Bill Smith, Author at Evanston Now

Bill Smith

Publisher

Evanston Now publisher Bill Smith was born and raised in Evanston and received bachelor's and master's degrees in journalism from Northwestern University. He also holds a juris doctor degree from Wayne State University in Detroit.

He was a broadcast news reporter, producer and anchor in Detroit and other cities. He taught journalism at Michigan State and Penn State and at Northeastern University in Boston.

He started working in online media in 1994, beginning with Ziff-Davis Publishing's pioneering project called Interchange and continuing with the Boston-based search engine company Lycos.

He returned to Evanston in 2005 and launched Evanston Now in 2006. He and his wife Jan share their home with a cat named Max.

Business

Jobless rate falls, but workforce shrinks

Evanston's unemployment rate dropped dramatically last month, but it remains substantially higher than before the coronavirus pandemic began.

By Bill Smith posted 11 hours ago

Government

38 new COVID cases here, 11,378 more statewide

Evanston health officials reported 38 new COVID-19 cases among Evanston residents today, compared to 20 reported by the city on Monday. Statewide there were 11,378 new cases, up from 9,468

By Bill Smith posted 12 hours ago

Skateboarder critically hurt in collision with car

Police investigating the accident have blocked Emerson Street to traffic between Ashland and Darrow avenues.

By Bill Smith posted 13 hours ago

Government

28 candidates seek Evanston city offices

Twenty-eight candidates have filed nominating papers to run for 11 Evanston municipal offices in next year's election.

By Bill Smith posted 21 hours ago

Government

20 new COVID cases in Evanston, state preps for vaccine

State officials expressed optimism about COVID-19 vaccines today, but urged residents to avoid Thanksgiving gatherings and travel to reduce the the pandemic death toll.

By Bill Smith on November 24, 2020 - 3:29 pm

Real Estate

Mixed-income senior tower wins Council OK

Evanston aldermen approved plans for a 16-story affordable housing development at 1900 Sherman Ave. Monday night despite opposition from five of their would-be successors.

By Bill Smith on November 24, 2020 - 10:56 am

Government

Council trims property tax hike in marathon session

During a City Council meeting that ran for nearly six hours, Evanston aldermen Monday reduced a planned property tax increase to 1% and adopted the city's 2021 budget.

By Bill Smith on November 24, 2020 - 10:20 am

Government

Recap: Evanston City Council

Here's a recap of our live coverage of tonight's Evanston City Council meeting at which aldermen adopted the city's 2021 budget.

By Bill Smith on November 23, 2020 - 5:23 pm

Business

Elspeth Revere named interim CEO at ECF

The Evanston Community Foundation announced today the appointment of Elspeth Revere as interim president and CEO, effective Dec. 11.

By Bill Smith on November 23, 2020 - 4:42 pm

Government

Recap: Administration and Public Works Committee

Here's a recap of our live coverage of this afternoon's Evanston City Council Administration and Public Works Committee meeting.

By Bill Smith on November 23, 2020 - 4:30 pm

Government

State: 48 new COVID-19 cases in Evanston

Governor sees "glimmer of hope" as COVID positive rates decline, but says people need to keep follow mitigation procedures to avoid a post-Thanksgiving surge.

By Bill Smith on November 23, 2020 - 3:40 pm

Business

Rehab proposed for Fountain Square Building

Preliminary plans for an extensive upgrade to the Fountain Square Building have been presented to Evanston's Design and Project Review Committee.

By Bill Smith on November 23, 2020 - 10:32 am

Government

27 new COVID cases in Evanston, 10,012 statewide

Illinois lost the lives of another 76 residents to the coronavirus pandemic today. Positive test rates continued to drop slowly, but are still dangerously high.

By Bill Smith on November 22, 2020 - 3:41 pm

Government

28 new COVID cases here, 11,891 statewide

Positive rates in Cook County declined somewhat from extraordinarily high levels, but hospitals continued to see more COVID-19 patients and 126 pandemic deaths were reported today in Illinois.

By Bill Smith on November 21, 2020 - 3:26 pm

Government

Entry of third candidate tees up mayoral primary

A third candidate, Sebastian Nalls, filed papers today to run for mayor of Evanston, setting up a primary election for the position in February. Nalls is a junior at Purdue

By Bill Smith on November 20, 2020 - 8:07 pm

Government

42 new COVID cases in Evanston, 13,012 statewide

The number of people hospitalized with the coronavirus disease continued to increase across Illinois today amid concerns hospitals could run out of room.

By Bill Smith on November 20, 2020 - 5:06 pm

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