The opposition has criticized me for “not having any plans.” my vision for the issues that you as residents have brought up repeatedly and said that they want fixed and here are my plans.

 

• Instill a culture of transparency and respect for residents and revise our communications approach to modernize and gather broader public input

• Create a working plan to revitalize downtown Evanston with a task force of business owners, residents, building owners, staff and residents’ experts in finance, taxation, urban planning, marketing, climate issues and more.

• Make use of our robust Arts community as a driver for visitors

• Host a “parking summit” to determine the best plan to solve this issue

• Reject blanket upzoning. Create zoning that maintains neighborhood integrity while modestly and organically adding new housing

• Strengthen our boards and commissions with our resident experts

• Insist on budget discipline. Set a budget and stick to it. No overruns.

• Engage with D65 to assist and support their recovery

• Build affordable housing by investing in approaches like public land trusts and low-equity co-ops

 

The mayor’s most recent mailer you’ll see several items that only recently appeared in his plans: “Stabilize the Budget”, “Improve City Services”, “Revitalize Downtown”

 

Rather than the two of us appearing the same, the mayor has moved closer to my vision for Evanston residents. Of particular interest is regarding downtown, the situation was bad four years ago and has improved marginally if at all. It’s still bad. This could have been a priority for him long ago but was not of interest.

 

Residents are demanding leadership and action on all of the issues residents voice. I will deliver.