Friday, March 1, 2024 | View in browser
Ward 4 Meeting & News
Dear friends and neighbors,
It’s been an eventful few weeks in the City of Evanston and there’s quite a bit to cover in this newsletter.
I want to start by addressing the disruption of two recent City Council meetings by an organized anti-Semitic hate group which had several individuals make vile and offensive remarks during the public comment period.
I want to be very clear: hate has no home in Evanston. There is no place for this type of behavior in our town, or anywhere in our country for that matter. I joined the Mayor, the rest of my colleagues on the Council, the City Clerk and the City Manager in expressing our solidarity with Evanston’s Jewish residents in a joint letter earlier this week. I’ve included the complete text of the letter below.
While we do not believe these bad actors were Evanstonians, we’ll be doing whatever we can to prevent the abuse of public comment moving forward.
Turning to more positive news, we’re going to have a special ward meeting next week to do some deep reflection on Evanston’s future. Who do we want to be in the next five/ten/twenty years? How are we going to get there? How are we going to grow? We’ll be pondering these questions and more as part of Envision Evanston 2045, a year-long community driven process to develop a new comprehensive plan (last updated in 2000) and revise our zoning code (last updated in 1993.) Isn’t it about time? Please see below for more info, and join me at the ward meeting on Tuesday, March 5, at 7 p.m., at the Robert Crown Community Center.
Moving on, two quick reminders:
- Street cleaning begins today (Friday, March 1). View the 2024 street cleaning schedule and sign up for courtesy email or text notifications.
- The Dog Beach re-opens today! Open daily from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., beginning March 1. A valid dog beach pass is required for entry. Pick up your pass in person on weekdays at city community centers.
And see below for news and updates:
In closing, please believe that you are a valued member of our community regardless of your race, religion, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, or anything else. And please let us continue to treat our neighbors with respect, inclusivity, and love.
Yours truly,
Jonathan
4th Ward Meeting
Tuesday, March 5, 7 p.m. at the Robert Crown Community Center
Topics: Envision Evanston 2045, Affordable Housing
Office Hours
Saturday, March 9, 10 a.m. to noon, Berry Pike Café, 1100 Davis St.
 Envision Evanston 2045 wants to hear from you!
As the next step in our Envision Evanston 2045 process, we want to hear from you about your lived experience. What are your current priorities and experiences? You may be surprised how many aspects of our lives are connected to zoning and land development. Share your thoughts with us to help develop a shared vision for Evanston’s future.
Learn more at EnvisionEvanston2045.com.
 Enjoy Evanston: Your Go-To Guide for Business District Events & Information
The City has launched Enjoy Evanston, a centralized website and social media accounts to highlight all nine of our unique business districts. These platforms will serve as your go-to source for everything happening throughout the city – from events and local business news to dining and shopping recommendations.
Check it out! Visit www.enjoyevanston.com, follow along on Facebook and Instagram, and sign up to receive the Enjoy Evanston newsletter.
4th Ward Survey Update
The results are in! 290 residents responded to the recent 4th Ward survey on City Council priorities, shared their thoughts on what they like about Evanston, what we can do better, and more. I just closed the survey yesterday and haven’t completed the analysis, which I’ll share at an upcoming ward meeting. (Not March 5, though—Envision Evanston 2045 will be plenty to talk about.)
Until then, some quick takeaways from my first glance at the responses:
- Most people love living here—the walkability, the trees, the lake, and the NEIGHBORS!
- There’s a lot of concern about empty storefronts, which we’d like to fill up with independent retail (shoes came up several times) and cool restaurants rather than chain stores, fast food franchises, or medical/spa offices.
- A lot of folks don’t like to pay for parking.
- Pedestrian safety and traffic control are common concerns.
- Not as many complaints about property taxes as I would have thought.
- Online or hybrid ward meetings would be appreciated. (I’ll see what I can do starting in April.)
- More women than men responded, and the average age was older than me.
- Based on census data, white residents were over-represented in the responses.
 Evanston Scholars is now accepting applications for their 16th cohort — Class of 2026
Evanston Scholars is a non-profit organization that improves college access and success for a diverse group of ambitious Evanston students who are traditionally first-generation college entrants, students from low-income families, and students of color, starting with the college admissions process and continuing through college graduation and career launch.
For more information, evanstonscholars.org. Applications are due April 15!
Complete Text of City Letter in Response to Anti-Semitism
Date: February 26, 2024
Something extremely disturbing occurred at last Thursday’s City Council meeting. A national anti-Semitic hate group organized several public commenters to spout anti-Semitic conspiracy theories, racial epithets, graphic and vulgar hateful fantasies, and other offensive and dangerous rhetoric. All of us were deeply troubled and shaken by this display, which has been particularly traumatic for our Jewish community.
There is no place in Evanston for this type of behavior or hate of any kind. And while we have no reason to believe that any of the individuals who did this are Evanston residents, it’s still extremely dangerous. The inextricably linked ideologies of antisemitism and white nationalism have fueled unimaginable violence and suffering, and history tells us that when rhetoric like this becomes commonplace, action is often not far behind.
In the moment, we did what we could to limit this behavior, including muting and removing speakers who violated our ban on “threatening, personal, or abusive language” and eventually ending public comment altogether (which was allowable because of the City’s 45-minute public comment limit).
Rhetoric like this is incompatible not only with our community’s values (and basic human decency) but also with our commitment to holding inclusive Council meetings where all residents feel comfortable and safe expressing their views. Therefore, we will explore legal options to further protect the community from this type of abuse. That said, the First Amendment, as well as the Open Meetings Act, impose serious constraints on what we can do about this, and we will always maintain our commitment to follow all applicable laws.
In Evanston, we believe in robust debate. Our elected officials run for office knowing that harsh criticism comes with the territory, and we welcome sharp discussions on issues where we disagree strongly. But we also clearly understand the difference between that kind of discourse and what happened last Thursday. We ask every single member of this community to join us in standing unequivocally against hate, bigotry, and bullying so we can build a truly inclusive Evanston that values and welcomes all.
Signed,
City of Evanston Officials
Daniel Biss, Mayor
Luke Stowe, City Manager
Stephanie Mendoza, City Clerk
Clare Kelly, 1st Ward
Krissie Harris, 2nd Ward
Melissa A. Wynne, 3rd Ward
Jonathan Nieuwsma, 4th Ward
Bobby Burns, 5th Ward
Thomas M. Suffredin, 6th Ward
Eleanor Revelle, 7th Ward
Devon Reid, 8th Ward
Juan Geracaris, 9th Ward
Jonathan Nieuwsma
Councilmember, 4th Ward
jnieuwsma@cityofevanston.org
www.cityofevanston.org
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