Two North Shore suburbs in recent days have taken tentative — but important — stances against NIMBYism and in favor of opening their doors wider to more middle-income residents.
We speak of Highland Park and Evanston.
The Highland Park City Council on Oct. 30 gave a preliminary thumbs up to Chicago developer Habitat Co.’s plan to build more than 200 townhomes on a 28-acre vacant tract that for decades was the site of a Solo Cup factory. In so doing, the council rejected arguments from opponents that the development would unacceptably exacerbate traffic congestion even if its unanimous vote in favor masked a long debate over the plan’s particulars, the Lake County News-Sun reported.
But one council member, Jon Center, captured what we believe usually is at the heart of objections to big plans such as Habitat’s in suburbs whose inhabitants prize the “time stands still” quality of their environs. “I recognize change is hard, I do, but also change can be really positive,” he said during the council meeting, according to the Record North Shore.
The Evanston City Council on Oct. 27 voted 5-4 to allow a proposal to build what would be one of suburban Chicago’s tallest towers right in the middle of downtown to take a crucial step in the approval process. The council has scheduled a final vote on the 605 Davis project for this coming Monday.
The 605 Davis developers reduced the height of the tower by two stories to win preliminary approval, but it still is 29 stories, 299 feet tall and would offer 419 new rental units in the heart of one of Chicagoland’s most desirable communities.
We enthusiastically urge council members in both suburbs to take the last steps allowing ground to be broken.
To their credit, Mayors Nancy Rotering of Highland Park and Daniel Biss of Evanston have helped shepherd these projects through, even in the face of emotional opposition. Both mayors recognize that, as lovely as their municipalities are, they can’t and shouldn’t be preserved in amber.
And, as progressive but pragmatic politicians, they also recognize that their cities can contribute meaningfully to boosting the entire Chicago area’s housing supply — a high priority for making home purchases and rents more affordable as well as helping to share a tax burden that’s become too onerous throughout the region. We wrote as much on Labor Day, so all we can say now (with optimism that tentative approvals will become final ones) is, bravo.
Now, let’s see more of suburban Chicago follow suit.
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