On January 27th, the City of Evanston Plan Commission voted to approve an ordinance that would allow small homes to be built on irregular (especially small) properties. This policy will go to the Planning & Development Committee next.

EDC was excited to give public comment and advocate for this policy as a housing affordability and racial equity measure. Given the scarcity of land in our city, we support opportunities to activate vacant properties for diverse housing types and lower-cost homeownership. 

On January 7th, neighbors of the West End Area Block Club invited EDC for a meaningful conversation on housing.

Residents talked about the rise in white homeowners in west Evanston since the Great Recession of 2008, and they shared ideas on how ADUs could be an affordable housing solution. People suggested project-based voucher ADUs, a reparations framework for housing initiatives, and partnerships that include sweat equity or volunteer labor to reduce the cost of construction.

If you’re part of a neighborhood or community group that would be interested in a similar discussion, please reach out to us to schedule a virtual event and help guide EDC’s long-term vision! 

Evanston was mentioned in a Washington Post article this month as a City that has eased regulations for ADUs!

Thank you to our City staff, Council members, advocates, and residents in the community that helped make Evanston a national leader on this housing solution. 

Invited by Illinois Green Alliance and Douglas Farr, EDC presented on January 21st to a group of 80+ decarbonization leaders to share our work on all-electric ADUs. Co-presenters included Cook County, the City of Chicago, the City of Evanston, Slipstream (a ComEd partner) , and NRDC.

Carbon Free Chicago is a 30-year campaign to promote the equitable transition to a carbon-free economy, and it regularly hosts events for practitioners to share their projects and programs. Learn more about Carbon Free Chicago here.