For the first time in nearly 10 years, Evanston has a lobbying team in Washington after the City Council approved a contract with law firm Holland & Knight LLP at Monday night’s meeting.
The five-person team, whose contract runs through February 2012, will offer the city a voice at the federal level and push for more funding and grants, City Manager Wally Bobkiewicz said.
“What we’re trying to do in difficult budget times is figure out how can we bring additional resources to the City of Evanston that are not coming from the taxpayers of Evanston,” Bobkiewicz said. “We want to make sure that not only do we get our fair share of that but go above and beyond that.”
After the council set aside funds in the fiscal year 2010-11 budget to pay for a lobbyist, nine firms replied to the city’s request for applications. Bobkiewicz conducted the first round of interviews and narrowed the applicants down to three. Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl, Ald. Mark Tendam (6th) and Ald. Jane Grover (7th) joined him in early April to meet the final candidates in Washington.
During the interviews, Grover said she looked for connections the firms had in both Washington and Springfield, their effectiveness in lobbying for other municipalities and their understanding of Evanston.
“The people that we met that would be the Evanston team from Holland & Knight checked all of our boxes,” Grover said.
Lynn Cutler, the policy adviser heading the lobbying team, said she knows Evanston because she grew up eight blocks away from the city on Chicago’s north side. Another member of the team grew up in nearby Winnetka. Cutler, who has been working with cities for over 30 years, said they are all looking forward to the job.
“We’re very excited about working for the City of Evanston,” she said. “Great mayor, great council.”
The lobbying team will earn $65,000 for the first year of work and $95,000 for the second year, with a review of their success scheduled for early next year. The money will come from funds for economic development, affordable housing and water and sewer development.
Grover said the most important thing she wants from the lobbying team, besides finding enough money to pay for itself, is to “tell Evanston’s story” at the federal level.
“While we can be stereotyped as a North Shore suburb, we really are more like Chicago than Wilmette,” she said. “We’re more urban than suburban.”
Cook County Commissioner Larry Suffredin, who lobbied for the city until 2001, said it will be important for the team to seek out federal grants and show legislators Evanston “would be a place to spend those dollars.” He also stressed learning about Evanston.
“The key thing is for Holland & Knight to get to know the issues of the city,” Suffredin said. As for Holland & Knight’s goal for Evanston? To Cutler it’s very clear.
“To get them as much money as we can,” she said.
