that we had a developer in Evanston that cared about the neighborhood,” Miller said.

But Manji said he was bothered by the tone of Roszak’s letter.

Roszak said that the old houses on the 1200 block of Sherman Avenue would have been more prone to damage; Miller said Roszak should have taken precaution for just this reason.

Manji and Miller said they would like to find a way to work with Roszak.

“In general, we are supportive of developers,” Manji said.

Manji also said the city shares some responsibility because they allowed the construction.