Plans to build low income housing on the former site of an American Legion post in Wilmette have brought complaints from neighbors that the new building will cause crime problems similar to those experienced in Evanston.
The neighbors, as reported by Daily North Shore, have cited 10 years of police incident reports from the Claridge Apartments at 319 Dempster St. in Evanston, owned by Housing Opportunity Development Corporation, the non-profit that’s planning to redevelop the American Legion property at 1925 Wilmette Ave,
Based on a Freedom of Information Act request to Evanston Police, the neighbors claim that there’ve been “57 nuisance complaints, 57 disturbance complaints, 4 criminal trespass, 3 suicide attempts, 7 domestic battery, 1 death by drug overdose, 10 mental afflictions and 16 suspicious persons” at the Claridge site over the past 10 years.
HODC has said it plans to rely on a waiting list for the Claridge building to help fill the planned 20-unit building in Wilmette.
The neighbors claim the building would be the first low-income housing in Wilmette not targeted to seniors, veterans or people with disabilities.