Eight months after Evanston authorized a 15-year lease on a temporary civic center at 909 Davis St., the city has not moved operations to the new location since March, when it was found in violation of the Illinois Open Meetings Act by the state attorney general’s office.
The violation comes after the city approved an agreement with Jones Lang LaSalle Midwest, allowing the company to represent the city in its search for the temporary location, in a closed session. On Oct. 16, 2023, a day before the agreement was approved, City Council met but did not vote on whether to approve the contract. If the Lorraine H. Morton Civic Center is sold, JLL will receive 6% of the sale price.
The Open Meetings Act stipulates that the public has “the right to attend all meetings at which any business of a public body is discussed or acted upon in any way.”
Following the violation, City Council approved the contract with JLL in an open session March 11.
The decision comes amid broader concerns about the city’s transparency after the lease was approved as a special order of business without committee discussion.
“It certainly wasn’t urgent, so there is no reason to make it a special order of business,” Ald. Clare Kelly (1st) said. “Ample deliberation and discussion should have taken place.”
Kelly added that the community was not given ample time to discuss the possibilities of either phased renovations in the existing Civic Center or a shorter lease period. She has not been updated on the plans for relocation, she said.
The Morton Civic Center, originally built in 1901 as a girls’ Catholic school, has served as the city’s headquarters since 1979. Today, the building’s HVAC system is failing and its electrical system is under capacity, and any major renovation would require the building to comply with modern building codes, according to the city’s website.
A 15-year lease gives the city adequate time to examine its options to renovate or relocate the Civic Center. A shorter lease was not available in a building that met the city’s space requirements, according to the city’s website.
City officials, meanwhile, have argued that confidentiality was necessary to negotiate the agreement’s terms. In a previous interview with The Daily, Evanston’s Capital Planning and Engineering Bureau Chief Lara Biggs said phased renovations to the Civic Center without relocating city staff would be impractical because they would increase the cost and extend the timeframe of renovations.
In an email to The Daily, Mayor Daniel Biss defended the Jan. 22 vote to authorize the lease. He said councilmembers advised him on negotiating the lease at a closed session, and the city had all the necessary information to hold the vote.
“Because of the temporary nature of this home for city operations, it made sense to make a pragmatic decision and move forward,” Biss wrote. “The decision about the permanent home for city operations will be more complex, will require many considerations to be balanced against one another, and will require significant community input.”
Deciding whether to renovate the Morton Civic Center or relocate permanently to a new facility will require more accurate estimates of the costs of upgrades and maintenance at the current location, Kelly said.
Infrastructure consulting firm AECOM estimated renovating the current Civic Center would cost taxpayers $62.7 million. The 15-year lease at 909 Davis St. will cost the City $37.4 million, or $22.8 million if the City ends the lease after seven years, according to a spreadsheet presented at a 5th Ward meeting in May by Economic Development Manager Paul Zalmezak.
In a February resolution sustaining the 15-year lease and rejecting shorter lease options, City Council called for operations to move in July. Two months later, administrative operations, including City Council meetings, are still taking place at Morton Civic Center.
In an email to The Daily, Evanston spokesperson Cynthia Vargas said the city has not finalized a date to move operations to the downtown location.
“The new layout will provide greater collaboration opportunities, enhanced security, improved technology and is closer to transit for visitors and staff,” Vargas wrote.
Brett Ratay, senior leasing director for Lincoln Property Company, which owns 909 Davis St., declined to comment on why the city’s operations have not moved.
The city will consider factors such as maximizing asset utilization, improving operational efficiency, addressing parking challenges and accommodating transit needs to decide whether to renovate the Morton Civic Center or permanently relocate to 909 Davis St., Vargas added.
Kelly said the city never should have committed residents to the cost of a 15-year lease with an $8.8 million penalty for ending the lease after seven years, calling the decision “irresponsible.”
“We need to make sure that we’re reflecting the interests and the needs of our residents,” she said.
Email: [email protected]
X: @IsaiahStei27
Related Stories:
— Downtown lease sparks concerns over cost, transparency amid discussion on Civic Center’s future
— City Council approves 15-year lease to temporarily relocate city center
