By Kirsten Salyer
Contributing Writer
The fate of the empty building at 1817 Church St., intended to be Evanston’s black history museum, is expected to be decided Monday when the City Council votes on whether to take back the property.
The Evanston Westside Citizens District Council, Inc., acquired the building from the city in May 2001, promising to open a Black American Heritage House and Technological Resource Center at the site within nine months, said Bettye Palmer, project coordinator and leader of the non-profit citizens council.
The museum was expected to serve as a community resource, especially for local children, she said.
“The ultimate goal was to get the kids involved in their community,” Palmer said. “We wanted to let the kids know that good things happen in their community, they have a rich resource in their community, and they should respect and take pride in what they have.”
The Westside Citizens District Council has applied for and received three federal Community Development Block Grants from the city to finance the reconstruction of the building, said Sarah Flax, who administers the distribution of grants. The group has allocated a total of $201,288 to the project, she said.
But according to Palmer, who originally projected the total cost for the rehabilitation at $350,000, these funds are not sufficient for the project.
Major construction has included the installation of new boilers and work on the windows. Inspection reports also drained much of the funding from the project.
“People dumped garbage in the back of the building,” Palmer said. “Inspectors came out and gave us tickets and citations every other day.”
Still, the Westside Citizens District Council has not spent all its money and has not made a request for additional funding for the 2008 funding year, Flax said.
When the city gave the group the building, it came with a quit-claim deed, which allowed the city to reclaim the property if the group failed to open the museum within the original nine-month period, or if the museum closed for more than 180 consecutive days in a 99-year period, Palmer said.
After ongoing discussion with the non-profit group, the Housing and Community Development Act Committee voted Sept. 18 to propose recovery of the building to the council.
On Oct. 8, the City Council voted to postpone action on the recovery plan for two weeks to allow the group time for last-ditch efforts to save the project, said Ald. Steven Bernstein (4th).
The two-week postponement ends Monday, when the City Council is expected to vote on the issue. Meanwhile, Palmer said, she is determined to keep the property and finish the project.
“This is war,” she said.
But Bernstein, one of the four aldermen on the Housing and Community Development Act Committee, said he believes the Westside Citizens District Council has not fulfilled its obligations.
“It is my expectation that the city will decide unanimously to take back the property because of the failure of the westside council’s ability to pull (the project) off,” Bernstein said.
According to Bernstein, if the city recovers the property, there will be opportunities for other groups to bid to take over the property and establish the black history museum.
“It is a good idea,” he said. “(There are plans to) continue to try and get a museum at that location.”
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