The next step in the rejuvenation of Evanston’s struggling Howard Street could spring from an empty parking lot.

After months of talks with the city, Evanston’s Plan Commission voted last week to move forward on plans for a 221-unit condominium project on a vacant lot on Howard. The project still needs two more votes — from the Planning and Development Committee and Evanston City Council — before workers can break ground, but developer Bill Walsh said initial talks with the city have been encouraging.

“The city has been incredibly responsive and time-sensitive,” said Walsh, chairman of Bristol Chicago Development.

Walsh said after talking with residents and Ald. Ann Rainey (8th), whose ward includes Howard, he had the sense most people in the area would like the project to get started as soon as possible.

If the project is approved by City Council, Walsh said, Bristol would begin construction by late fall, with hopes of completion in about two years. Preliminary plans for the project feature a 17-story luxury condominium with four floors reserved for parking.

The proposed development will be constructed on a vacant lot east of Chicago Avenue near the El tracks. Rainey said there hasn’t been any development on the lot for 40 years, and residential developments in the area have been absent even longer.

“This could be called the miracle of Howard Street,” Rainey said. “I couldn’t be more thrilled.”

The Howard project comes after the council approved a special redevelopment district along Howard in January, known as a tax increment financing district.

Previous Evanston TIF districts have spurred redevelopment in other areas — the Church Street Plaza project, which includes Century Theatres and Urban Outfitters, was built with TIF funds.

Though the developers must go through a separate process with the city to garner TIF money, Rainey said the Bristol project could be the first of many new plans along Howard.

“It’s definitely going to be the catalyst for other projects,” she said.

Several new developments have sprung up on the Chicago side of Howard, including Dominick’s Finer Foods, 1763 W. Howard St., and another proposed residential development. Walsh said the recent improvements, along with the building’s proximity to the El tracks, make the Howard project feasible.

“It’s the only spot in all of Chicago other than the Loop where you have three El systems merging at one point,” he said. “We believe the area is improving. You can witness all the development that’s taken place across the street.”

Chicago Ald. Joe Moore (49th), who represents the Chicago side of Howard, was also present at the meeting reinforcing the joint effort of both cities to improve the Howard area.

Evanston resident Michele Hays, who lives in the Eighth Ward, said the proposed condominium could bring new “eyes and ears” to south Evanston neighborhoods.

“If we just have people who are willing to call police for crime, it will make an enormous impact,” said Hays, who is the president of the Brummel Park Neighbors group. “It’s just a simple task of picking up the phone really.”

Hays said though she liked the design of the building, any development that could deter crime in the area is one that she welcomes.