Everything Evanston: Council unanimously votes to expand Wesley tenant aid, Guaranteed Income Program

Claire Coffey, Assistant Audio Editor

April 29, 2026

The Daily Northwestern · Everything Evanston: Council unanimously votes to expand Wesley tenant aid, Guaranteed Income Program

CLAIRE COFFEY: City Council unanimously voted to provide additional financial support for displaced Wesley Avenue tenants and expand its Guaranteed Income Program Monday evening.

WILLIAM CARTER: You want to give them another year, again? That is a Band-Aid on a bullet hole. If you think about it, you shot the gun.

CLAIRE COFFEY: That was former Wesley tenant William Carter. He urged councilmembers to provide greater support to former tenants at 2014, 2018 and 2024 Wesley Ave. during public comment. In February 2024, the city ordered 32 tenants, including Carter, to evacuate their properties following a declaration of unsafe living conditions in the deteriorating buildings.

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CLAIRE COFFEY: From The Daily Northwestern, I’m Claire Coffey. This is a City Council Rapid Recap for Everything Evanston, a podcast covering all things Evanston.

The city initially promised a year of rent support for the evacuated tenants on Wesley Avenue, and then provided another year of aid to households that did not exceed 80% of the area median income, according to Evanston Director of Community Development Sarah Flax.

On Monday, Council approved the allocation of no more than $63,229.50 in additional funds to continue supporting the Wesley tenants.

The six households set to receive the funds are “not stably housed or are perceived to be at risk of losing their housing without additional support,” according to a city memorandum.

Noting how one household is facing eviction after receiving a six-month extension, Ald. Krissie Harris (2nd) questioned how the additional aid will result in long-term change.

She repeatedly proposed the addition of a financial literacy program for Wesley tenants.

KRISSIE HARRIS: Financial literacy, I’m gonna keep talking about this, because we’re giving money, and we should. But at the same time, we shouldn’t without some parameters to make sure — what do they say? If you feed somebody fish, they’re gonna be, they’re good. If you teach them how to fish, they can do it. So we have to teach people.

CLAIRE COFFEY: In response, Ald. Matt Rodgers (8th) said the city is “equally responsible” for the tenants’ relocation, adding that he doesn’t think financial literacy is the cause.

MATT RODGERS: We have put them in a situation, it’s our responsibility to take care of them for at least one more year and do what we can to move them into permanent housing.

CLAIRE COFFEY: Ald. Bobby Burns (5th) also noted the majority of tenants were successful in finding housing.

BOBBY BURNS: Out of the 18 or so households that we started off with, if they are not on this list, they are in housing they can afford. They are stably housed, and I don’t want that to get overlooked.

CLAIRE COFFEY: Council also unanimously voted to expand the second round of the city’s Guaranteed Income Program. Eligibility now includes all city residents ages 55 and older or families with children in second grade or younger.

The $500 monthly funds were initially allocated exclusively for 150 young families within Census Tract 8092 in the 5th and 2nd Wards.

However, after only 99 families applied, Council sought to open up the program to more residents before the funds disappeared.

JONATHAN NIEUWSMA: If we don’t spend this money…

ALISON LEIPSIGER: We lose it.

JONATHAN NIEUWSMA: In this program, we will lose it.

ALISON LEIPSIGER: Correct.

CLAIRE COFFEY: That was Ald. Jonathan Nieuwsma (4th) and Evanston Policy and Intergovernmental Affairs Manager Alison Leipsiger discussing how the program funds will expire at the end of this year.

When Harris asked where residents are spending their money, Leipsiger explained that a majority of recipients in round one used the funds to buy clothes, food and housing. However, she said that a “foundational aspect” of guaranteed income programs, but also a “promise” the city made to recipients, is that their spending will not be tracked.

ALISON LEIPSIGER: You know what’s best for your family, how you need to spend your money. The idea is to take away, sort of, the government overreach into dictating what people can spend their money on.

CLAIRE COFFEY: The new age eligibility seeks to support 55 to 64-year-olds who may lose their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program eligibility under new federal food assistance program guidelines, according to Leipsiger. The program’s designated income level is also meaningful.

ALISON LEIPSIGER: One hundred eighty-five percent of the federal poverty line, not coincidentally, is the same eligibility for Free and Reduced Lunch, which is why we picked it.

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CLAIRE COFFEY: Council also voted 8-1 to designate Willard Elementary School as a historic Evanston Landmark.

While Ald. Juan Geracaris (9th) voted in favor of the ordinance, he called for recognition and documentation of the removal of Black residents that led to the school’s construction.

JUAN GERACARIS: I would like us to think, in the future, of how we can maybe take steps to formalize our recognition of displacement and how that fits into our history for our neighborhood.

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CLAIRE COFFEY: From The Daily Northwestern, I’m Claire Coffey. Thanks for listening to another City Council Rapid Recap for Everything Evanston. For full coverage of the April 27 City Council meeting, visit The Daily Northwestern’s website. This episode was reported and produced by Claire Coffey.

The audio editor is Wallis Rogin. The multimedia managing editors are Ruby Dowling, Isabella Jacob and Matt Wasilewski. The editor-in-chief is Anavi Prakash.