By Alexandra IlyashovContributing Writer

Although it was a longtime Evanston landmark, by the 1990s it looked like the Chicago-Main Newsstand might fade into history.

It closed for almost eight years but got a new lease on life in 2000, when new owners took over the business and remodeled the building.

“This newsstand draws people … all the way from Wisconsin and well out in the suburbs,” said Ben Ellis, manager of the newsstand, 860 Chicago Ave. “Not a week goes by without someone saying, ‘I grew up around here … I love this place, and I love that it’s still around.'”

In the 1940s, Chicago-Main sold newspapers and magazines, but it was known for its paperback book selection.

The newsstand was at one time the only location on the North Shore where one could purchase The New York Times, said Mike Oelrich, a longtime employee and associate manager.

The newsstand closed in September 1993 because of a rent dispute between the stand’s operator, North Shore News, and the landowner, the Chicago Transit Authority, Oelrich said.

By 1997, the building was such an eyesore that local residents and business owners approached the Evanston City Council about the city purchasing the property. The sale went through in October 1999, after the city considered turning the newsstand into a park.

Evanston sold the stand in July 2000 to Joe Angelastri, the newsstand’s current owner, who also owned City Newsstand in Chicago. The new owners realized immediately that the building would need major repairs.

“We walked in and thought, ‘Oh my God!’ I wanted to duck – it was like a cave in there,” Oelrich said. “It had interior brick walls … it felt like a dark labyrinth.”

But in June 2001, Chicago-Main reopened its doors and reestablished its place in the community. The building’s remodeling left it with an “open and modern feel, while still keeping the classic vibe intact,” Ellis said.

Besides its refreshed ambiance, customers come in for the newsstands’ variety of titles.

“I come in here about once a week,” said Jose Baze, 63. “They have the greatest selection … it’s definitely more ample than anything else in the area.”

The store orders five to 10 new publications a week and carries more than 5,000 titles in the course of a year in an attempt to maintain its unique presence in the community, Ellis said.

“You could sum it up with the people of Evanston -the people that rose up to make sure it was maintained as a newsstand,” Angelastri said. “That shows their sense of loyalty for this place.”

Alexandra Ilyashov can be reached at [email protected].