Thursday, December 12, 2024 | View in browser
4th Ward News and Announcement
Season’s greetings, Fourth Ward friends and neighbors!
As we finish up an eventful year, we have one last chance to connect in person: office hours this Saturday, December 14, from 10 a.m. to noon at the Evanston Made Holiday Pop-up Market, 924 Davis St. (formerly Affordable Portables across from Bennison’s). Please stop by for a cup of holiday cheer and some holiday snacks, no appointment is necessary! If you can’t make it on Saturday, the market will be there through December 22.
On the topic of holiday cheer, I have some very good and long anticipated news to share: Northlight Theatre announced yesterday that they’ll be breaking ground on their Church Street location next March! I’m excited about the transformative impact Northlight will have on downtown and eagerly anticipate its grand opening by the fall of 2026. Pencil it in now for September 2026: we’ll do a ward meeting in the new theater.
By that time I expect that the Envision Evanston 2045 initiative will be receding in our rearview mirror, but for the moment we still have work to do. Thank you, downtown residents, who came to the town hall meeting on this topic last week. To everyone else in the ward, I have not heard very much feedback. Please check out the draft Comprehensive Plan and draft Zoning Map and let me know what you think.
By the fall of 2026, we should also be ready to go with the Chicago Avenue multi-modal corridor project which will improve safety for all users whether they’re driving, biking, or walking. We’re still in the design phase for this project and over the next few months will be looking at how best to incorporate a separated bike lane. Here are some of the articles I’ve been reading on the topic. Feel free to email me or fill out the online form to share your thoughts and suggestions.
See below for more news and announcements:
- Downtown Bevvy Walk Tonight!
- Hanukkah Festivities
- Free parking downtown
- Holiday Light Recycling
Happy holidays!
 Downtown Evanston Ward Bevvy Walk TONIGHT!
Celebrate what we love most about the holiday season—a mug filled with warm bevvies, shopping, and showing love to our local businesses! Enjoy a self-guided stroll through Downtown Evanston on Thursday, December 12 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., stopping in local businesses for a tasty sip, while finding unique gifts for everyone on your holiday shopping list.
Warm Bevvy Walk tickets are $10/person, and $5 from every ticket sold will benefit the Rotary Club of Evanston. The Club is leading a service project in partnership with Watts of Love and the Rotary Club of Moshi, Tanzania to provide hand-held solar-powered lights to communities without electricity. This initiative will help these rural communities to break free from "energy poverty" and lead them on a path to economic development.
More info and tickets.
 Happy Hanukkah—Menorah Lighting Ceremony on December 26
The entire Evanston community is invited to join Tannenbaum Chabad House on Thursday, Dec. 26 at 5:30 p.m. to celebrate Hanukkah and ignite a public 10-foot menorah erected at Fountain Square. The celebration will feature greetings from Mayor Biss, live music, an LED robot dancer, and Hanukkah treats.
Evanston's menorah is one of more than 15,000 large public menorahs sponsored by Chabad in more than 100 countries around the world, including in front of landmarks such as the White House, the Eiffel Tower, and this year throughout Ukraine, helping children and adults of all walks of life discover and enjoy the holiday message.
 Free Parking for the Holidays!
The City has made local holiday shopping easier this year by offering a “Holiday Parking: Free for 2024” promotion. Community members and visitors to Evanston’s business districts will enjoy up to two hours of free parking daily through January 1, 2025.
This offer is valid for Park Evanston app users once per day per account/license plate. Users can simply enter the code "Holiday2024" to access two hours of free street parking, making it convenient for them to explore and support Evanston businesses during the holiday season.
More information.
 Holiday Light Recycling Program
The City's annual Holiday Light Recycling program will run through Friday, January 31, in conjunction with the Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County (SWANCC) and Elgin Recycling.
Community members are encouraged to take advantage of this free program to help reduce waste during the holiday season. All holiday string lighting is accepted. Garlands, live greens, and wreaths are not accepted.
Unwanted holiday lights can be dropped off at the following Evanston locations during their operating hours:
- Levy Senior Center, 300 Dodge Ave.
- Robert Crown Community Center, 1801 Main St.
Jonathan Nieuwsma
Councilmember, 4th Ward
jnieuwsma@cityofevanston.org
www.cityofevanston.org
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