The Vineyard Christian Fellowship of Evanston plans to sell its property at 1800 Ridge Ave. less than a year after winning the right to hold religious services in the building.
The church will move to the office building it purchased last week at 2401 Brummel Place and will return the Ridge property to city tax rolls.
Vineyard purchased the Ridge building in 1997 but was prevented by city zoning ordinances from holding religious services there. Some Evanston City Council members were concerned about tax revenue the city would lose if the site were used for worship rather than the commercial use for which it was zoned, said Ald. Edmund Moran (6th).
Vineyard settled a six-year lawsuit against the city in July after a federal judge ruled the city’s zoning policy violated Vineyard’s First Amendment rights. As part of the settlement, the church received $350,000 and the right to hold services in the building.
As the settlement was being negotiated, Moran and Ald. Ann Rainey (8th) suggested Vineyard consider moving to the former Shure Inc. industrial complex, according to Bill Hanawalt, Vineyard’s executive pastor. The church has spent the last eight months negotiating for the new site, which is twice as large as their former property.
The church signed a contract with CenterPoint Properties Trust last week, paying $3.92 million to gain about 2.5 acres of the Shure site, including the Brummel building, Hanawalt said. The church will assume ownership of the building in June and relocate its administrative offices.
The Evanston Zoning Board of Appeals recommended Tuesday that the City Council approve Vineyard’s request for a special use permit for the Brummel site, said Arthur Alterson, Evanston’s zoning administrator. Vineyard needs the permit to operate a church in the industrial-zoned area.
Bristol Chicago Development, LLC, also expressed interest this fall in developing Shure’s entire nine-acre property for residential use. Alterson said the company has not yet submitted an application for a permit to develop the site as a residential area. Bristol officials could not be reached for comment.
The church would fit in well with its mixed surroundings whether the rest of the site remained an industrial area or became a residential development, Hanawalt said.
“Either of those would be complementary uses to our religious use,” Hanawalt said. The church would be busiest Sunday mornings, generating less traffic than a commercial site. It also would not interfere with industrial operations and could serve nearby communities.
The council still must approve the church’s permit, but Hanawalt said aldermen have informally supported the move.
“None of them have objected to what we’re attempting to do, to our knowledge,” he said.
Moran said he expects the council to approve Vineyard’s request — ending the church’s search for a permanent home.
Vineyard’s request could be considered by the council’s Planning and Development Committee as early as March 22, said James Wolinski, Evanston’s director of community development.
The church plans to remodel the Brummel building to include an auditorium for services. It will continue to hold Sunday services at Evanston Township High School, 1600 Dodge Ave., until the new site is ready.
