Most Northwestern students don’t bat an eye at the stately brick building on Ridge Avenue between Simpson and Noyes. But by the time I moved to my off-campus house directly across the street, I already knew my new neighbors well.

I’m talking about the Lorraine H. Morton Civic Center, the century-old home of Evanston’s city government. During my first two years at NU, I’d make the 15-minute trek from campus to report on City Council. That commute became way shorter when I moved off campus my junior year. 

When I joined The Daily as a freshman, I chose to cover Evanston rather than campus news, partially to avoid the awkwardness of having to constantly interview my own classmates. I got something better: local government in all its powerful, comedic and occasionally dysfunctional glory.

One of my proudest moments as a city reporter came during a hearing on Northwestern’s Ryan Field rebuild. For the majority of you that have never attended an Evanston public meeting, they can run long. Very long. NU’s plan to build a new stadium and host concerts there was so contentious that the city had to split a usually-routine Land Use Commission hearing into three segments over the course of a month. 

I posted on X that I was setting over/under for the length of the final meeting at 286.5 minutes — nearly five hours. It was 286 minutes on the dot. (DraftKings, don’t get any ideas.)

Beyond fake betting lines, covering Evanston made me actually pay more attention to the city I live in. When I get charged 10 cents for using a paper bag at Jewel-Osco, I know where my dime is going (half to the business; half to the city’s Solid Waste Fund). Every time I fill my purple water bottle, I think about the story I reported on Evanston’s water treatment process and how the city won an award for best tap water in the state.

So, like a true senior writing a graduation column, I’ll end with some unsolicited advice to current and incoming students. Keep in touch with Evanston. You don’t have to sit through hours of municipal bickering. Just pay attention to your surroundings. Strike up conversations with business owners. Venture beyond the well-worn corridor between Trader Joe’s and Tomate. Or, maybe even read The Daily’s coverage. 

There is some bad news. Future students won’t get to attend a meeting at the Lorraine H. Morton Civic Center. The city shut its doors for good this spring — perhaps fitting timing with our graduation — and moved city hall to an office space downtown. 

The good news: Evanston now has to decide the fate of the old civic center building. In classic local government fashion, there will be heated debates, marathon meetings and plenty for Daily reporters to cover.

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X: @saullpink