Vote on Ryan Field delayed as Northwestern unveils sweetened proposal
EVANSTON, Ill. (CBS) -- For months, CBS 2 has reported about a new plan for Ryan Field at Northwestern University.
The $800 million privately-funded plan to rebuild the stadium has drawn major community pushback. It has been splitting council members and firing up residents and community groups from Evanston and neighboring Wilmette.
At stake is the question of whether the City of Evanston will get on board with plans to rebuild the stadium and eventually host concerts there in the off-season?
There was supposed to be a final vote on the plan on Monday. But something changed, as Evanston delayed a decision on the fate of the stadium. Members are pausing to consider a new proposal from the school, and the vote was pushed to next week.
In the revised proposal, Northwestern substantially increased the amount of money they'll pay the city for the project, from $100 million for Evanston and other city programs for 10 years, to more than $150 million over 15 years.
Several Evanston City Council members wanted to table the vote to allow more time to digest and understand Northwestern's new proposal.
Under the latest proposal, Northwestern has sweetened its deal. The university would pay the City of Evanston $3 million a year for 15 years as a "Good Neighbor Fund" to further projects of interest to the city and Northwestern.
Also included are an investment by Northwestern in the Evanston local workforce development amounting to $500,000 a year; a $500,000 yearly investment by Northwestern in racial equity programming for the City of Evanston; a contribution of at least $1 million a year to help Evanston nonprofits, community groups, faith-based institutions, and schools; a fund of at least $2 million a year to award financial aid to students from Evanston who attend Northwestern; and a contribution of at least $250,000 a year by Northwestern to improve downtown Evanston. These and other provisions would all be paid out for 15 years.
Northwestern has promised the stadium project will bring more jobs and tourism dollars to Evanston.
But people who live in the area said they didn't enough of a say in the changing proposal, and they're not okay with possible noise or traffic distribution from live concerts.
We heard from residents and groups, on both sides, showing up at the Evanston Civic Center in full force today.
"I think the building of this field will give new opportunities to the Evanston community and really liven up the neighborhood," said Destiny Ekwebland, who is supportive of the new Ryan Field.
"The neighborhood in and around the stadium is a highly dense residential neighborhood that has a local hospital and a fire station nearby, and this traffic, that would also consume the neighborhood, would cause a significant amount of problems," said Sebastian Nalls, who opposed the new Ryan Field. He is with the group Community Alliance for Better Government.
The new proposal also likewise drew both criticism and praise
"It's not that great of a deal for the residents," said Jim Froberg, who opposes the Ryan Field renovation. "I mean, I agree -- anytime someone wants to pay $175 million, it's a nice thing to have. But I think it could be better."
"What Northwestern has put forth in front of our community is very meaningful; represents quite an increase from what they first came with," said Peggy Baxter, who supports the renovation, "so I think we are confident that the proposal will stick."
The Most Livable City Association released a statement on the delay of the vote:
"Clearly, Northwestern wanted to rush this through, so we're glad the City Council paused the process. The City of Evanston stands on the brink of making a permanent, irrevocable zoning change that would impact the lives of thousands of Evanstonians — a change the Evanston Land Use Commission rejected overwhelmingly.
"Like its previous offers, NU's latest MOU would mean all of Evanston' (sic) zoning is for sale to unaccountable billionaires and powerful institutions. No Evanston neighborhood or ward would be safe."
