About the Project
Did You Know?
In the summer of 2020, Joining Forces began what is now called the Equitable Zoning Project (EZP), with the intent to identify how the zoning code of the City of Evanston, Illinois, may play a role in:
- Discouraging the development of affordable housing,
- Preserving racial and socio-economic segregation, and
- Perpetuating inequities among residents.
Evanston's zoning code determines:
The rules that are in place help some people and harm others.
- Who you can live with
- The kinds of buildings and where they can be built
- Which neighborhoods have affordable and accessible homes
The rules that are in place help some people and harm others.
Joining Forces sought feedback from people in the demographic groups who often seek assistance from Connections for the Homeless. Most people in these groups are members of marginalized communities within Evanston, and people with these demographics have been found to be the most at risk for homelessness and housing instability. Specifically, we sought input from the following:
.About the Project
Connections for the Homeless and Joining Forces have observed the City of Evanston making decisions around zoning and land use that do not support the development of affordable housing and that, therefore, potentially impact different groups of people and their access to housing that meets their needs in different ways. The EZP process included the following steps:
Joining Forces for Affordable Housing is conducting an Equitable Zoning Project to identify the impacts of Evanston's current zoning code on residents' ability to access housing that is equitable and affordable.
Phase 1: Zoning Review
In the first step of the project, Connections hired ZoneCo to complete a comprehensive analysis of the existing city of Evanston Zoning Code. In their analysis, ZoneCo found Evanston's zoning code to be relatively restrictive, with a emphasis on preserving property values and community character and little attention to equity and access to affordable housing. You can read the summary of the ZoneCo report here.
Phase 2: Community Input
The next step is to engage in a community dialog around those most impacted by the current, restrictive zoning code. Connects awarded $5,000 grants to seven community organizations to help design, organize, and implement a process for gaining input from community members on the impact of the current zoning code and how to create more equitable zoning code.
Project Community Partners include:
EC2C Advocates for Action
Center for Independent Futures
Evanston NAACP
Evanston Latinos
Evanston Own It
Laude Consulting LLC with Radio La Difference
VAJM Consulting
Other participants in the project include:
Chicago Metropolitan Agency on Planning, First Repair, the City of Evanston, and ZoneCo LLC
Additionally, Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss and Housing & Grants Manager for the City of Evanston, Sarah Flax, are participating in designing the input vehicles and questions.
The project is funded by the Chicago Community Trust, the Crossroads Foundation, and the Evanston Community Foundation, as well as by Connections for the Homeless.
3. Selection of Partners for Gathering Community Input
To evaluate whether conclusions drawn from the reviews of the zoning code were accurate, we decided to gather feedback from those community members who are potentially affected by zoning in negative ways and who represent the people with the greatest challenges regarding affordable housing. We embarked on a community input phase of the EZP, with two main goals:
To identify who we wanted to gather feedback from, Joining Forces looked at the demographics of the people that Connections for the Homeless serves—all people who are struggling with the lack of affordable housing. Overwhelmingly, Connections’ clientele includes:
To help with community engagement, Connections for the Homeless applied for and received grants from the following organizations:
The following community groups were engaged to help with gathering the community input:
4. Data Collection
Each group developed its own strategy to 1) reach people within their own spheres of influence, and 2) elicit substantive answers on the topic of zoning.
Using a survey and focus groups, the community groups recruited more than 500 people to provide input on the impact that land use decisions have had on them and on their opinions regarding the trade-offs that need to be made when zoning decisions are considered.
5. Data Analysis and Next Steps
Joining Forces is in the process of analyzing the data to determine what it says about how people with different demographics answered the survey questions and responded during the focus groups. From that analysis, we will be developing a report that documents our findings and evaluates whether they support the findings in Joining Forces’ and ZoneCo’s reviews of the zoning code.
This report will be used in several ways:
Click here to return to our Zoning Committee page
Connections for the Homeless and Joining Forces have observed the City of Evanston making decisions around zoning and land use that do not support the development of affordable housing and that, therefore, potentially impact different groups of people and their access to housing that meets their needs in different ways. The EZP process included the following steps:
- Joining Forces conducted a review of the zoning code, which showed patterns in the code with potential to increase housing costs, preserve segregation, and create racial and socio-economic disparities.
- We engaged with the zoning consultancy ZoneCo LLC to have a more detailed review performed, and ZoneCo’s results confirmed our findings.
- With support from the City of Evanston, we launched a community input process to:
- Gather input from community members, implementing strategies that allow people at risk of housing instability to have equal opportunities for engagement in the project
- Evaluate the impact of Evanston’s zoning and land use policies on participants in the project, and those participants’ priorities for zoning and use of land in Evanston
- Explore differences in experiences and priorities based on income, race, and disability status
Joining Forces for Affordable Housing is conducting an Equitable Zoning Project to identify the impacts of Evanston's current zoning code on residents' ability to access housing that is equitable and affordable.
Phase 1: Zoning Review
In the first step of the project, Connections hired ZoneCo to complete a comprehensive analysis of the existing city of Evanston Zoning Code. In their analysis, ZoneCo found Evanston's zoning code to be relatively restrictive, with a emphasis on preserving property values and community character and little attention to equity and access to affordable housing. You can read the summary of the ZoneCo report here.
Phase 2: Community Input
The next step is to engage in a community dialog around those most impacted by the current, restrictive zoning code. Connects awarded $5,000 grants to seven community organizations to help design, organize, and implement a process for gaining input from community members on the impact of the current zoning code and how to create more equitable zoning code.
Project Community Partners include:
EC2C Advocates for Action
Center for Independent Futures
Evanston NAACP
Evanston Latinos
Evanston Own It
Laude Consulting LLC with Radio La Difference
VAJM Consulting
Other participants in the project include:
Chicago Metropolitan Agency on Planning, First Repair, the City of Evanston, and ZoneCo LLC
Additionally, Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss and Housing & Grants Manager for the City of Evanston, Sarah Flax, are participating in designing the input vehicles and questions.
The project is funded by the Chicago Community Trust, the Crossroads Foundation, and the Evanston Community Foundation, as well as by Connections for the Homeless.
3. Selection of Partners for Gathering Community Input
To evaluate whether conclusions drawn from the reviews of the zoning code were accurate, we decided to gather feedback from those community members who are potentially affected by zoning in negative ways and who represent the people with the greatest challenges regarding affordable housing. We embarked on a community input phase of the EZP, with two main goals:
- Increase access and engagement among people most impacted by the lack of affordable housing
- Gather substantive input from those people about the impact of the affordable housing shortage on them and about how zoning might be contributing to the problem
To identify who we wanted to gather feedback from, Joining Forces looked at the demographics of the people that Connections for the Homeless serves—all people who are struggling with the lack of affordable housing. Overwhelmingly, Connections’ clientele includes:
- People with low incomes (in households with annual incomes lower than $75,000)
- People of color
- People with disabilities
To help with community engagement, Connections for the Homeless applied for and received grants from the following organizations:
- Chicago Community Trust
- Evanston Community Foundation
- Cornerstone Foundation
The following community groups were engaged to help with gathering the community input:
- Center for Independent Futures
- Evanston Cradle to Career’s Advocates for Action
- Evanston Latinos
- Evanston NAACP
- Evanston Own It
- Laude Consulting, in partnership with Radio La Difference
- VAJM Consulting
4. Data Collection
Each group developed its own strategy to 1) reach people within their own spheres of influence, and 2) elicit substantive answers on the topic of zoning.
Using a survey and focus groups, the community groups recruited more than 500 people to provide input on the impact that land use decisions have had on them and on their opinions regarding the trade-offs that need to be made when zoning decisions are considered.
5. Data Analysis and Next Steps
Joining Forces is in the process of analyzing the data to determine what it says about how people with different demographics answered the survey questions and responded during the focus groups. From that analysis, we will be developing a report that documents our findings and evaluates whether they support the findings in Joining Forces’ and ZoneCo’s reviews of the zoning code.
This report will be used in several ways:
- It is being provided to the Community Groups who conducted the research and helped develop the report so that they can share it with the people whose input they gathered.
- It will be included as input into the City of Evanston’s upcoming projects to develop a new Comprehensive Plan and rewrite its zoning code.
- Joining Forces will use pieces of it to continue its community education and advocacy for zoning reform, in Evanston, in surrounding municipalities, and at the State level.
Click here to return to our Zoning Committee page
