North Cook News

Results of a community survey and the school district timeline were among the topics discussed as Evanston City Council was updated on the Fifth Ward School/Community Center project. 

City Engineer Lara Biggs told the council that the community survey revealed a desire to preserve the Foster Field green space, a preference that located the building closer to Foster Street, and a swimming pool and playground as amenities during her presentation at a January 9 meeting. 

"The information we've gotten back now gives us a certain amount of information that indicates that not everybody is on board with just moving forward with the existing status quo of the school district building, the new school on the green space, and leaving no community part really to speak of," Biggs said during the meeting. "However, it's not really enough to tell us exactly what people want, and for that reason, we would recommend engaging in a much more robust community engagement process."

The project has been an ongoing topic of discussion. The site is home to an existing field, some city land and a small community center. There was concern about losing the green space and the center's ability to help families in the area. 

Biggs said the district is on a tight timeline, so there is a possibility the district could separate from the city and rebuild the community center on its own. Biggs recommended taking that route so the school could meet its deadline and the city could have the time to do more outreach. 

Councilman Bobby Burns was in favor of making a decision soon so the city could stay in line with the school district so any potential future planning issues could be avoided. Council worked out a schedule to bring the issue to other committees and get more community input.