Good morning, Evanston.
Election day is here, which means the season of campaign yard signs, ad mailers, and candidates going door-to-door is officially over. Polls open at 6 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. See Voting in the April 6 General Election and our Election Guide for information about the Aldermanic, District 65 and District 202 School Board and City Clerk races on the ballot. if you haven’t voted already, you can find your polling place here. After polls close, you can follow election results here.
On Saturday, two groups joined forces to lead a march to the Civic Center focused on anti-racism, inclusion, and the importance of voting. Caregivers of Color and Our Village then held a rally and press conference in support of the District’s Efforts to Put Equity at the Forefront.
Also on Saturday, the City’s new ‘Morris “Dino” Robinson Way’ was unveiled at the corner of Church Street and Gray Avenue. The street naming recognizes Mr. Robinson’s contributions to Evanston through years of chronicling local Black history as co-founder of Shorefront Legacy Center. Fifth Ward Alderman Robin Rue Simmons said Mr. Robinson’s archiving stories and his research “made it possible for us to do our reparations work.”
COVID-19 By the Numbers: We are checking in with many sources to keep you updated on COVID-19 cases and vaccine information.
- Nine new cases were reported yesterday in Evanston, the seven-day average is now seventeen.
- Northwestern University reported 83 new cases for the seven days ending March 31.
- There were no reported fatalities yesterday. Evanston has lost 114 residents to the pandemic.
- Our City’s positive test rate for the past seven days is 1.8%; in Illinois it is 3.8%.
- The number of cases per 100,000 population over the past seven days is 158 in Evanston and 150 in Illinois.
- Illinois received just over 1 million doses and used 741,000 doses of the vaccine in the past seven days. Illinois has used 81% of the 7.8 million doses received to date.
- About 2.4 million or 18.7% of total Illinois residents are fully vaccinated, including 298,750 in the past seven days.
Variants – The Illinois Department of Public Health now reports 494 cases of more infectious COVID-19 variants including 388 cases of variant B.1.1.7 (UK), 59 cases of P.1 (Brazil) and 44 cases of B.1.427/429 (California).
Evanston Vax Facts: Some 44% of Evanston residents 16 and older have received at least one dose of the vaccine and 22% of residents 16 and older are fully vaccinated. The proportion of Evanston seniors vaccinated is higher; 91% of residents 65 and older have received at least one dose and 60% are fully vaccinated.
Evanston received 1,035 doses of the vaccine last week. The City is now vaccinating Phase 1B and 1B+ individuals. More details are available on the City’s Vaccine Dashboard.
Beginning April 12, everyone 16 and older will be eligible for vaccination in the State of Illinois. Check the RoundTable’s resource page for vaccination and testing updates.
The RoundTable is adding journalists to our stable of writers. As we expand our coverage, we’re looking for reporters interested in covering topics related to Evanston schools, arts, business, and City news. Interested? Please email us at news@evanstonroundtable.com with a resume and writing clips.
Elsewhere on the RoundTable website
February Unemployment Figures Show Improvement. According to figures released this month by the Illinois Department of Employment Security, 2,485 Evanston residents were unemployed in February, down 280 from January. Unemployment is still elevated however; February levels are 2.4 times higher than one year ago.
Scenes from the Cutting Room Floor: Filmmaker John Anderson Shares Stories from His Career Filming His Rock & Roll Heroes. John Anderson is a well-known musician, producer, and filmmaker with a particular specialty: he directs and films documentary films about rock and roll legends. On March 30, the Levy Lecture crowd was treated to ninety minutes of storytelling, movie clips, and previously unseen photos and unheard musical excerpts.
Upcoming Events
In celebration of Earth Month, the Evanston Public Library’s “Climate Resilient Communities” series includes a broad selection of climate activism programming.
Mark your calendar: The 2021 Downtown Evanston Farmers’ Market will be opening on May 1.
For a list of other upcoming events and meetings, please check the RoundTable calendar. You can also Submit an event for our calendar.
Around the Web
- Navy Pier’s IMAX Theater Closes for Good
- Northwestern selected for national study on virus transmission after vaccination
- Opinion: Are the sidewalks at Northwestern too White, too?
- Pining for April in Paris? The Louvre just digitized an estimated 482,000 works in its collection — making access free online.
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