Next Steps
Ready to make a difference in Evanston? Click below and join the Equitable Zoning Campaign!
As a next step, Connections is issuing calls to action to all sectors in the community to encourage zoning reform that will remove many of the barriers to increasing housing affordability.
FOR THE CITY OF EVANSTON.
We urge the City Council to approve zoning reform through the Envision Evanston 2045 effort, including the recommendations in this report.
FOR THE COMMUNITY
People Who Are Unstably Housed or At Risk
If you are struggling to pay for your housing, and if you are among those groups who are most likely to be struggling (low-income, people of color, those with disabilities), your experiences are what decision-makers need to hear. See below for information on how you can advocate.
Local Businesses Impacted by a Shortage of Local Workers
Businesses are highly impacted by the lack of affordable housing in the community. You can become advocates as well by doing the following:
Human Services Organizations
Non-profits that serve people with low incomes, people of color, and people with disabilities or other challenges know firsthand how destructive unstable housing is to people’s well-being. Your experiences and those of the people you serve can be extremely effective in making the case for zoning changes that can lead to increased affordability.
Communities of Faith with a Focus on Social Justice
HOW TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Joining Forces urges everyone to make their opinions known to City Council members, as well as to the community at large, through the following actions:
FOR THE CITY OF EVANSTON.
We urge the City Council to approve zoning reform through the Envision Evanston 2045 effort, including the recommendations in this report.
FOR THE COMMUNITY
People Who Are Unstably Housed or At Risk
If you are struggling to pay for your housing, and if you are among those groups who are most likely to be struggling (low-income, people of color, those with disabilities), your experiences are what decision-makers need to hear. See below for information on how you can advocate.
Local Businesses Impacted by a Shortage of Local Workers
Businesses are highly impacted by the lack of affordable housing in the community. You can become advocates as well by doing the following:
- Share the difficulties you have in finding and retaining workers who can afford to live in Evanston.
- Share how the stress of paying too much for housing impacts worker health, morale, and productivity.
- Share any stories about how land use restrictions have limited what you can do as a business
Human Services Organizations
Non-profits that serve people with low incomes, people of color, and people with disabilities or other challenges know firsthand how destructive unstable housing is to people’s well-being. Your experiences and those of the people you serve can be extremely effective in making the case for zoning changes that can lead to increased affordability.
Communities of Faith with a Focus on Social Justice
- Because Evanston has so many houses of worship, congregants represent a potentially powerful driver of change in the community. We encourage the interfaith organizations in Evanston, as well as individual communities of faith, to band together in the mission to demand zoning reform leading to housing justice.
HOW TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Joining Forces urges everyone to make their opinions known to City Council members, as well as to the community at large, through the following actions:
- Become a member of Joining Forces’ Zoning Reform Campaign and receive information on how to participate.
- Participate actively in Envision Evanston 2045 activities.
- Share your views within your spheres of influence by holding a neighborhood meeting, talking with people you know, using social media, etc.
