Resident Coalition Opposes City Plan Up for Vote Tonight 1/26

The following information is a cross-posted e-mailing from Evanston Action Coalition, with minor edits for brevity and clarity; re-publication does not constitute endorsement by CSNA. For posts related to the Envision Evanston planning, please see our articles collection here.

City Council is scheduled to vote on Envision Evanston 2045 tonight, Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, at a meeting that begins 5:30 PM.

This comprehensive plan would guide zoning, development, and land-use decisions across Evanston for decades — yet it did not emerge from a transparent, resident-led planning process.

Instead, all elements were shaped by advocacy organizations and organized around a federally aligned housing timeline and grant process pursued by Mayor Daniel Biss and senior city staff without full public disclosure or City Council authorization. As part of that process, the City Manager made commitments and certifications to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that have still not been fully released to the public — even though they were executed before the plan completed review by the Land Use Commission or City Council.

This matters.

Envision Evanston 2045 is now being bundled with the Housing4All strategy and a sweeping rezoning effort that will affect every neighborhood — from affordability and displacement to building scale, density, and infrastructure capacity.

We are asking residents to speak up now, in multiple ways:

1) Write City Council
Please take a minute to write City Council and urge them to vote NO on Envision Evanston 2045 and demand full disclosure of all federal commitments before any final approval.

Take action here: Stop Envision Evanston 2045 — Demand a Transparent, Resident-Led Planning Process

2) Attend the City Council meeting (in person or virtually)
Monday, January 26, 2026
5:30 PM
City Council Chambers, 909 Davis Street
Virtual attendance is available via Zoom

3) Submit written public comment in advance
Residents may submit written public comment or sign up to speak by phone or video using the City Clerk’s guide:
City of Evanston | Evanston Public Comment Guide

Participating in more than one way makes a difference. Letters, public comment, and presence all matter — especially when a decision of this scale is being rushed forward.

This vote is not the end of the process. It is the beginning of a much larger debate about Housing4All and rezoning. But being heard and showing up now matters.

Thank you for being engaged and for standing up for Evanston.