Just over a week after being informed that Mayor Daniel Biss planned to appoint her to the Land Use Commission, Cat Vielma has decided to pass up the opportunity.
On Saturday morning, Vielma informed Biss of her intention to withdraw from consideration for the seat, she told The Daily in an email.
“While I’m disappointed not to move forward in the appointment process, my commitment to advancing affordable housing remains clear,” Vielma said in the email. “I will continue to unapologetically advocate for inclusive, attainable homes in Evanston and beyond.”
Last week, Biss informed city staff that he planned to appoint Vielma to the commission instead of reappointing George Halik. Halik, one of the commission’s inaugural members, has pushed back on parts of Envision Evanston 2045 — the city’s comprehensive plan and zoning overhaul largely driven by Biss.
The move was met with criticism from some residents. During public comment at the April 14 City Council meeting, many community members spoke against the decision, and an online petition calling for Biss to reappoint Halik has received 550 signatures as of Sunday evening.
“This looks less like governance and more like political maneuvering,” an April 11 update to the petition description read. “Clearing out dissenting voices and replacing them with allies who will ‘deliver results’ is a dangerous tactic we’re seeing play out nationally. Evanston should not follow that playbook.”
Vielma’s past social media posts came under intense scrutiny after Biss shared his intention to appoint her to the commission.
Jenny Washburn, who wrote the petition, shared with The Daily a presentation she sent to Biss and the City Council last week. The slideshow contained examples of Vielma’s social media posts, mostly from X or Reddit.
One of the X posts included in the presentation read, “If you’d like to drill a hole in your brain, please enjoy the public comment from the City of Evanston’s land use commission meeting. It’s live right now.”
In her email to the council, Washburn asked councilmembers to consider this example and other comments “through the lens of the Evanston Code of Ethics,” claiming some of Vielma’s posts contained “inflammatory language and harassment.” In a statement to The Daily, Vielma said she “unequivocally” rejected the labels.
“These are not good faith interpretations — they are false, damaging accusations that were neither raised with me directly nor presented with context or an opportunity for response,” Vielma wrote in the statement.
City Council was set to vote on confirming Biss’ selection at their April 28 meeting. Now, it is unclear when, or by whom, the seat will be filled.
In a statement to The Daily, Biss thanked Vielma for her commitment to affordable housing.
“I support her decision to withdraw from this process and hope we can all use this situation as a reminder of the value of showing grace — to those we disagree with as well as to those who volunteer their time and talent for the betterment of our community,” Biss wrote. “I will work to fill the vacancy on the Land Use Commission promptly so it can continue its important work with a full complement of members.”
Clarification: This story has been updated to include a response from Vielma to the specific content of the email sent from Washburn to City Council.
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Related Stories:
— Land Use Commission appointment draws controversy amid Envision Evanston debates
— Land Use Commission expects to push plan recommendations to late April
— Land Use Commission questions need for Envision Evanston rezoning overhaul
