A battalion of concerned residents, armed with “Save Evanston” pamphlets and business cards reading “Explore the myths of public benefit,” crowded the council chambers of the Evanston Civic Center during Monday’s Planning and Development Committee meeting.
These residents, mostly members of the Evanston Coalition for Responsible Development, planned on taking a stand against a proposal to build a 49-story tower for residential and commercial use at 708 Church St.
The committee, however, postponed discussion on Klutznick-Fisher Development Company’s proposed Fountain Square tower because the Administration and Public Works Committee ran over time, causing Planning and Development to start late.
The aldermen put the issue on the agenda for their March 10 meeting, but expect to run out of time once again. Consequently, they scheduled a special meeting on the issue to take place at 6:30 p.m. March 17.
During its regular meeting, the City Council unanimously passed almost all of the items on its consent agenda with little discussion.
The only resolutions pulled off the agenda were either defeated or held in committee. They include a $300,000 grant request for three affordable housing units at 241 Callan Ave., and a possible increase in license renewal fees for taxis.
Because the council pushed back the tower discussion, the coalition did not speak during citizen comment, but their presence was felt during the meeting. They passed out pamphlets and groaned when the aldermen decided to delay the issue.
The organization runs a Web site to advocate its cause. The site’s home page lists a number of widespread “myths” such as “The project will add nearly 2.5 million in annual tax revenue for the city” and “realities” that dispel what they believe to be widespread inaccuracies.
The Plan Commission narrowly approved the tower at its Dec. 12 meeting in a 4-3 vote.
Controversy surrounding the project swelled when a closed meeting held by the council on March 27 was found to be in violation of state law. The Illinois Open Meetings Act requires local municipalities to be transparent, with several specific exceptions.
Minutes from the meeting, which the council was forced to expose, revealed that several aldermen reacted positively to the tower.
The city said the issue came up as an “incidental discussion” during the meeting.
The Administration and Public Works Committee also voted unanimously to approve a 1 percent increase in Evanston’s “prepared food and non-alcoholic beverage tax.”
The increase, which is expected to generate an annual $849,000 in additional revenue, will go into effect April 1 if the council passes the resolution.
Local restaurants have recently spoken out against the tax, claiming that the added cost might drown family-owned businesses and drive away customers.
Ald. Ann Rainey (8th)said she was more concerned with reducing the city’s property tax levy in the 2008-09 budget by adding revenue than losing customers to other communities.
All of the aldermen unanimously approved to introduce the increase during their regular meeting.
The next City Council meeting will take place at 8:30 p.m. Feb. 25 at the Evanston Civic Center, 2100 Ridge Ave.
