Evanston’s City Council is set to vote Monday on a plan to move city offices to leased space in the 909 Davis building downtown.
The proposed 15-year lease is for nearly 53,000 square feet of office space on three floors of the building for an annual cost of just under $2.5 million.
The proposed space is less than half the 112,000 square foot size of the more than century-old Civic Center at 2100 Ridge Ave.
The city would have a small customer service desk area on the first floor, more than 14,000 square feet on the second floor for the council chambers, offices and meeting spaces, and over 37,000 square feet on the third floor for staff offices, as well as access to additional meeting rooms to be constructed on the sixth floor.
The base lease rate works out to an annual price per square of $47. But the lease terms also include a $5.9 million allowance for tenant improvements and a $2.9 million rent abatement through February 2026.
The city would have option to terminate the lease at the end of year seven, but with an $8.8 million early termination fee, and it would be free to sublease the space at any time.
A recent consultant’s study estimated that making needed renovations to the existing Civic Center building would cost $63 million and the city has been considering the possibility of relocating city office to a different site since 1998.
A staff memo says the city has long needed far less space than it has in the current Civic Center and that the shift to hybrid work policies in the wake of the pandemic has made that even more obvious.
It says that with 600 vacant spaces at the Sherman Plaza garage and 1,050 vacant spaces at the Maple Avenue garage, there would be ample parking for staff and residents attending public meetings at the the 909 Davis building.
The memo says a future use for the current Civic Center building has not been determined, but that options would include renovating the building for use as a modernized city hall, selling it for adaptive reuse for housing or demolishing the building and redeveloping the site.
More detail on the lease proposal and the condition of the Civic Center can be found in the packet for Monday’s Council meeting, which is scheduled to start at 6 p.m.
The new Civic Center space looks daunting for the elderly and the disabled. What provisions are they making for people who cannot walk from distant parking spaces?
Hi Sharon,
There’s a driveway and drop-off area in front of the 909 Davis building that goes practically to the front door. And there are six handicap reserved parking spaces in the drive.
But for a person who drives alone to the new building and does not have a handicap placard for their car, access from available parking may be a bit more difficult.
It’s about 500 feet from the main pedestrian entrance to the Sherman Plaza garage to the front door of the 909 Davis building. That’s about the distance from the far end of the current Civic Center parking lot to the back door of the Civic Center.
It’s about 700 feet from the pedestrian entrance to the Maple Avenue parking garage to the side door of the 909 Davis building.
On the other hand, its less than 200 feet from the CTA bus terminal and the Purple line Davis Street station to the main entrance of the 909 Davis building. That makes the 909 Davis building much more accessible from public transportation than the existing Civic Center site.
— Bill
They just moved a dmv into city hall for people 65 and older, which was a brilliant idea, and really convenient. I wonder if that is in jeopardy with this proposed move. Personally, I like the parking that is available at city hall, as there is always availability, and it is convenient and free. Having to park in the parking garages in downtown Evanston will make me not use the new proposed facility. Will Robert Crown still be available to transact city business? Will early voting also be moved to the new facility?
It’s right near public transportation, modern, plenty of covered parking. There’s a drop-off right in front for the disabled and elderly. It helps fill the empty office space downtown, and brings more workers there, which will be good for the restaurants at lunchtime and the other small businesses. All in all, a good move!
While the City Council talks to being transparent, this decision has been cooked up in secret executive sessions and sprung on the community as if it was a dire emergency.
There are no immediate structural or building systems that are not functioning, so the “sky is falling” argument does not hold water.
The quoted $62 million rehab estimate is a total gut job, when just the prior year, the City staff commissioned appraisers to assess the value of the building and provided them with an estimate of $7.6 million to upgrade the core systems in the building.
This appraisal estimated the value of the building and grounds to be worth $6 million if zoned R4 with 107 residential units, but $8 million if zoned R5 with 332 residential units, and with a developer probably waiting in the wings, we know which density the Council will choose to maximize revenue. Has the surrounding community had any input on this decision?
Speaking of density, the $400,000 AECOM report that was just released had an extensive space requirement study indicating that the City needs 62,000 sq. ft. So the 53,000 space at 900 Davis is already too small for efficient City government.
And yes, our free parking for dealing with City business, whether it be Council meetings or obtaining a simple permit will no longer be available.
This decision does not have to be made Monday. The residents of Evanston deserve to have some input before making such a radical decision.
John Kennedy
With much improved access and accessibility compared to the current location, 909 is a good candidate for the relocation. It will also draw business to downtown and help make use of Evanston’s glut of unoccupied parking spaces.
909 Davis is a far better location for city services than the current civic center. It offers easy access to the El and Metra, and two parking garages nearby for those who drive. Perhaps the city can validate parking for city business.
For years, transit-dependent folks have had to walk several blocks from the ‘L’ or bus (or even farther from Metra) to get to city hall. It’ll be much more convenient to have the offices downtown.
(Someone with better historical knowledge than I can tell us where in downtown city hall was in the olden days, and why it was moved to 2100 Ridge.)
Hi Taxpayer,
The most recent previous city hall was on the northeast corner of Lake Street and Oak Avenue.
The one before that was on the northwest corner of Davis Street and Sherman Avenue.
— Bill
What could be better than a space that is more accessible by public transportation than any other place in Evanston? A brilliant choice.
I lived across the street from the current Civic Center building for 34 years. Moving it downtown is a good idea for all the reasons noted by prior commentators. I am more concerned about what will happen to the current building and park. The neighborhood has little open space. It would be a shame to use it all up with dense housing. The redevelopment of the old Mallinckrodt College in Wilmette with it’s mix of private housing, open public parkland and Rec Dept space would be a good plan to emulate.
Hi LongTime,
The city has split the Ingraham Park parcel from the portion of the block that contains the civic center building and parking lot, and council members have pledged not to sell off (or develop) the parkland.
A promise like that could be revoked by a supermajority vote of the council at any time in the future. But I think the chances of that actually happening are slim.
— Bill
I’m wondering about parking for the new Civic Center location…I certainly hope the city will provide residents with one hour free parking to do business there. Forcing residents to pay for parking in order to participate in such activities as early voting, paying city sticker bills, etc, is just wrong.
It was a big loss for residents to give up the 1 hr free parking that enabled them to easily get in and out of the parking garage to go to the
Farmers’ Market in the summer, and this would be one more big insult. I haven’t heard anything about this so far, only that parking spaces are available in the city garages.
It should not cost people money to attend meetings, etc at the Civic Center. I hope there will be a plan for this, rather than just to fleece us all even more and discourage people from participating in their local government!
Hi Nancy,
Perhaps the city could adapt the “democracy dollars” campaign funding scheme idea, so residents could have some “democracy parking dollars”?
— Bill
So convenient, the 909 City offices location is easy access CTA, Metra and please know the Pace bus depot with six bus routes thru Evanston is accessed directly thru the Purple Line station adjacent 909 – so convenient. The interior of 909 building is an efficient and modern space that includes meeting areas, etc that can be expanded. Too much sentimentality has kept us in the current status of non-profits and numerous deteriorating city buildings. Now, treading financially into the future re NU and this move of City offices closer to downtown business are hard-won changes that deserve positive recognition as they offer hope for this City’s new focus on future business progress.