The results for two referenda on the ballot for Tuesday’s local elections have started to come in, illustrating different levels of public support for the existing Civic Center.
The first referendum was placed on the ballot after the advocacy group Friends of the Civic Center, which opposes selling the current Civic Center, 2100 Ridge Ave. The question asks: “Shall the City of Evanston municipal government rehabilitate and continue to reside in the Civic Center located at 2100 Ridge?” With about 85 percent of precincts reporting, an overwhelming 82 percent of voters chose “Yes.”
The second referendum was added by the city council in response to Friends’ question. It lists the city’s estimate for rehabbing the building: “Shall the City of Evanston fund the rehabilitation of the Evanston Civic Center, located at 2100 Ridge Avenue, by the issuance of not less than thirty one million dollars ($31,000,000) in General Obligation bonds?” With 85 percent of precincts reporting, the results were almost even, with about 51 percent of voters selecting “No.”
As of 9 p.m. Tuesday, about 1,500 more people voted in the first referenda than the second one. Friends of the Civic Center has campaigned for voters to ignore the city’s ballot question.
Ald. Cheryl Wollin (1st) told The DAILY Tuesday night that the impact of the two referenda is limited.
“It doesn’t change the reality that we don’t have money,” she said. “It doesn’t solve the problem.”
Friends of the Civic Center’s John Kennedy had said previously that he wanted a large victory for the group’s referendum to send a message to the city council.
“I said to myself if it was 55 to 45, we wouldn’t have won,” Kennedy said late Tuesday night. “But 80-20? Let them ignore this one.”
Meanwhile, with 85 percent of precincts reporting, the leaders in the race to fill the three open spots on the Evanston/Skokie School District 65 board are Katie Bailey, Keith D. Terry and Bonnie Lockhart.
For Evanston School District 202, the three leaders are Mary Wilkerson, Omar R. Khuri, and Jane Colleton, with 85 percent reporting.
Here are the results so far, as of 8:56 p.m.:
Shall the City of Evanston municipal government rehabilitate and continue to reside in the Civic Center located at 2100 Ridge?YES 3,970 82.23% NO 858 17.77%
Shall the City of Evanston fund the rehabilitation of the Evanston Civic Center, located at 2100 Ridge Avenue, by the issuance of not less than thirty one million dollars ($31,000,000) in General Obligation bonds?YES 1,682 48.35% NO 1,797 51.65%
Evanston/Skokie School District 65:Bonnie Lockhart 3,425 24.76% Andrew Pigozzi 2,366 17.10% Katie Bailey 3,868 27.96% Keith D. Terry 3,507 25.35% Adrian A. Dortch 667 4.82%
Evanston School District 202:Boris Furman 1,893 15.21% Adrian A. Dortch 824 6.62% Jane Colleton 2,287 18.38% Omar R. Khuri 2,781 22.35% William Wideman 1,034 8.31% Mary Wilkerson 2,813 22.61% Jacob Novar 812 6.53%
