Travel on Church Street? Attend an open house meeting from 4 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, July 27, at the Evanston Ecology Center about the preliminary engineering study for future pedestrian and bicycle improvements along Church Street between Dodge Avenue and the west City limits.
Project summary: Church Street is a key route within Evanston, running east-west through the heart of the City and into downtown. Destinations accessible by walking, cycling and transit abound within the corridor between Dodge Avenue and the North Shore Channel, including the North Shore Channel Trail, Evanston Township High School, and community-oriented retail at the northwest corner of Church Street and Dodge Street. Multi-use facilities have been constructed along the south side of Church Street east of Dodge Avenue over the past decade, however the City wants to continue pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure on Church Street to the west city limits at the North Shore Channel. In addition to the Church Street route, bicycle facilities are sought to fill the gap between the off-street paths along the east side of the North Shore Channel between Harbert Park to the south and Beck Park to the north.
The City has now initiated a preliminary environmental and design study (a Phase I study) to fully evaluate these improvements. The objectives of the study are to improve safety for people walking across Church Street within the project limits, fill a gap in the bicycle network on Church Street between Dodge Avenue and the west city limits, and fill the gap in the trail network along the east side of the North Shore Channel between Dempster Street and Church Street, with the goal of improving safety and mobility for people walking and riding bikes within these corridors. The Phase I Study for this project will include environmental and location-design studies needed to develop and refine geometric improvements, evaluate costs and impacts, and undertake coordination with jurisdictional agencies and the public.
Chicago Avenue Multimodal Improvements: Join the City for a public meeting regarding potential multimodal improvements along Chicago Avenue from Howard Street to Davis Street. The meeting will take place from 4 to 7 p.m. on Thursday, July 29 at City Volkswagen of Evanston. The goal of the project is to improve safety and comfort for all roadway users including pedestrians, cyclists, buses, cars and various modes of transportation. The project will also review intersection operations along the Chicago Avenue Corridor.