formerly citizens' greener Evanston
Evanston now has 25 years to achieve its carbon neutrality and zero waste goals as outlined in the Climate Action and Resilience Plan (CARP), and Sustainability and Resilience Manager Cara Pratt has said the city has already accomplished the “low-hanging fruit” in pursuing these targets.
What climate goals and policies would you prioritize in the coming term? How should the city pursue reduction of building emissions?
Do you support phasing out natural gas use in new construction, and requiring existing buildings work toward carbon neutrality over the next 25 years?
The most pressing climate goal Evanston must address is figuring out how to protect our lakefront now that it has become clear we will not be getting the anticipated $100 million from FEMA. This is of vital importance. We need a multi-decade strategic plan to protect the lakefront from rising Lake Michigan levels — and we need to figure out how to fund it. We should strive to work closely with Northwestern on this issue and leverage the technical expertise of its faculty, staff and students.
The Healthy Building Ordinance, which I anticipate will pass before the election, represents a key step forward to net zero carbon. Evanston will need to administer it in such a way as to balance the twin goals of healthy buildings and healthy businesses. Done right, we can expect Evanston to be carbon neutral by 2050.
Nearly 2/3rds of all households in Evanston own one or no cars, and a majority of residents do not commute via car. Each year, more Evanstonians of all ages are walking, rolling, and using bus or train service for convenience, physical fitness, cost-savings, and environmental benefits.
How do you incorporate walking, biking and public transit into your everyday life?
Ever since the pandemic, I have become an inveterate walker. My wife and I walk the lake every day. I walk my daughter Avra to school each Friday. And we are lucky to live near the city center and Noyes street corridor — which often allow us to walk to local businesses. I also believe it is important for all Evanstonians to have an opportunity to travel in Evanston and to surrounding areas with adequate public transportation and expansive, continuous and safe bike lanes, sidewalks, walking paths and public transit. Evanstan should continue its traditions of being environmentally friendly and expand our efforts over the coming years.
Academic research and case studies from cities like Paris, Amsterdam, and New York show that reducing car traffic and building protected bike lanes are necessary to meet climate and mobility goals. Plans such as the Chicago Ave Multimodal Project provide an example of how this can be implemented in Evanston.
Where would you want infrastructure improvements, such as traffic calming, pedestrianization/ street closures, and protected bike lanes, to encourage more walking and cycling?
I am lucky to have Chicago Ave in part of the First Ward and supporting the Project Plan such as the additional bike lanes would be much welcomed!. I think we have made some strides recently on Sheridan. I also believe the stadium truck traffic on Sherman has shown that we might benefit from some traffic calming approaches on that street even after construction ends.
Public transit has seen a major change in ridership trends, with 9-to-5 commuter services falling short of pre-COVID milestones while off-peak and weekend demand climbs despite infrequent and often unreliable schedules. CTA, PACE, and Metra are facing a ‘fiscal cliff’, as federal dollars to keep transit service operating run out by 2026.
While not in the position to solve this problem on its own, what can the City of Evanston do to support existing bus and train service, and how would you want to see public transportation expanded in our city in the future?
We can lean into transit oriented development (“TOD”) as part of our zoning reform efforts. TOD does so many things for us as a city — it buttresses our mass transit by putting more customers near stations; allows residents to forgo a car; and brings more customers downtown. We need more! This includes more Divvy stations like outlined in the Chicago Ave Multimodal Project. It will also behoove the City of Evanston to work with the City of Chicago to partner on possible solutions with public transit. I am also in support of Evision Evanston which offers a variety of solutions for our public transit over the next decades.
With parallels to Envision Evanston 2045, Minneapolis has modified its zoning code in the past decade to eliminate minimum parking requirements, encourage transit-oriented development, and allow the construction of more “missing middle” housing city-wide. Together, these reforms lead to a stabilization of rent prices, a drop in homelessness, reduced displacement, and increased racial diversity. Environmental benefits were also realized, as more dense and mixed-use developments encourage lower rates of car ownership and generate less embodied carbon from construction.
What changes to Evanston’s zoning code, such as the ones listed above, would you support in response to the housing and climate crises?
This is the reason I am running and will be my top priority when elected. I think all of these reforms are critical. I think that given the level of pushback on the R1 reforms, we should proceed stepwise and begin with a step up to duplexes, with a check-in for 36 months from now to assess housing starts and see whether more is needed. But I support eliminating parking minimums, encouraging transit oriented design, and finding ways to attract families by fixing the missing middle. I also support the recent decision to strengthen our inclusionary housing ordinance, which my opponent predictably opposed.
