2019 October 28 - P&D

On October 28, 2019, the P&D (Planning and Development Commission ) decided to allow Northwestern text amendment proposal to be introduced at Council

See below: October P&D Minutes

See below the three transcriptions of the P&D YouTube video re NU's text amendment proposal. The first one covers the Public Comment, the second covers NU's presentation, and the third covers the discussion between the seven Aldermen, Ms. MasonCup (Corporation Counsel), and Ms. Leonard (Director of Community Development).

Part 1. Public Comment and Experts Presentations - 1:31-47:58

Part 2. NU presentation & power point with amended figures

49:09-59:42 (total of 10 minutes and 33 seconds)

Slides from the NU power point

Part 3. Aldermanic Discussion Transcript – 59:59 - 1:42:16

In the same transcript below, Spotlight puts a few passages in bold/highlight to show some of the notable statements

For example:

• Wilson statement about trusting NU vs adhering to Standards.

The other three pro-NU aldermen did not even bother to mention Standards.

Standards in fact are what legally the P&D is supposed to discuss for either approving or denying a text amendment proposal. Alderpersons Revelle and Wynne were very clear on this point.

• Spotlight is puzzled by Counsel Masoncup's statement about the notice requirements of a map amendment . We are looking into the veracity of her claim that a map amendment requires a city wide notice (and not just a notice to the residents within a 1,000 feet or possibly 500" of the property in question)

• Also: The newspaper where the notice was circulated was the Evanston Review, which requires a paid subscription to be accessible.

• Alderperson Rainey equates her past appraiser expertise to Mr. Richter. Spotlight doubts the veracity of that statement

• Alderperson Rainey asks for the Welsh Ryan Arena renovation traffic studies and agrees with Alderperson Revelle that parking studies for that renovation should also be available. In later meetings Rainey never brought up the issue again, and the studies were never presented. In fact, according to Spotlight research in City archives, no studies had been conducted. How then did the Arena's renovation go forward without these studies? And without proper notification to neighbors? Spotlight believes it had to do with the fact that NU assured the City that the use of the facility would not change. A few years later, of course NU started the process of changing the use to add commercial and pro-sports events! Maybe that is why NU did not specify the Arena in their first two text Amendment proposals (February and April).

• Below see some of the text from the aldermanic transcription.

Wilson: So, I don’t want to just vote, so I feel like it’s, it’s only fair to try to, you know, talk a little bit more about this. The - we got a lot of information, a lot of, number of comments from people I appreciate that, I try to get through, hopefully if not all of it most of it. And, you know, it’s, it’s a challenging situation. I don’t live in the neighborhood, okay; I spend a lot of time in the neighborhood. I see the, I see the, I see what’s described, so I don’t want to, I, I don’t take issue with what people report as what’s regards to what their experience is, but I think as we look at the standards here it really may be more, the fundamental question is whether or not we believe Northwestern. So, Northwestern says something, but it’s a question whether we believe them as opposed to whether or not they have enumerated whether they will meet the standards or not..

Rainey: .... I talked to Miss Mann who fears that the next come back from Northwestern will be the stadium. I told her tonight that I will absolutely never, ever vote if I’m here, vote for a proposal complementary to this for the stadium: never, ever! ... Pat Hughes who lives next door to the Arena finds that’s acceptable and is willing to look at a trial. I think the Chamber, I think the Chamber presentation, they did give us a copy of that, is very, very interesting. I, you know, I‘ve read those results also, I’m a former licensed appraiser and I know that things like quarries and things do reduce the, your property values, but I, I don’t believe, I, I don’t agree with Mr. Richter that this, this is going to reduce property values. I think we need to give this a try.

Rainey: Parking is not going to be an issue. I don’t believe parking is going to be an issue.

FSimmons: Director Leonard?

Leonard: In response to Alderman Simmons’ question about process. Text amendment is - the notification for that is a notice in a paper of local circulation, not 15 days not less than 15 days not more than 30 days prior to the public hearing and the public hearing is the Planning Commission they are the body that deliberates.

Simmons: So what I’m trying to get at, I heard mentioned there hadn’t been traffic studies and some other valid concerns. I’m trying to get at how do we do that?

Rainey: ... I wanted to ask about when, when Ryan Arena was developed. I am certain that traffic studies had to have been done regarding the number of seats that were in the arena and I’m sure they are available some place and I would like us to get those. This is an introduction only and we have two weeks before this comes back to the Council for further discussion so I would like our staff to look into those, into that paperwork and I’m sure there are documents. There has to be, I mean they couldn’t have built a project of this size without traffic studies. So I think there are actually 8,000 seats in the arena and there have to be traffic studies, they wouldn’t have built.

Simmons: Just trying to get that because I heard that hadn’t been done I think that’s a fair concern, so -

Rainey: No, but traffic studies yes. But the traffic studies had to have been done for building the building and building the building had to do with having 7,000, 8,000 people there. So there are traffic studies, maybe not for a concert but same number of people that would be coming regardless of when they built the building. So, I would like to see -

Simmons: It’s just asking that we could see it.

Rainey: I know I want to see it, so they have two weeks to get them to us.

Simmons: That would be helpful. Alderman Revelle?

Revelle: Well, and in addition I think we want to see what parking, what the parking requirement was and because I believe they had to be some variations given because the number of parking spaces is less than is required in -

Rainey: Good point.

It is "interesting" that the City decided to superimpose NU's final slide over the entire Council in the YouTube video. Who is thanking whom?