A group of Evanston residents won their six-month battle against changing the look of Ridge Avenue — but the war’s not over yet.
Evanston City Council accepted the Evanston Preservation Committee’s proposal to retain historic traffic signals.
Monday night’s decision, following a recommendation by the Administration and Public Works Committee, was the culmination of more than six months of work on the project.
Last April the city bypassed the preservation commission when it began installing mast-arm traffic signals, which extend over the street without recognizing the Ridge Historic District. These would have replaced the more traditional post-top lights.
In June, Illinois Department of Transportation officials acknowledged in a letter to the city that a meeting should have been held to discuss historic preservation issues.
The report, written by city staff and Evanston residents, asks the state to transfer jurisdiction of Ridge to Evanston, but continue to fund the five-year reconstruction of the street. This would allow the city to avoid the state requirement of mast-arm lights.
The report will now be reviewed by the Federal Highway Administration, the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency and IDOT. The city will then hold a public hearing on the issue.
According to the traffic signal report, members of the commission are concerned that mast-arm signals would reduce the aesthetics of the neighborhood and commercialize Ridge’s look.
“It’s too intrusive to have these fixtures in a residential area,” said Preservation Commission chairwoman Barbara Gardner.
Ald. Steven Bernstein (4th) urged members of the committee to approve the alternative with a “unified voice” in order to maintain the “aura” of Ridge.
Bernstein said IDOT representatives have said they are not opposed to transferring jurisdiction over Ridge to the city. If the transfer does occur, Evanston would be responsible for maintaining the road after the reconstruction is finished, a situation similar to the current condition.
“For all practical purposes, the city is maintaining the roads right now,” said resident Vera Chatz. The state currently allocates $18,000 to Evanston for street maintenance.
Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill., co-sponsored the traffic signal report. Ra Joy, a spokesman from Schakowsky’s office, said the proposal is “win-win-win” for Evanston.
“We have everything to gain and nothing to lose,” he said. “We’ll be able to enhance the safety of Ridge, maintain the look of Ridge and secure funding to repave Ridge.”
