Good Thursday morning, Evanstonians!
It won’t be hot today but certainly not cold – just think of it as nice cool break from the heat. Sunny, with a high of 76 degrees and no lower than 65 with slight north by northeast winds of 5 to 10 mph, the National Weather Service predicts.
Now, to the other news of the day.
The Evanston Police Department announced the completion of its investigation into nooses found at Haven Middle School Wednesday afternoon. Detectives concluded the nooses were placed by a Haven student, and referred the student to Juvenile Court with a misdemeanor charge of Disorderly Conduct. Superintendent Devon Horton issued a statement saying District 65 will resume its internal investigation in order to “determine the appropriate level of interventions, both disciplinary and restorative.”
A discussion on a proposal for a Kensington daycare center to replace the Unity Church at 3434 Central St. became a contentious, at times, back and forth about traffic and parking during last night’s meeting of the Evanston Land Use Commission. No decision was made as officials said they first need to see an opinion from the Illinois Department of Transportation on a Gross Point Road entrance. The Commission’s next hearing on the proposal will be July 27.
More than 60 local leaders on the Mayor’s Employer Advisory Council planned out local workforce development at its summer meeting. Attendees such as business owners, school administrators and nonprofit directors agreed that a high rate of inflation and a rapidly changing global economy heighten the need for Evanston teens to have access to a diversity of career and technical trainings.
COVID-19 by the numbers: 36 new cases were reported Tuesday, June 21, the last day the city updated totals. The seven-day average is 29.9 cases per day.
Elsewhere on the RoundTable website
Evanston honors life and legacy of Bill Logan, city’s first Black police chief. The City will celebrate former Chief Bill Logan’s 90th birthday and his career of service in Evanston this weekend. The festivities include showcasing a gallery exhibit on his life at the Civic Center, naming a portion of McDaniel Avenue “William ‘Bill’ Logan Jr. Way” and dedicating Saturday’s “The Official Block Party” to Logan, featuring a drum circle at 1 p.m. and an afternoon picnic.
At This Time: Artist Yeefah Thurman is one of 20 individuals or organizations receiving a grant from the Evanston Arts Council. The artists will split a total of $70,000, the council announced Wednesday. Thurman will use her money to create an artist residency for middle schoolers who will be taught about liberation and reparations. The students will make assemblage art based on what they learn. Here she sits in her studio with art she created about her family’s escape from slavery. Thurman will display the work at a talk at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Evanston Art Center.
Taming the beast: The Intricacies of Recycling in Evanston. Our fair city currently has a curbside recycling rate of around 33%. The recycling stream is an eco option that is fairly easy and available to almost everyone in Evanston, mostly through weekly residential pick-ups in curbside carts. When done right, recycling preserves natural resources by taking existing materials and turning them into something new.
What’s up with that: Why are the big fish schooling near the NU bridge? ERT reporter Wendi Kromash isn’t carping, she just wants to take a deep dive into why so many fish crowd around the dead end near the Northwestern Lakefill’s wooden bridge.
Celebrate 100 years of the Evanston Fourth of July Association. The award-winning Evanston 4th of July Parade begins at 2 p.m. Monday on Central Street at Central Park Avenue and travels east to Ashland Avenue. Lakefront fireworks set to music will begin at approximately 9:30 p.m. and can be heard at radio station 90.5 FM.
Sewer rehabilitation on Greenleaf Street to begin June 27. The City of Evanston is beginning a project to rehabilitate the large diameter sewer on Greenleaf Street from the North Shore Channel to Dewey Avenue. Work will begin June 27 and be completed by Sept. 29.
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Around the web
Senate set to take critical vote advancing bipartisan gun bill toward final passage. The vote is expected to pass with Republican support as soon as this week.
Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez pulled a $120 million proposal Wednesday to build a new high school to serve the Near South Side, mere hours before the Board of Education was set to vote on next year’s budget.
Uvalde Police Chief Pete Arredondo was placed on administrative leave Wednesday by Superintendent Hal Harrell. After a report calling the police actions that day an “abject failure,” Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin’s announced that Robb Elementary School would be demolished.
President Biden called on Congress Wednesday to suspend the federal gas and diesel taxes for three months to provide some financial relief at the pump. Suspensions are unlikely to make it through the deadlocked Senate, even as the national average price hovers around $5 a gallon.
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