Judy Fiske has been active in Evanston for more than 20 years, but when her friends urged her to run for First Ward alderman, she was hesitant.
It wasn’t long until Fiske, a historical preservationist, changed her mind.
"As election time kept coming closer, I thought there are really some important things we need to do and who else is going to talk about the zoning ordinance?" Fiske said.
In the April 5 election, Fiske will face Cheryl Wollin in a race for the seat vacated by Ald. Arthur Newman (1st), who announced earlier this year that he will not be seeking re-election.
Fiske, who has been a real estate agent for the past two decades, has lived on the same block for 30 years. Her historical preservation efforts in Evanston began in the early 1980s, when she pushed for the rebuilding of a historic wall on Ridge Avenue and historic streetlights throughout the city. She later served as president of the Preservation League of Evanston.
Fiske now has shifted her activism efforts to historic houses. Large housing developments in the First Ward are threatening the character of the neighborhood, Fiske said. If elected, she said, she wants to review the ordinance that lets developers bypass zoning regulations by providing a public benefit.
"I don’t think Evanston can take much more of the condo development that we’ve seen at this point," Fiske said.
Fiske prides herself on applying real estate know-how and architectural awareness to the battle for preservation. This quality inspired the support of First Ward resident Mary Singh .
"One of the exciting things about her is she’s terrific at doing research," Singh said. "When she wants to know an answer, she’ll do everything she can to get an answer."
As far as town-gown relations, Fiske draws a clear line between students and Northwestern administrators. She said she is dedicated to improving students’ lives.
"The first phone call that I made after I decided to run was (Associated Student Government President) Jane Lee," Fiske said. "We’ve got a community here to share."
Fiske said she will reach out to residential government leaders in her ward, which includes the portion of campus west of Sheridan Road except for Jones Residential College and 1835 Hinman. She already has prepared a position paper for NU students that focuses on safety, shopping, services, support and communication.
This effort expands Fiske’s support base beyond preservation-concerned homeowners, said Betsy Hohman, a First Ward resident and contributor to Fiske’s campaign.
"She’ll do a good job of building bridges with some of the components of the community that feel they’re not getting heard at this point," Hohman said.
But NU’s administrators have harmed the city, Fiske said. She criticized the university’s purchase of the 1800 Sherman Ave. property. The purchase could remove the eight-story office building from the tax rolls.
"The problem is maybe legally they can do that, but that doesn’t make it right," Fiske said. "I don’t think the university understood the sadness that caused in people who want so much for relations between the university and Evanston to improve."
Part of the problem is that NU’s purchase was sudden, Fiske said. She said she hopes to establish a businesslike relationship between NU and the city, focusing on mutual respect.
Although Fiske’s husband Jonathan Fiske served as alderman between 1991 and 1993, the 2005 aldermanic race is her first foray into city politics. This is in sharp contrast to Wollin, who was Seventh Ward alderman from 1989 to 1993 and ran in the primary for mayor in 1993. But none of this worries Fiske.
"(Wollin) has a very Evanston-wide view of issues and I look at the City Council in a different way," Fiske said. "I look to represent the interests of the First Ward."
Reach Greg Hafkin at [email protected].
