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At Public Hearing, Aldermen Quibble But Hold to Manager's Budget

An attempt to maintain for at least one additional year the job of Human Relations Director Paula Haynes and a proposal from Alderman Lionel Jean-Baptiste, 2nd Ward, to keep the job of an employee at the Robert Crown Center failed, when aldermen rejected on a 5-3 vote a proposed transfer of $500,000 in reserve funds from the water fund to the general fund that could have paid for those jobs.

Water Department Director David Stonebeck said that without the reserve funds the Citywould have to issue revenue bonds sooner than otherwise required to fund needed improvements to the City's water mains.

Alderman Edmund Moran, 6th Ward, said, "We've already been warned by some of the bond rating services that our rating is under review. If it slips, it will cost us a lot more money to carry our debt." He added that transferring one-time reserve funds into the general fund to pay for ongoing operational expenses is "like taking a credit card to pay for your groceries" and is not a proper way to approach budgeting.

The aldermen did approve a motion from Alderman Ann Rainey, 8th Ward, to add a fundraising position for the Arts Council that advocates claim will be able to raise more in corporate funding for arts programs than the cost of the job.

On other matters, however, there was little agreement.

Alderman Cheryl Wollin, 1st Ward, said, "I'm not going to start second-guessing personnel decisions" of the City Manager.

Ald. Rainey said, "If we're not allowed to challenge the City Manager's budget, then what are we doing wasting all this time in budget hearings?"

Ald. Jean-Baptiste said that, despite its austerity measures, the budget does add several new jobs the City Manager wants.

But Ald. Moran said the City has some new needs and sometimes that will lead to the creation of new positions.

Ald. Rainey said that the cuts backed by the Council majority "are all being made in areas where people of less than modest means are going to be affected."
She said cuts that would hurt residents of richer parts of town - such as the branch libraries "on the north and east side" - were eliminated from consideration by the City Manager to win aldermanic support.

Ald. Jean-Baptiste said other aldermen now were "genuflecting before the City Manager after the branch libraries had conveniently been taken off the chopping block." However, residents who use the north branch library believe both branches are still at risk and are mobilizing support to save them.

They plan to attend a City planning meeting tomorrow night to lobby for the continued service of both branches.

By State law, the Council must adopt a balanced budget by March 1.

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Yo-Yo Ma and Silk Road Come to Evanston

The workshop was part of the greater Silk Road Project, started by Mr. Ma in 1998. The project, with Mr. Ma as artistic director, tours world-wide, performing collaboratively with artists connected by culture to the ancient trade route that spread culture from Asia to Europe, the Silk Road.

"By examining the cultural mosaic of the Silk Road, we seek to illuminate the heritages of its countries and identify the voices that represent these traditions today," says Mr. Ma, in a statement on the Silk Road's website.

Members of the Silk Road Ensemble are picked for their individual skills and their modern-day cultures along the trade route. They come from Japan, the United Kingdom, Iran, Switzerland and the United States, and many specialize in foreign instruments and music forms.

To begin the program, Mr. Ma and his ensemble performed a Sufi meditation song that he said was meant to put listeners and performers into a transcendent state.
At one point in the workshop, Mr. Ma excited the audience by running among the seats while the student musicians played. The laughter and commotion forced the students to work much harder to get their music across to the audience and keep their attention than they would have in a silent music hall.

The exercise enforced one of Mr. Ma's principles, that performers should work to be better connected with audiences. "If the people aren't receiving the content of the piece, then it doesn't matter how much you know," said Mr. Ma, referring to the importance of a musician's presence over his or her technical ability.

After the audience quieted down, Mr. Ma asked the students perform the piece once more with the same emphasis. After the song Mr. Ma asked for the audience's response. "When you [the performers] brought out that energy, we felt better connected to the music," said one audience member.

In a final note to the students and audience, Mr. Ma displayed a very human side by stressing the importance of one's love for music. He told the young musicians, to their evident surprise, that he has "never been the type to just sit and practice for an hour," but rather one who does so upon inspiration from friends and other music.

To close the program, Mr. Ma invited the students onto the stage to join him and his ensemble for a collaborative performance of the Sufi meditation that began the program, as a means of sharing cultures through music, a goal of the Silk Road Project.

"As we interact with unfamiliar musical traditions, we encounter voices that are not exclusive to one community. We discover trans-national voices that belong to one world," said Mr. Ma.

Crime Workshop Looks at Quality of Life Detractors

By Mary Helt Gavin

Violent crime was down in 2006 from the prior year, Interim Police Chief Dennis Nilsson told the crowd of nearly 250 persons who braved sub-zero wind chills to attend a forum on crime at Evanston Township High School last Saturday. However, the chief continued, crimes against property and "quality of life" crimes appeared to be on the rise.

Police say quality of life crimes appear to be on the rise.

The FBI tracks or indexes certain crimes against people - murder, criminal sexual assault, robbery and aggravated assault and battery - and crimes against property - vehicle theft, theft, criminal damage to property and arson, he said. However, Mr. Nilsson said, it does not index weapons offenses, illegal drug and gun sales, gang activity and sales of alcohol to minors. "These are the ones," he said, "that erode the quality of life in a community.

"We don't have good statistics on quality-of-life crimes. ... The major concerns are in our neighborhoods. In neighborhood meetings we hear concerns about drug dealing, gangs, graffiti, shots fired, loud car radios, reckless driving, illegal parking and hanging out."

Mr. Nilsson said that in 2006 there were 8,800 verified crimes in Evanston, 2,933 of which were crime-index crimes - a reduction of 8 percent from 2005. However, he also said quality-of-life crimes and youth crimes are on the increase.

Yet, Mr. Nilsson said, 93 percent of the crimes in Evanston are property crimes. He cited an unwritten rule of policing: that 97 percent of the crimes are committed by 3 percent of the population.

Neither Mr. Nilsson nor featured speaker Father Michael Pfleger of St. Sabina's church in Chicago referred to the drive-by shooting that occurred the night before, in which a Chicago youth was killed and an Evanston youth injured. Saturday morning, police had advised the media, City staff and the aldermen about the incident, however. (See accompanying story).

"A community will have only as much crime as it tolerates." -- Father Michael Pfleger and Police Chief Dennis Nilsson

Yet both Fr. Pfleger and Mr. Nilsson said a community will have only as much crime as it tolerates.

We have to set a standard of what we will and will not tolerate. ... Once we decide that enough is enough, we have the power to turn things around," Fr. Pfleger told the audience, who interrupted his speech several times with applause.

"It's time to stop complaining and whining about how far things have done. ... We have become afraid of our own communities and surrendered them to someone else. ... It's not that evil is so powerful, it's that we have not stood up to it."

Fr. Pfleger told a story of recruiting people in his congregation to take down the license plate numbers of suspected gang members or drug dealers in his neighborhood. When he asked for volunteers, only one person, a woman in her 70s, raised her hand. The following Saturday, five persons were on hand to help, the youngest of whom was 72. He said, "One woman told me she couldn't see, because she'd forgotten her glasses, but that didn't stop her. She held her tablet up and pretended to write. She even told a young boy to move because she needed to see the whole car." Within a few weeks, the drug dealers were gone, Fr. Pfleger said.

Both Mr. Nilsson and Fr. Pfleger stressed the need for partnerships between the community and the police. Fr. Pfleger said youth who engage in antisocial activities must be offered an "alternative to the street corner."

Using a police "crime triangle" composed of victim, offender and location, Mr. Nilsson said, "If you take away the offender side, the crime is gone, but sometimes you also have to look at the location or the victim. For example, if you arrest a drug dealer, some other entrepreneur will take his place, so you have to do something about the location: Enlist people to take down license plate numbers of suspicious cars."

He said an effective partnership would include citizens, schools, parents, churches and the police - "all working for a safer Evanston."

A workshop followed the speeches, at which residents offered ways to make the community more secure and livable. Frank Kaminski, director of safety at ETHS, said a survey of ETHS students conducted by the University of Illinois at Chicago found that fewer than 20 percent of the students consider safety an issue for them, either at school or in the community. He said results of that study will be made public within the next few weeks.

New Top Cop Excited About Job, Eager to Become Evanstonian

Richard Eddington, who will become Evanston's chief of police on March 26, says he plans to spend a few weeks listening and learning about the Evanston community and the Evanston Police Department. Saturday's forum on crime in the community gave him the opportunity to do so.

He told the RoundTable that during the interview process he was apprised of some of the challenges he will face in his new position. "Aldermen were quite candid about the issues," he said, citing "the perception of the increase in crime and concerns about personal safety."

Mr. Eddington added, "What Evanston is experiencing is happening in many towns like this across the country. Many of the issues I heard about [in Evanston] are universal in the context of crime - although that may not be relevant to the victim. The larger issue is, ‘On a national level, what's driving this [crime]? Why are other cities experiencing this?'"

Mr. Eddington succeeds Dennis Nilsson, who took over as interim chief of police when Frank Kaminski, retiring last July after 32 years of service in the Evanston Police Department, took over as head of security at Evanston Township High School. Mr. Nilsson did not apply for the permanent position of chief of police.

Several veterans have retired in the past few years, leaving a somewhat younger force. "On a professional level, the department has an incredible number of officers who have only a few years of experience, whom I met [on Jan. 26]. They're very professional," Mr. Eddington said.

Without fully disclosing his philosophy of policing, Mr. Eddington said the Evanston community can expect a continuation of the police-community partnerships that were the hallmark of Mr. Kaminski's tenure. "I understand the power of the word ‘partnership.' I'd like to maintain and enhance what is already there, melding that with the things I want to do," Mr. Eddington said. Without fully disclosing his philosophy of policing, Mr. Eddington said the Evanston community can expect a continuation of the police-community partnerships that were the hallmark of Mr. Kaminski's tenure.

"I understand the power of the word ‘partnership.' I'd like to maintain and enhance what is already there, melding that with the things I want to do," Mr. Eddington said.

Until then, he said, he wants to "learn the community and learn the department, then [use that as a] springboard for what needs to be changed. It's a hands-on learning process," he said. "I don't have a template; I have to get to know the community and see then what would be most effective."

Mr. Eddington said he and his wife are looking forward to becoming members of the Evanston community. "[Evanston is] a very nice community. My wife and I were attracted to the cultural options in downtown Evanston and the University," he said.

Murder Suspect Charged

Kevin Joseph Gayne of 3453 S. Bell in Chicago has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder and three counts of attempted murder in the shooting death of 21-year-old Booker Guy of Chicago and the wounding of Jarron Jackson, 23, of Hull Terrace in Evanston.

Police said the drive-by shooting took place shortly before midnight on Feb. 2 in an alley at the rear of a residence in the 2000 block of Darrow Avenue. Mr. Guy, Mr. Jackson and two of their friends were standing in an alley, when Mr. Gayne allegedly drove up to the men and fired several shots, striking Mr. Guy and Mr. Jackson, and then drove off, according to a statement released by Deputy Chief Joseph Bellino of the Evanston Police Department.

Witnesses provided a description of Mr. Gayne's vehicle, which an Evanston police officer spotted shortly afterward on Asbury Avenue, crossing Howard Street into Chicago. Mr. Gayne was then arrested and taken into police custody. Police acknowledged the cooperation of Evanston citizens, the Chicago Police Department and the North Regional Major Crimes Task Force in the incident.

Asked whether weapons, drugs or gang involvement were involved in the shootings, Mr. Bellino said, "The motive was not patently obvious. No statement was made or determined. We believe the evidence will suffice [for a conviction]."

Residents Have Mixed Reviews for West Side Plan

By Bill Smith

Efforts to plan an orderly transition to residential and commercial uses for the fading industrial corridor along Evanston's west side came in for sharp criticism but also some praiselast week.

On Jan. 29, aldermen, meeting as the Planning and Development Committee, took their first formal look at the proposalthat was approved by the Plan Commission Jan. 10 after several months of neighborhood meetings.

Bessie Collins, 2024 Wesley Ave., and Edwina Wesson, 2018 Wesley Ave. said they had heard that the plan calls for the City to tear down the affordable rental apartments they live in.

"I'm getting ready to be a senior citizen," Ms. Wesson said, "I don't want to be left out in the cold."

Those two apartment buildings on Wesley owned by the Evanston Housing Coalition and four single family homes in the 2000 block of Green Bay Road are the only existing residential properties proposed for redevelopment in the plan which calls for creation of several hundred new housing units.

Alderman Lionel Jean-Baptiste, 2nd Ward, said the City would not tear down the properties. "We don't have the capital to tear down anything," he said.

But he added that if a developer wanted to redevelop the Mayfair Triangle, "the plan would be a guideline to help us determine whether what they plan to do is consistent with a positive vision for the community."

The plan suggests including new affordable housing units if that tract is redeveloped.

Mary McWilliams, 1606 Wesley Ave., said the plan "is sound and well thought out."

She said residents agreed that the new housing should be affordable and that redevelopment should not be an excuse for gentrification.

Developer Ron Fleckman of Cyrus Homes said that City staff has been treating the plan "not as a guideline, but more like a religion or bible." Cyrus Homes has a proposal currently under City review to redevelop the Bishop Freeman factory site on Foster Street within the planning area.

Walter Kihm, also of Cyrus Homes, said the plan does not provide enough housing diversity. "You have a wall of townhouses marching from north to south through the area," he said.

He said the City has spent six months reviewing plans for a 300-foot parcel on Central Street, the former Evanston Theater building, and "has spent very little time proportionately on thousands of feet in west Evanston."

Carlis Sutton, 1821 Darrow Ave., was one of the leaders of opposition last year to the Darrow Corners affordable housing project. He said the new plan would result in "an extreme expediting of the gentrification program and further erode what is now a diverse community."

Tina Paden, 1122 Emerson St., said she owns properties at 1507 Emerson St. and 2012 and 2018 Darrow Ave. and predicted new development would lead to increased taxes that would make it impossible for her to keep renting to low-income tenants. "They're going to take me out," she said, adding, "This needs to be denied."

Bennett Johnson, editor of the Evanston Sentinel, said the project would divide Evanston into two communities. "Now we're going to have a wall of townhouses for wealthy people, not low-income people," Mr. Johnson said.

The Planning and Development Committee will hold another meeting on the plan at 7 p.m. on Feb. 22.

The Zoning Committee of the Plan Commission is reviewing more detailed implementation rules for the plan at its Feb. 12 meeting. Copies of the plan proposals are available on the City's website, www.cityofevanston.org.

Planning Meeting Considers Central West of Hartrey

By Bill Smith

Looking west on Central Street from Hartrey Avenue one sees many three- to four-story apartment and condo buildings. Photo by Chris Cascarano

About 80 people turned out Thursday at the Civic Center for the first of a series of workshops to plan the future of the Central Street corridor.

Residents were given a visual tour of the street by planners from the Lakota Group, a consulting firm hired by the City to guide the planning process.

The slide show focused on the condition of the streetscape, noting where it is relatively attractive and where it seems to need improvement.

The residents were then shown slides of townhouse, condominium, mixed-use and retail buildings recently built in other cities and asked to rate whether they liked or disliked the individual designs. The range of residential building designs was constrained - three to five stories in height with mostly red-brick facades.

Alderman Edmund Moran, 6th Ward, said the planning process "is the culmination of a desire I've had for a long time that we can develop a vision for Central Street's future that hopefully we can all share.
Tell us what you like and what you think needs to get better," Ald. Moran said, "We've hired good people to work with us as planners."

Thursday's meeting focused on the 6th Ward portion - roughly the western half - of Central Street. Another session, at 6 p.m. tomorrow, will review the eastern, 7th Ward portion, of the street.

The consultants are scheduled to present a preliminary plan for residents to review on March 1 and incorporate feedback from that session into a revised plan to be presented at a community meeting March 29.

The Plan Commission and the City Council's Planning and Development Committee are scheduled to hold a joint meeting to review the consultants' work on April 12.