26 December 2007
Traffic Guy
The Traffic Guy Hears...
... that the City recently awarded the contract for the Ridge Avenue construction project. The cost of the project is pegged now at $7 million, with $2.2 million coming from the sewer fund, $1.3 million from the capital improvement fund and $3.6 million from IDOT.
... that plans for the West Evanston TIF (tax-increment financing) district call for the relocation of some of the "automobile uses" along Dodge Avenue to the automotive corridor (between the south edge of the Sam's Club property and North Shore Towing).
...that the City has passed a new ordinance regulating the use of fire pits. Basically, says the fire chief, the rules say use common sense and don't annoy your neighbors (by putting the fire pit so close to the lot line that the smoke and smell are bothersome). And, of course, don't destroy anything.
... that the developers of the former Central Street theaters will probably be asking for an extension for their project, which appears to be at a standstill in this frozen weather.
... that it's come to this: In that beautiful Civic Center hallway with stained-glass windows, residents now must line up behind traffic ropes and cones to pay water bills, buy car stickers, etc.
... that a new frozen yogurt place, Red Mango, is coming to Davis Street.
... that this house on Emerson is drawing a lot of attention. Check
it out in our online edition to see the wild color scheme - yellow,
green, red, and note the emphatic "Keep Out!" on the front door.
It also says "For Rent."
... that Sacred Heart Schools is restoring its 100-year-old mansion (the 6200 House), located on Sheridan Road (6200 North Sheridan Road, at Granville). Apparently they've been getting a lot of calls from folks who are afraid they're tearing it down.
... that the City has named Prairie Avenue between Grant and Colfax "Dr. Mike Martin Drive" - a well deserved honor for the beloved principal of Kingsley School, who retired last year.
From our readers:
TG: I remember long ago, when you could
drive down Lake Street in a straight line from downtown Evanston
all the way to Fowler Avenue. For quite a while now, there
have been detours caused by two construction projects on which
no apparent progress is being made, one on Lake at Wesley and
another on Lake near the high school. Will we ever see
the completion of these traffic obstacles and eyesores during
our lifetimes? -- Ken Sax
From TG: Read on:
TG: Is it possible to sue the City
of Evanston because of headaches caused by the noxious odors
emanating from the open sewer at the construction site on Lake
Street directly east of Wesley? -- Kathy Kovacic
From TG: According to the City's website, Kenny Construction Company was contracted by the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago to rehabilitate an existing 10-foot diameter sewer on Lake Street between Elmwood Avenue and the North Shore Channel. Three construction shafts are required to complete the project: the one on Lake Street, one on Florence and one on Elmwood. Kenny's project manager, Tom Gillis, can be reached with questions regarding this project at 847-674-6326, or in an emergency at 877-775-3669. The City contact for this project is David Stoneback, superintendent of water and sewer, 847-866-2942. Although the projected dates of completion, according to the website, were Sept. 21 for Grey, Oct. 22 for Florence and Nov. 19 for Elmwood, a City official said there was a problem with the sewer itself that created installation problems and is now creating contract problems: Seems the sewer wasn't/isn't perfectly round, so the new lining won't fit through it. Costs increased, and now there's a bit of a spat between Kenny and MWRD about who's going to pay the extra costs. One of them will pay the costs and Evanston residents will bear the brunt. As far as Ms. Kovacic's legal question, TG is not the one to ask about that.
TG:
New Walk Lights
I hate those damnable new walk lights
That need a push to get normal rights
And if one second late
Buttons won't activate
So crossing could lead to final rites.
-- Jay Bagby
From TG: You and a lot of others, judging from anecdotes aRound town. It seems clear the lights were designed for drivers, not for walkers.
TG: I have a question for you after seeing the mention of carbon in your story last time. My question is why does the parking ticket guy camp out on Lincoln Avenue at 8:50 a.m. waiting for the last commuters to park going to the 8:54 train into the city from Central Street? I am a carbon footprint watcher and usually ride my bike in all weather to the train. But if I do happen to drive and take the 8:54 train and park at 8:50, why do I get a parking ticket, time stamped at 8:58?
Parking is legal along Poplar at 9 a.m. How ridiculous
is it to get a ticket (illegally parked for less than 10 minutes)
while taking the train in a parking-constrained City?
Should we not promote taking the train whenever possible?
If the City needs more revenue, put in more meters or issue passes that can
be purchased to park in designated areas.
Parking along Poplar should be legal, starting at 8 a.m. We are lucky to live in a city that has such amazingly good mass transit. Why not make it easier to use? I could go on about the terrible condition of the bike racks are at Central Street and the lack of bike racks at other train and El stops. The mass transit in our City is the single biggest resource that we have to impact our carbon footprint. -- Andrew Dickerson
From TG: TG could not agree with you more wholeheartedly. If with one hand we're going to encourage people to take mass transit, we shouldn't be discouraging them with the other. Parking should be legal along Poplar starting at 8, and - while we're on the subject of the Central Street parking crunch - if NU truly wanted to be a good neighbor, they would let residents park in their lot until at least 7 p.m.
The Traffic Guy thinks...
... that the good folks at the Civic Center who would like to spend $188 million per year for the next three years to pay someone (an "outside source") to manage our parking tickets maybe ought to rethink the whole thing. The business would process the payments of parking fines, etc., and go further and longer after scofflaws to get every penny that is ours. They'll let us pay our parking tickets online, for an added convenience fee. If we don't get more than $188 million per year from parking fines and tickets, shame on us; if we get more than $188 million in parking fines a year, maybe shame on us, too. Are we ever seriously going to consider making parking free, or at least relatively free, so we don't need to spend so much money and time and squander so much good will?
...that the City could encourage recycling by putting containers
like these in the Civic Center, community centers and maybe even next
to some of the dumpsters in the downtown area. You'll note that there
are options for garbage and trash as well as recycling, giving the
thrower-away a chance to decide what it is that he or she is pitching.
.
.. that garages in the RT area are getting ever more beautiful and
classy. You have to look at this one online to appreciate it - angel-wing
pigs and all.
Happy New Year, everybody.
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RoundTable Staff
Tentative Budget Calls for 15-Percent Hike in City's Portion of Property Tax
The City Manager's tentative budget for 2008-09, presented to City Council members on Dec. 31, 2007, calls for a 15 percent property tax increase, adds new fees and increases existing fees and fines. At $213.7 million, it exceeds the present fiscal year's budget by $25 million or 13 percent.
Increases in the City's unfunded pension fund liabilities and in debt service account for the largest increases in the budget, said City Manager Julia Carroll in a letter to the Mayor and the aldermen that accompanied the budget. There was also a $2.4 million gap between revenues and expenses in the City's General Fund, the City's main operating budget.
Revenues
Revenues from both home-rule and state sales taxes are projected to be
higher in the coming year: $40,500 (.67 percent) expected from home-rule
sale taxes and $100,000 (1.1 percent) additional from state sales taxes.
Real estate transfer tax revenues are projected to drop by nearly 6 percent, or $230,000, in the coming year – from nearly $4 million to $3.7 million.
In addition to the 15-percent increase in the City's portion of the property tax, the budget calls for the following increases in fees:
Expenses
City staff have pared expenses again this year, said Ms. Carroll, trimming
more than $1 million from City departments overall. The "open exchange
between departments regarding expenditure reductions" resulted in reductions
developed "across multiple departments in a fair and equitable manner,"
according to the budget letter.
Still, the increase in operating expenses, mostly from salaries and benefits, was about 4.3 percent. And the total increase in the General Fund is proposed at nearly 9 percent, because the budget proposes transferring about $4 million from that fund to the pension funds.
The budget does not propose any program cuts. "In my three years I know there are some things the Council does not want to touch –the branch libraries, for one thing, and mental health funding, for another," Ms. Carroll told the RoundTable. She added, "This budget proposes to maintain existing services. My concern is that if we cut programs it will cut services and staffing levels we have not talked with Council about."
Personnel
Many senior staff members and department heads have taken advantage of
the City's early retirement incentive programs. Only some of these vacancies
will be filled, said Ms. Carroll. Nine full-time-equivalent positions
will be eliminated in the coming year, on top of 6.65 full-time-equivalent
positions eliminated last year through early retirement. Six new positions
are proposed for the coming fiscal year.
A longer version of this story will appear in the Jan. 9 print edition of the
Unplanned Developments
The
original plan was to strip the facade of the bank building and add two
stories.
As residents and City officials debate the future of Evanston in various plans, public meetings and charettes, a look back at one recently completed project offers some insight into what may lie ahead for the community.
Analysis
The RoundTable's examination of the 7-story, 77-unit mixed-use condominium building at 900 Chicago Ave. shows that no matter how grand the plan or how honorable the intention, in the complex world of real estate development, someone always goes home unhappy.
A shift in plans
In 2001, Kevin Pearson and Stephen Mullins, curator of the Toby Jug museum
in Evanston, approached City officials with a proposal to give the Great
Bank Evanston building on the northwest corner of Chicago Avenue and Main
Street a heavy-duty makeover. The proposal sought to strip the building
down to its skeleton, built in the 1920s, and utilize the original bricks.
The project included 14 luxury condominiums, ground-floor retail space
and plans to turn the bank vault into a new home for the museum. The ambitious
plan drew significant praise from the community.
"[The proposal] got everybody excited, and with good reason: It was well worth it," recalled Lawrence Widmayer, currently an associate member of the Plan Commission who was a voting member of the body at the time.MORE...
First Night 2008
On Dec. 31 Evanston will be transformed into Illinois' largest festival
of the arts.
First Night Evanston is a New Year's Eve celebration that is substance-free, accessible and affordable to all. Warm indoor venues will become stages for some of the surrounding area's finest artists in a safe, multi-cultural, family environment.
There will be more than 80 performances at 18 venues across downtown. There will be a special 15th-anniversary kick-off procession and midnight fireworks. A First Night button - $15 for adults and $5 for children aged 2-12 - is the "Open Sesame" to this gala festival that begins at 4 p.m. on Dec. 31 and lasts until 12:45 a.m. on Jan. 1. Call 847-475-NITE or visit www.firstnightevanston.org for details about how to ring out the old and ring in the new.
