New Evanston City Council Hits Ground Running At First Meeting

EVANSTON, IL — Minutes after being sworn in during what was billed as a mostly ceremonial inaugural meeting, newcomers to the Evanston City Council began advancing their policy agendas.

Three aldermen initiated new legislation, while the new mayor announced the creation of a new ad hoc committee tasked with providing police reform recommendations before the end of the year.

After introductory remarks, 1st Ward Ald. Clare Kelly asked city staff to place a measure on the agenda for upcoming committee meeting that would establish a separate fund for money received via the American Rescue Plan — the $1.9 trillion bill that signed into law in March and projected to provide about $45.8 million in federal money to Evanston.

Ald. Devon Reid, 8th Ward, introduced a pair of ordinances during his remarks to be considered as special orders of business later this month.

The first would provide free beach access to all Evanston residents. Reid suggested using some of the approximately $2 million in surplus to cover up to about $800,000 in lost revenue.

"We can use a portion of that to make the beaches accessible to every Evanston resident this summer and end the exclusionary, and dare I say racist, policy of charging for beach access," Reid said.

Ald. Peter Braithwaite recommended Reid instead refer the issue to a committee. He said understood the motivation for the policy change but said he was unsure if city staff were capable of making the adjustment so fast.

"You would have to be really clear with our staff to be able to bring something back that would have a financial impact on our future budget," Braithwaite said. "To me your idea has value, but the portion that you would take from the existing budget, I don't know if we could make that change so quickly."

Although Deputy City Manager Kelley Gandurski, the city's former top lawyer, said rules permit aldermen to motion to place items on the agenda of future meetings, current Corporation Counsel Nick Cummings claimed the City Council was violating the Illinois Open Meetings Act, or OMA.

OMA requires public notice of agenda items and does not allow public bodies to vote on any "resolution or ordinance that will be the subject of final action" at the meeting unless they are placed on the agenda.

Cummings said any councilmember has the authority to place a special order of business on the agenda without a motion — or a vote — as long as it is at least five days before the meeting in question.

"I just want to point out that the motion itself is out of order at this time, the item can be discussed but no business can move forward on that particular piece of action," Cummings said, speaking via a cell phone held up to a microphone by City Manager Erika Storlie. "To call a vote on something that is not on the agenda would be improper."

Clerk Stephanie Mendoza disagreed and recommended a vote on Reid's motion. Mayor Daniel Biss agreed, and alderpeople voted unanimously in favor of placing the item on the agenda for introduction as a special order of business at the May 24 meeting.

Reid then introduced a draft of a second ordinance to be introduced on the next meeting's agenda.

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Dubbed the Essential Worker Hero Pay Ordinance, the measure would temporarily give a $6 per hour wage bonus for employees of essential retail stores with 500 or more employees.

Any hazard pay bosses already provided to workers would count toward that extra money, and the bonus would end as soon as the city enters Phase 5 of Gov. J.B. Pritzker's Restore Illinois reopening plan or until Evanston/Skokie Fully Reopens for in-person instruction, whichever comes first. Pritzker has said the state could enter Phase 5 as soon as June 11.

"This would not affect restaurant workers," Reid said. "This is for large corporate partners and large corporate retailers such as Target. This is specifically drafted, the language, to impact Target, Jewel, Whole Foods, CVS, Walgreens, the larger retailers … those corporations have had record-breaking profits during the pandemic and, in many cases, those profits have not been shared with employees."

Ald. Melissa Wynne, 3rd Ward, agreed that big box retailers have indeed made record profits, but she emphasized the municipality relies upon them financially.

"They still provide sales tax for us, they still provide employment for many people in the community," Wynne said. "This is something that is a critical issue throughout the United States, and we need to discuss it thoroughly through our proper procedures."

Ald. Jonathan Nieuwsma, 4th Ward, said he supported the concept but said it needed careful deliberation and engagement with stakeholders.

"I would not want to risk the long-term viability of this idea by foreshortening the process," Nieuwsma said.

Ald. Bobby Burns, 5th Ward, who seconded Reid's motion, emphasized the proposal was temporary rather than a permanent wage increase.

"The hazard is now to a certain degree," Burns said. "My understanding is us placing this on the next meeting as a special order of business acknowledges the time-sensitive nature of the fact that this is really a response to COVID and people are going to work every day."

New Alds. Burns, Kelly and Reid were joined by returning 6th Ward Ald. Tom Suffredin and 9th Ward Ald. Cicely Fleming in voting in favor of Reid's motion to place it on the agenda. Braithwaite, Wynne, Nieuwsma and 7th Ward Ald. Eleanor Revelle voted against it.

Fleming also used the first call of the wards of the 81st Evanston City Council to make a referral to the Rules Committee to reconsider the city manager's role in appointing the deputy city clerk.

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After Reid, then the newly elected city clerk, called out former Mayor Steve Hagerty for violating OMA by attempting to convene an emergency meeting to block a minimum wage increase, the deputy city clerk positions were removed from his office by former City Manager Wally Bobkiewicz.

"I would like us to revisit that," Fleming said, "to bring the deputy clerk's office to reporting to our new City Clerk Mendoza, so she can have a complete office and execute the duties of her office with the right amount of support."

Fleming has also asked the Rules Committee to consider an ordinance to clarify the procedures for seating newly elected officials after the lame duck City Council held three meetings after the April 6 election, including one with a busy agenda after the results had been certified.

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At the close of the meeting, Evanston's newly seated mayor announced the formation of the Reimaging Public Safety Committee, a new ad hoc committee tasked with presenting recommendations in time to be incorporated into next year's budget.

"I am incredibly honored and appreciative of that diverse and remarkably knowledgeable and expert group of folks that have agreed to be a part of that," Biss said.

"I also am well aware that that group of people cannot possible represent the full quilt of views and knowledge and experience of the community, and so I am making an open invitation to anybody in this town who wants to be a part of that effort to raise their hand, to speak up."

Ahead of the meeting, Biss announced he would chair the new committee, which would include the following members:

Alds. Burns, Fleming and Reid; Sarah Bogan, of Evanston Fight for Black Lives; Betty Bogg, of Connections for the Homeless; Evanston Township High School Principal Marcus Campbell; Betty Ester, of the Citizens' Network of Protection; Alejandra L. Ibañez, chair of the Equity & Empowerment Commission; Patrick Keenan-Devlin, of the Moran Center for Youth Advocacy; Nathan Norman, of the city's Health & Human Services Department; Andrew Papachristos, of Northwestern University; Sean Peck-Collier, a community activist; Melissa Sacluti, a deputy chief of the Evanston Police Department; Evangeline Semark, a survivors' advocate; Kymberly Walton, of the Equity & Empowerment Commission; and Kristen White, of YWCA Evanston/North Shore.

"We are prepared to take on what is perhaps the most difficult and controversial issue before us, but is also — from both a quality of life and a budgetary standpoint issue — perhaps the most significant one." Biss said. "And I cannot wait to get started."