In a charged atmosphere tinged with feelings of division, determination — and sometimes downright hostility — the Evanston Preservation Commission finally recommended Wednesday night that the city throw its support behind the proposed Oakton Historic District.
The recommendation is a small but significant victory for the district’s supporters, who submitted an application to the National Register of Historic Places this past summer. They said the area, located in south Evanston, is a rare collection of different architectural revival styles popular in the 1920s and 1930s.
“I’m very pleased,” said Evanston resident Jack Weiss, who co-sponsored the nomination. “(The commission) gave it very thorough deliberations. They considered every angle of it and were very fair for both sides.”
The recommendation will be forwarded to Evanston City Council, which will issue the city’s final comment. The Illinois Historic Preservation Agency — set to make a final determination on the district next month — gave the city an opportunity to comment on the proposal by Dec. 8.
Evanston resident Diane R. Johnson said she was upset that a neighborhood vote on the issue won’t happen. In the end, Johnson said, there is a “basic philosophical difference” between supporters and opponents of the district.
“There are some people who are so enthusiastic about their houses that they can’t seem to understand that some of their neighbors might value their self-determination over a designation that’s presumed to be prestigious,” she said.
Commissioners agreed the area met many criteria for the designation, including representing general historic trends. They said the area was an example of suburban growth in the first half of the 20th century as a result of expanded public transportation. Evanston also was the first community in the state with a zoning ordinance, and the neighborhood’s stratification between single-family homes and two-flats is apparent.
Some residents opposing the district pointed out that the area is a hodgepodge of different architectural styles. But commissioners said the lack of one dominating architectural style is representative of building strategies of the period.
“There was a point made that architects during that time took little pieces (of different styles),” said commissioner Susan Rundle. “It’s part of the character of the neighborhood.”
Although Rundle said the commission was looking at the nomination from architectural and historical aspects, some residents challenged the commission to think differently.
“Do you want to preserve some buildings or the rights and reflection of the diverse people in Evanston?” Evanston resident Sandra Nagel told the commission Wednesday. “What is more important — the structures or the people?”
Reach Mike Cherney at [email protected].
