Reported Crime Down 2.5 Percent in 2007

There were a total of 3,107 crimes reported in Evanston in 2007 that fall within the "Crime Index," according to a report prepared by the Evanston Police Department. This was 2.5 percent less than in 2006. The report, however, said, "It must be noted that the impetus in this equation is the number of reported thefts, which decreased by 126 incidents or 6.5 percent. Unfortunately, there was an increase of 38 crimes against persons, resulting in a 15.6 percent increase in this category."

The report states, "Index Crimes in Evanston show an overall pattern of decline in the late nineties and well past 2000." The number of Index Crimes hit a high point of 7,669 in 1997 and has shown a steady decline to 3,107 in 2007.

The Crime Index includes four violent crimes (murder, sexual assault, robbery and aggravated assault/battery) and four property crimes (burglary, theft, motor vehicle theft and arson.)

In 2007, property offenses made up 91 percent of all crimes included in the Crime Index and included 1,827 thefts, 861 burglaries and 137 motor vehicle thefts. Thefts include stealing bicycles, stealing personal items from an automobile, shoplifting or taking any property without force, violence or fraud. Burglary is stealing property from a structure (other than an automobile), such as lockers, garages, sheds and residences.

Violent crimes in 2007 - 282 in all - comprised about 9 percent of all offenses in the Crime Index. There were 2 murders, 12 sexual assaults, 141 robberies and 127 aggravated assaults and batteries.

Shootings on Custer Avenue and South of Howard Street

Two men were shot on the 300 block of Custer Avenue at approximately 9:50 p.m. on April 23. According to police, the two victims were walking on Custer when they noticed a suspicious person wearing a dark hoodie in a nearby alley, who began to run toward them. As the victims started to run away, each sustained a single gunshot wound: one in the leg, and the other in the back. Both victims were transported to a hospital.

About 75 neighborhood residents met on Mulford Street and Callan Avenue at 7:30 p.m. on April 26 to discuss taking action to stop crime in the neighborhood. Alderman Ann Rainey, in whose Eighth Ward the shootings took place, said a new neighborhood watch group was formed as a result of the meeting.

While that meeting was under way, gunshots rang out coming from south of Howard Street. A 26-year old man was shot multiple times while standing in the 2000 block of west Birchwood Avenue in Chicago.

He was pronounced dead at St. Francis Hosipital that evening.

Police request anyone having information regarding the shooting incident on Custer Avenue to call the Evanston Police Departments Investigations Bureau, 847-866-5040.

Blue Ribbon Committee Selects Chairman

By Larry Gavin

The Blue Ribbon Committee that has been appointed to review and make recommendations about the police and firemen pension funds to City Council selected Mark Metz to act as chairman in a meeting held on April 22 in the aldermanic library at the Civic Center. Other members of the Committee include Gregory M. Beard, Gerald M. Gordon, Aleksandr Granchalek, Peter D. Morris, Sandra Waller Shelton, William A. Testa and Jim Young. Two persons who were appointed, Jerry Wallack and Charles Lewis, have resigned.

City Council voted to establish the Committee on Jan. 26, after the City's new actuary estimated that the unfunded liability in the police and firefighter pension funds was $140 million. At various times during the City's budgeting process, aldermen requested that the Committee be formed to work on a comprehensive solution and to make recommendations to address the shortfall. City Council approved the appointment of the Committee on March 24.

Based on a preliminary discussion, it appears the Committee will review four things: 1) the investment performance of the pension funds and the process followed in investing the funds; 2) the actuarial assumptions that were used in estimating the annual yearly payment required to be made by the City to the funds and the assumptions that were used in estimating the City's unfunded liability; 3) the pension benefits history and possible alternative actions; and 4) various alternatives to address the unfunded liability. The Committee hopes to have its analysis completed by the end of July.

Several members of the Committee asked the City's legal counsel to provide an opinion concerning whether the Committee is subject to the Open Meetings Act. The City's legal counsel provided the Committee with a two-page analysis of the Act, but apparently needed additional information to render an opinion on the issue.

The Open Meetings Act provides that all meetings of "public bodies" shall be open to the public, unless the meetings may be closed to discuss certain topics specified in the Act.

The Act defines "public body" to include all "advisory bodies" of cities, including but not limited to any committee which is supported in whole or in part by tax revenue.

Correction
The photos at Chef's Station on page 21 and Chipotle on page 25 of the RoundTable's spring magazine, Evanston ... AL FRESCO should have been credited to the Chicago's North Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau, not to EvMark. The RoundTable regrets the error.

Council Bytes

At the April 28 City Council meeting aldermen approved the zoning for a new building to house the Kellogg Cancer Care Center at Evanston Hospital, approved extensions for two proposed developments and provided City support to businesses in the Dempster-Dodge area.

The five-story new cancer care center at Evanston Hospital, to be built on the site of the present center, will focus on patient-centered services and support, said Bruce Brockstein, M.D., head of oncology at Kellogg. He said U. S. News and World Report rated the present Kellogg Center as one of the top 50 cancer-care centers in the country. The center had 2,300 new patients last year he said, and performed 25,000 treatments.

The Council gave developer Robert King of Carroll Properties another two years to start construction of Carroll Place at 1881 Oak Ave., on the condition that the developer show the City contracts with lawn-mowing and snow-removal services year-round to keep the place neat in the interim. Against the developer's wishes, the City requested that the fence surrounding the property be removed. The extension, the second granted for this development, will expire on July 12, 2010. Lowe Enterprises and Golub & Co., owners of 1603-29 Orrington Ave., received a 90-day extension - until July 31 - to start construction on their planned development.

The City will expand its tax-sharing agreement with Joseph Freed & Co., owners of Evanston Plaza (Dempster Street at Dodge Avenue). Freed may collect up to $2 million ($1 million more than the original agreement) of sales tax generated by the shopping plaza. The revenue will be used to offset Freed's rehab expenses to make room for its newest anchor tenant, Steve and Barry's, an athletic clothing store.

Nearby, but outside of the plaza, LSL Industries - a firm that manufactures and packages medical products - received City support for its application to Cook County for a reduction in its assessed valuation, to help offest the costs of its move to 2025 Dempster St.

Finally, the City signed on to what may be the last intergovernmental agreement with the two school districts for sharing surplus revenues from the Downtown II (Research Park) tax-increment financing (TIF) district. The last tax revenues collected under the TIF should be those for 2009, to be remitted to the City - and ultimately the school districts - in 2010.

Elevators in downtown parking structures also posed some problems for the aldermen. They approved $33,000 to provide air conditioning in the elevator cars in the new Sherman Avenue parking garage.

The air conditioning was thought unnecessary in the original contract, said Max Rubin, who was facilities manager at the time. The glazing on the glass on the west wall of the structure was supposed to have provided sufficient protection against the heat; however, last summer temperatures in the cars reached as high as 120º F. The air conditioning will cool only the elevator cars, not the entire shaft, Mr. Rubin added.

Members of the Evanston Police Department's Neighborhood Enforcement Team received commendations from Police Chief Richard Eddington and Mayor Lorraine Morton for having shut down an open-air drug market last year. The drug market was operated by a new, violent gang, and Chicago and Evanston police were credited with arresting and thus eradicating the gang. The department is scheduled to receive $26,000 in federal funds to combat gangs throughout the Northern District of Illinois. The department plans to use the funds toward the purchase of surveillance equipment, including cameras, night vision devices and radio earplugs.

Civic Center Committee Looks at Repair Costs

By Mary Helt Gavin

In what may be a reversal of intention for at least some of the nine aldermen on the Civic Center Committee, the members voted on April 23 to investigate the costs of making the building safe and habitable for the next few years.

Alderman Elizabeth Tisdahl, 7th Ward, said at the beginning of the meeting, "Because we do not have $50 million or $70 million, I propose that we ask [Facilities Manager David] Cook what it would take to make this building safe and healthy. ... It is with regret that I do this."

Ald. Tisdahl said she had heard there is mold in some of the offices, the roof continues to leak, and the bathrooms need to be refitted to comply with the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

A firestorm of debate followed on the seriousness of the mold problem, the means and necessity of asbestos abatement and the possibility of containing costs once any repairs were begun.

"You're suggesting we curb our discussion of the other options - for what?" asked Alderman Edmund Moran, 6th Ward. "Until we are in a financial position to come up with a better solution," Ald. Tisdahl replied. Alderman Cheryl Wollin, 1st Ward, and Alderman Ann Rainey, 8th Ward, both questioned whether this would be a stop-gap measure or the beginning of a complete rehab of the building, thus foreclosing any options to relocate.

"How much are you thinking of as a stop-gap measure?" Ald. Rainey asked. "The only way we're going to get a stream of revenue [for a Civic Center] is by selling the property."

"I want to make sure the building is safe," Ald. Tisdahl said. She added she had spoken with Mr. Cook that day and he had given her a ball-park figure of $6 million to fix the roof and tuck-point the building to prevent further leakage and mold formation and to make the bathrooms ADA-compliant.

Mr. Cook said mold has been found in several offices. "So far, it's penicillin - it's bread mold," he said. Mold of that type is not inherently dangerous, but anyone with sensitivity to mold will be affected; he said so far he has been able to relocate all but one person who was bothered by mold. "When you have moisture in the walls, there is a continuing possibility of mold formation," he added. "It might be bread mold, but the next time we check, it could be another kind." He said once the building was tuck-pointed and the roof repaired, removing the mold would be relatively easy.

Ald. Moran questioned whether the health of City employees would be put at risk if the mold were removed and asbestos abated while employees still worked in the building. Mr. Cook said neither should present a health hazard.

Ald. Tisdahl said while she was on the District 202 School Board such procedures were done at Evanston Township High School, with sections of the school sealed off but while employees and students were in the building.

Ald. Bernstein appeared to view the present Civic Center as a money pit. "I have no faith in any of the [projected costs]. If Dave [Cook] says it's a $6 million project, it's a $20 million fix. ... I can't believe that $2.5 million or $4 million or $6 million will stop the bleeding." He said he did not doubt Mr. Cook's estimate was a good-faith one but felt that with a building as old as the Civic Center - some sections are more than 100 years old - it was difficult to tell what problems would crop up as others were being addressed.

Aldermen Delores Holmes, 5th Ward, and Melissa Wynne, 3rd Ward, said they thought there was no alternative but to investigate fixing up the building - whether as a stop-gap or as the beginning of a commitment to rehabbing the building for long-term use.

Ald. Holmes said she "would go as high as $10 million for the immediate repairs."

Alderman Lionel Jean-Baptiste, 2nd Ward, said he felt the committee had "no choice" but to remain at the Civic Center and rehab it for long-term use. "This building has plenty of space. When you look at the discussions, the only building at hand is this building, unless the City Manager has something new. ... Let's invest in this building. The reason we're here is that we have no reasonable alternatives."

City Manager Julia Carroll indicated that the most recent space the aldermen had been investigating as a site for a new Civic Center did not appear to be feasible. Ald. Rainey said she felt the reason the City has not relocated is that "we're unable to make a decision." Alderman Steve Bernstein, 4th Ward, who chairs the Civic Center Committee, said, "I don't think we've not moved because of a lack of will. At the end of the day, if we had a place to move, we'd have moved there. ... But I just don't believe we can do [these repairs] for less."

Ald. Wynne said she "agreed with the spirit of what Ald. Tisdahl said. The numbers [for repair or for a new Civic Center] have just shot into space. Over the years we thought we had a grand plan to move, but things have not lined up for us. ... I think the idea that we could sell this building for what we once thought we could is not realistic. We need to make a decision. It's not quite a stop-gap; it's putting us into a holding pattern."

The Committee held a closed-session meeting afterward to discuss the "sale or acquisition of real estate."

Evanston Congregations Think Green

By Allison Hagey

The Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation recently dedicated an environmentally friendly synagogue on the site of their old building. The new synagogue consists of reclaimed materials from the old building, as well as locally reclaimed cypress. Photo by Allison Hagey

On April 13 the Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation (JRC) dedicated an environmentally friendly synagogue, constructed on the site of their old building, 303 Dodge Ave. The new building is expected to receive LEED Platinum Certification in the coming months, based, among other things, on water efficiency, air quality and the use of sustainable materials. LEED, leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is a designation of the U.S. Green Building Council; platinum is the highest rating.

Plans for the new space began six years ago as part of an environmental taskforce within the congregation but were part of their own religious imperative as well, says Rabbi Brant Rosen. Mr. Rosen says from the beginning they planned to build as green as they could, "in a mindful way, not just with the cheapest materials."

Ninety-six percent of the old building was reclaimed for the construction of the new. The large ceremonial entrance door on the south side of the building is made from maple trees cut down to make way for the construction. Concrete and brick rubble from the old building were used to fill the basement, bringing the site to grade, and all metal was removed for scrap.

"We wanted as much natural light as possible," says Mr. Rosen. T5 florescent bulbs, which turn on only when needed, are used throughout the building. Large windows along the stairwell and in the sanctuary and chapel are meant to save energy by reducing the need for heat and electrical lighting.

Much of the wood used in the sanctuary is cyprus reclaimed locally as well as from New York and black walnut from the Chicago Park District. Another green feature of the building is the use of dual-flush toilets, which reduce water usage. A washer and dryer have been installed to cut down on single-use kitchen products such as paper towels.

Other highlights of the JRC's green building are the polished concrete floors on all three levels, which eliminate the need for adhesives that keep carpeting in place. In the few places where carpet is used, it is made with non-volatile organic compounds (VOC) and non-formaldehyde fibers and includes recycled content and rapidly renewable materials.

Another energy-saving feature of the building is its displacement ventilation system. This system circulates air so only the lower six feet of a room is heated or cooled.

Mr. Rosen says with all these features combined, the new JRC synagogue is calculated to use 45 percent less energy than a conventional building of its size.

Other Churches, More Green

Other churches in Evanston have also been practicing green initiatives. Hemenway United Methodist Church, 933 Chicago Ave., built an accessible addition that includes an energy-efficient elevator. The non-hydraulic elevator uses no oil and 60 percent less energy. The Unitarian Church of Evanston, 1330 Ridge Ave., has eliminated the use of paper plates and begun consuming fair-trade coffee. "We have worked hard to be as eco-friendly as we can," says Judith Ramey, communications director for the church.

Alex Sproul, a church member who is also involved in Evanston's Interreligious Sustainability Circle, says they promote the use of cloth shopping bags and compact florescent bulbs in households through a "friendly competition" with Lake Street Church, 607 Lake St. They also began promoting a "fragrance-free zone" within the church to avoid products with a toxic nature.