The Evanston City Council approved the hiring of several firms to create a new development plan for the city’s downtown area during its meeting Monday night.

A team led by Chicago’s Duncan Associates will create a comprehensive document that would replace the existing development plan, approved by the city in 1989, which officials called outdated. The city has expressed that it wants to see new zoning regulations and a real estate market study incorporated into the new plan.

For weeks aldermen have debated the expenditure, which will cost more than $230,000. As of Monday, some aldermen were still unsure about a new plan’s implications.

Ald. Delores Holmes (5th) proposed a building moratorium that would last until Nov. 1 for the downtown area to ensure that any future construction would fall in line with the completed plan. Her proposal did not pass.

“I’m still very concerned about building during the planning process,” Holmes said.

Officials said they expect the new plan to be completed by October. Representatives from Duncan Associates have said they will hold open meetings for community members to provide feedback on different components of the plan.