The Daily Northwestern — February 26th, 2024 by The Daily Northwestern

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The Daily Northwestern Monday, February 26, 2024

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City debates small homes to add to it, just seems Evanston residents corner, a little bit foolhardy,” resident oppose new pocket Garin Ferri said. Many residents said they neighborhood plan would welcome a different By SHUN GRAVES

the daily northwestern @realshungraves

Illustration by Shveta Shah

Bargaining committee member Jakob Reinke said the final decision about the tentative contract is in the hands of the members.

Grad workers reach tentative deal NUGW to vote on ratifying contract with University in March By COLE REYNOLDS and SAMANTHA POWERS

daily senior staffer @charcole27 / @sqpowers04

Negotiators for the Northwestern University Graduate Workers union reached a

tentative contract agreement with the University Wednesday night after a 14-hour bargaining session. The agreement comes after about nine months of negotiations, which reached a climax in January when more than

2,000 union members threatened to strike. Members of the union will vote to ratify the contract from March 11-13. After the votes are counted and verified, NUGW will release results on March 18.

Bargaining committee member Jakob Reinke, a thirdyear Ph.D. candidate in materials science and engineering, told The Daily that NUGW is pushing for a “clear majority”

» See NUGW, page 9

Just north of bustling McCormick Boulevard, residents walked their dogs and sauntered around a quiet Evanston neighborhood lined with townhomes, two-flats and single-family homes Sunday. But, a narrow, empty lot on Grant Street and the adjoining site of an older house have sparked hubbub in the community. The plot could soon become Evanston’s first pocket neighborhood — a cluster of small homes designed to be as energy-efficient as possible. City Council is set to vote Monday on whether to grant the project a special use permit. Yet, over the past few months, the lot’s neighbors have intensely campaigned against the proposal for 12 efficiency homes at the site. More than a hundred residents have signed a petition urging the city to reject the “woefully inadequate” plan. “To have this many people densely packed into this

sort of residential development, or affordable housing, at the lot — though they do not support what the developer proposed. David Wallach, CEO of Wisconsin-based BluePaint Development, initially submitted the proposal. He said the plan will offer options for younger, middle-market buyers who want to buy their first homes. According to Wallach’s plans, each of the development’s 600-square-foot, allelectric homes will include two bedrooms, a bathroom, kitchen and living areas. The plot will also include 15 parking spaces and a common barbecue area. Wallach said the single-family homes will sell for under $350,000 apiece. He commissioned a market study to show demand exists for small homes in Evanston — even if the steep price of up to $600 per square foot stands nearly double the average cost for detached homes. “It doesn’t change the fact that people who want to live

» See NEIGHBORHOOD, page 9

Police respond to Local Democrats hold GOTV rally shooting reports Ahead of March primaries, Evanston politicians begin outreach NUPD issued a shelter in place on Evanston campus By SAMANTHA POWERS

daily senior staffer @sqpow2ers04

Northwestern issued an “all clear” message at 11:44 p.m. after Evanston and Northwestern police dispatched to the Henry and Leigh Bienen School of Music at 70 Arts Circle Drive following reports of shots fired, University Police told The Daily Sunday night. Police said no injured person was located but instructed community members to continue to avoid the area while police remained on the scene. Community members received an initial alert at 10:53 p.m. on Sunday announcing an “active threat” on the Evanston campus. The alert instructed students to run, hide or fight and take proper shelter. It told students to lock down

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and barricade doors. A following message sent at 11:07 informed members of the community that Northwestern Police were on the scene and instructed students to shelter in place until further notice. The incident on the Evanston campus came after students criticized NU’s Alert System for releasing a faulty message after shots were fired on Clark Street Beach in April. After the incident, Chief of Police and Senior Associate Vice President Bruce Lewis and Vice President for Operations and Chief Operating Officer Luke Figora announced updates to the system. “ We have updated our emergency messaging to allow us to send faster and clearer updates regarding campus security matters, weather-related alerts or other emergencies,” the pair wrote in a Sept. 21 email to the community. samanthapowers2026@u. northwestern.edu

By MISHA OBEROI

the daily northwestern

The Democratic Party of Evanston held a “get out the vote” rally at the Unitarian Church of Evanston Sunday. Mayor Daniel Biss, U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Evanston), Cook County State’s Attorney candidate Clayton Harris III, Clerk of the Circuit Court candidate Mariyana Spyropoulos and several other Democratic leaders were in attendance. With the March 19 primaries around the corner, the rally intended to inform Evanston voters about the Democratic candidates endorsed by the party. At the beginning of the rally, several dozen demonstrators wearing keffiyehs and holding signs entered the church to call for a ceasefire in Gaza. They began shouting “Ceasefire now” and “Our money is going to kill people,” while the Democratic Party’s speakers attempted to continue with the event. “If the Democrats want to continue to get progressive

votes…they cannot continue to take us for granted, they cannot continue to be complicit in the dispossession of Palestinians,” said Lesley Williams, former president of the Community Alliance for Better Government and one of the organizers of the protest. The protestors departed after several minutes, after which the rally resumed. Biss moderated the event, introducing each candidate, emphasizing the importance of the primaries and encouraging attendees to vote. “We have just under four weeks from now a critical primary election where our progressive values are at stake in several key elections,” Biss said. Schakowsky, who is running unopposed in the primary, also took to the podium to introduce Harris, who is running for Cook County State Attorney against Eileen O’Neill Burke. In his remarks, Harris spoke about safety and justice, emphasizing that they are mutually inclusive missions in his campaign. “Safety and justice are not an ‘either-or’ proposition,”

Henry Frieman/The Daily Northwestern

Peaceful demonstrators interrupted the Democratic Party of Evanston’s “get out the vote” rally at the Unitarian Church Sunday.

Harris said. “Safety and justice are an ‘and’ proposition. We do not have to sacrifice one for the other.” He also discussed his experience working in the State’s Attorney’s office, as well as his current job as a public policy

professor at the University of Chicago. Harris said he wants to tackle the people at the “top of the pyramid” who organize others to commit crimes like

» See RALLY, page 9