Signs appeared on the fence in front of an apartment building at 122-130 Callan Ave. in Evanston this week claiming Evanston Ald. Devon Reid (8th) is more than $9,000 behind on his rent there and facing eviction.
On Wednesday, after a neighbor captured the image above, the building management called police to report the signs had been stolen.
Police Cmdr. Ryan Glew says responding officers negotiated a return of the signs, but he said that because no arrests were made, he couldn’t say who had removed or returned them.
Ald. Reid, in email exchanges with Evanston Now, deflected questions about whether he is behind on his rent or whether an eviction case has been filed against him.
The building’s landlord, Marty Max, of MLC Properties and Management in Rogers Park, has not returned calls from Evanston Now seeking comment.
Reid previously was the target of an eviction suit in 2020, while he was city clerk and was living at 429 Custer Ave.
Update 11/19/22: In response to a Freedom of Information Act request from Evanston Now, the city produced a copy of EPD case report #22-009446 which reports officers’ actions on the scene after the signs were reported stolen and how they negotiated the return of the signs.
Thank you Bill for again doing an honest and respectable job of journalism.. Other landlords deserve to be given a heads up about this guy. Wow 8th ward residents how ya feeling about him representing you?He just gets worse and worse
First and foremost if it wasn’t for some neighbors he wouldn’t have this information
As clerk he was making 50% above the city’s median income. Then he quit that job to run for alderman which earns only a fraction of the salary.
As far back as his original run for clerk I always had questions about his experience. He never listed a job in his biography back then and his current bio on the city’s site is blank (unlike all of the other council members).
So it wouldn’t be surprising if the clerk job was the first actual salaried job he ever had.
Since there is no transparency about council members’ finances, it is hard to make heads or tails of what is going on. (Remember Reid claimed to be a champion of transparency?!? Release your tax returns, Devon!)
But the possibility he is embroiled in lawsuits isn’t good.
So, if he’s been evicted, where does he live? And if he doesn’t live in the eighth ward anymore, is he still allowed to represent the eighth ward?
Nothing this man does anymore surprises me. It is long past time for him to leave the City Council.
Of course he doesn’t have a work bio. He was very young when he ran for the clerk’s job (was he 22?). He wanted to be an organizer and didn’t understand or wasn’t interested in the clerk’s job duties. He thought the Clerk should focus on registering people to vote (he got in trouble for his improper voting stickers, too!). He didn’t produce minutes of MANY meetings and recorded his life at home by mistake. His involvement with law enforcement is documented.
His ability to upset the status quo was attractive to some people in the 8th Ward. However, many people don’t vote or don’t pay attention to the actual background of the candidates. Being a council member is a very hard, serious job. Most council members really care about Evanston and making it better. Mr. Reid takes pride in grandstanding for attention.
Dear Tired,
I agree with your points about folks not paying attention. Mr. Reid’s bio is that he was a “community organizer” and “political consultant”. I believe he may have worked in at least one of those roles with now Council Member Bobby Burns. Mr. Burns helped run Mr. Reid’s clerk campaign. Shortly after that election in 2017, I recall Mr. Reid hired Mr. Burns as the assistant City Clerk, when he ran that office. So there is some over lap here that I am always alert to when the Council votes and whether there seems to be like minded thinking on issues that seem out of step with the community. Maybe it is possible that the world is pivoting away from “the loudest voice wins!” mentality. I will be watching the 8th ward race with deep interest because, while I live in the 3rd ward, all the Council Members impact my community.
City council has become entrapped by this “equity” hustler who tries to guilt our city into doing his bidding. 4 close neighbors have been assaulted, downtown is an unsafe “for lease” zone, but council focuses on Reid’s beach boobs and ‘shrooms? (See front page of Evanston Roundtable this week). What is going on ?
Ward 4 alderman Niewsma: please don’t invite Reid to our ward 4 meetings again. We have enough problems of our own.
He had lots of excuses and ‘reasons’ the last time he faced eviction for not paying rent. This time around, I hope the STP (same thirty people) who backed him seriously consider the absurdity of defending him again. He’s been depending on the kindness of these folks for years.
The fact that this man has once again been brought to court for eviction reminds me of how misguided the city has become regarding evictions. The esteemed Moran center now holds clinics were they help people remove evictions from their court record – maybe this is how Mr. Reid was able to secure a second Evanston apartment after walking away from
the rent for the first!
But really the more dangerous outcome of this “eviction cleansing” policy is to hide the identity of dangerous individuals engaged in criminal activities who have been evicted (as is many times the case) from potential future landlords, thereby putting other residents of those buildings at risk.
People need to wake up to how these new “progressive” policies play out in the real world!
If people in the 8th ward don’t like his city council record and his inability to pay his rent they should vote him out. This is a problem with a built in solution.
I don’t care what you think of him but shaming him like this is horrible. Nobody should be subjected to this kind of humiliation.
I disagree. Why did it get to this point? Why did the landlord feel they needed to do this?
Indeed, for a landlord an eviction is a fraught and lengthy drama, something to be avoided, as often the landlord ends up eating the past – due rent. Reid I’m sure has per the law received many notices and warnings, and usually a landlord will work with a tenant to resolve the problem. He apparently lacks knowledge of that hoary old “cause – and – effect” process…
Why not? Guilting & shaming are Reid’s preferred tools to cajole others. The landlord has a right to have signage on his property & there is no expectation for privacy in such matters. The solution? Apologize, pay the rent owed, & perhaps publicly comment honestly about why the scenario unfolded in the first (second) place. Reid has made himself a very vocal & visible public entity. One can’t have it both ways.
An elected official is* supposed* to act with a sense of integrity and transparency – in both their public *and* personal life…
I’d suggest that Mr. Reid obtain some gainful employment so he can pay his rent… he’s certainly fairly useless in his present Evanston public role…
I’ve no sympathy for someone so neglectful — and this is the *second* time eviction proceedings have been started against him in recent years. He has abrogated his responsibility to those that elected him… *not* a “good look”…
The facts are that Reid’s actions have hijacked and humiliated our city council. It’s not just about “what we think.”
I agree to an extent. I actually feel bad for him a little bit, and I’m one of his biggest critics.
On the other end , $9K in unpaid rent isn’t right. He knows right from wrong and that’s not right. He should know better or be held accountable for his actions.
Simple as that , we all need to be held accountable for our actions.
The more I hear about Councilman Reid, the more fear and dread I feel. From the excessive and outrageous number of proposals that he wastes the council’s time with to his apparent lack of personal responsibility and integrity, his antics aren’t progressiveness, they appear more like a form of extremism, intended to harm, divide, disrupt, and distract. Sad to say it seems to be working. It is incumbent upon the Mayor and other council members to reign him in. It’s not only his 8th Ward constituents he is hurting, it is all Evanstonians. His legacy won’t be forgotten anytime soon, and for all the wrong reasons.
Seems like Reid will do anything to make the headlines. How many others does he stiff? A Trump wannabe in our midst.
Pictures speak a thousand words. Everyone else behind the windows of those units pays their rent. They work hard and make sacrifices and don’t expect others to bail them out. No one should complain about the lack of affordable housing in Evanston. We have plenty of it- unfortunately we have a lot of people like Reid who don’t want to work .
Wow, never expected Evanston to have so many closeted conservatives shaming a black man who is merely carrying out his civic duties. I guess they are trying to undermine his proposed policies, which is sad because we need more representation, more political power coming from underprivileged groups in our community, not less. Regarding the rent issue, since he is a public servant working for the city, can the city pay for it out of their budget? I believe it is incumbent on the city government to ensure that public servants live in reasonable comfort. All for one and one for all.
Bhahahah – can the city pay for his rent? How about the city pay for my mortgage when I have 2 kids? You kidding me? This guy is single, doesn’t pay property taxes, doesn’t have mouths to feed, etc etc. All he has to do is pay his rent and he won’t do it? Are you kidding me ?
Get lost with the racist stuff. That was 2 years ago, it’s over now. Can’t yell “racist” the loudest and expect it to work this time.
We all must be held accountable for our actions. All of us.
Nice try, Devon. But, we’re not paying your rent. We residents don’t owe you anything.
“Conservative?” I’ll bet most of us are liberals. It’s offensive for you to think that we liberals are too dumb to see through your shenanigans.
Race hustling , like crying wolf, has lost its luster. Please stop.
It’s one thing to owe back rent for a month because you’re down and out. But over $9,000 and this isn’t the first time he’s done this? Crazy idea but perhaps he needs to find a full time job? Certainly there are tons of Reid fans who would love to hire him.
Panz, the line of people growing weary of Reid’s antics stretches well beyond any being targeted for your ridiculous “closeted conservative” comment. This most likely comes as a shocking surprise to you, but some conservatives actually live in Evanston and aren’t “closeted”—-and amazing as it may seem, conservatives are allowed to critique Reid’s performance as an alderman. Additionally, Reid isn’t a public servant working for the city, he’s an elected civil servant representing the constituents of the 8th ward. The duties of said task requires he carry out his life in a responsible and respectful manner—-not paying his rent (for the 2nd time) happens to be a rather egregious violation of his responsibilities to office—-and no, the so called “shaming a black man who is merely carrying out his civic duties” doesn’t qualify for the city to pick up his tab—-it’s also Reid’s responsibility “to live in reasonable comfort”, not the taxpayers—-even though it appears Reid fully subscribes to “All for one and one for all”—-as long as one happens to be all for himself.
So… since he’s black residents can’t have opinions on how he does his job?
And the city should pay his rent? What is going on?
Living in an apartment is not doing civic duties, and no, it is not the job of the public to ensure elected officials live in reasonable comfort, especially when the position is part time. Ridiculous.
Yep, 2nd place where he wouldn’t pay the rent since being elected. I really can’t stand to hear anymore of this guy shouting about affordable housing when he chooses to only work a part time job. Most people would find Evanston unaffordable if they only worked part time. He is literally stealing. What does it say about his character that he lives his life this way? He used a disgusting fake accusation of racism to smear Rainey during the election and feels like it is OK to not pay his bills like the rest of us. Shame on the people who voted for him or just didn’t feel like participating in the election. I think we need to revisit not being able to recall Alders.
Can we criticize Reid now? Or would it only be because we are “Racist”? That word has long since lost its meaning and is the only reason Reid has made it so high up in Evanston govt. Remember, liberals of Evanston- You created this monster with your votes and not voting, and let it get bigger and bigger and bigger! If you want anyone to blame for Devon Reid’s constant debacles in Evanston govt: Look in the mirror!
CM Reid, a 29 year old, successfully ran for the role of City Clerk and then for City Council Representative of the 8th Ward. Mr Reid knew the CM salary of $25K, plus health insurance was his full compensation and his current landlord would have been aware of Mr. Reid’s salary on the renter’s application. Applications for an apartment are typically reviewed for past failures to pay. In both cases, adults made financial choices.
I do not understand the rationale in publicizing this situation nor the suggestion that somehow an eviction case is “racist” and that the city ought pay for his rent. This was a monetary transaction, or the lack of a transaction.
As to the matter of 8th ward and city representation from Council Members, voting matters. As I have stated before in this forum, all the Council Members impact our collective taxes and city wide “health”. Each ward elects its representative, which in many cases, turns on as few as 5-10 votes. The voters “wanted change” in the council in the April 2021 election and here we are. The next election for City Council will gear up in just about 2 years. It is possible for those who feel strongly that Mr. Reid deserves to be defeated to work to elect another candidate, no matter the ward they live in. Also, voters are free to give money to candidates across the city, no matter the ward they live. There will be people standing in line to run to represent the 8th ward and Mr. Reid will likely have a well funded opponent. Let’s not debate the “liberal” or “conservative” or “progressive” stance, but focus on solving the problems we have in the community and all make sure we are educated on the candidates who wish to serve us.
This guy is an incompetent mess. Second time he’s been evicted (if it happens here), he ran up $30K in unpaid fees to the state board of elections, which should have made him ineligible to run in 2021, but that somehow got reduced to $4K and he managed to pay it off…and all this on top of an incredible laundry list of mistakes, failures, and harassing behavior while city clerk. I’d say this story is newsworthy. Voters deserve to know whether our elected councilman doesn’t keep his financial responsibilities in order.
I was going to jump in with further criticism of this little grandstander and time-waster, but you guys beat me to it. Vote him out, 8th ward. He’s just not the sharpest tool in the shed and you, as well the rest of us Evanstonians, deserve better. Lots of big problems to manage here and the 8th ward should have an alderperson who isn’t one of them.
Thank you for this reporting. I think there is something seriously wrong with Mr. Reid. It’s a shame that the other Alders aren’t standing up against his crazy proposals. What are they afraid of?
David, the other CMs are probably afraid of being accused of racism if they criticize Reid.