The Daily Northwestern — May 13, 2026 by The Daily Northwestern

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Council passes Housing4All Approved plan will address segregation, affordability issues By TIA BETHKE and ISABELLA KUNC

the daily northwestern

Illustration by Lucas Kubovchik

What’s ‘growing’ on at NU?

The Daily’s Spring 2026 Poll offers glimpse into NU’s undergraduate ecosystem By ASHLEY WEI

polling editor

Northwestern is in full bloom as ambitions come to fruition. As we approach the conclusion of the 2025-26 academic year, The Daily’s

Spring Poll aimed to capture student voices and the NU experience. This year was marked by pivotal issues, including the per vasive rise of artificial intelligence, shifts in University administration and ongoing tensions in a

polarized political climate. Students are now left weathering the uncertain higher education landscape. They continue to navigate their college experience, planting seeds for their future rooted in community and belonging.

Through these questions, students weighed in on these issues and more, offering a glimpse into the NU undergraduate ecosystem that is learning to flourish in the face of unpredictability.

» See POLLING, page 8

After hours of deliberation, City Council adopted Evanston’s new Strategic Housing Plan in a 7-2 vote at its Monday meeting. The vote followed a lengthy discussion of amendments suggested by councilmembers in the past month. Alds. Clare Kelly (1st) and Parielle Davis (7th) voted against the plan. Nicknamed Housing4All, the plan aims to create concerted guidance for addressing housing challenges around affordability and racial and economic segregation in Evanston. During a prolonged public comment section, some residents expressed support for the plan with the suggested amendments, while others urged councilmembers to approve the original version. Evanston resident Claudia Garcia-Rojas (TGS ’19, Weinberg M.A. ’15, Doctorate ’23) emphasized that arguments used by those opposed to the original plan were based on feeling rather than fact. She said these community members lacked evidence for their

beliefs, including the idea that just cause tenant protections will discourage development. “This is a moment when housing policy should be guided by evidence, by facts,” Garcia-Rojas said. “Fact: losing housing, whether through eviction or involuntary nonrenewal, destabilizes families, schools and employment. Feeling: non-renewals are simply a routine part of the rental market.” During their April 13 meeting, councilmembers voted to table the plan until Monday night. Between meetings, several councilmembers proposed a total of 64 amendments, 50 of which were Kelly’s alone. Planning Manager Elizabeth Williams gave a presentation that separated the amendments into three categories: those consistent with the Envision Evanston 2045 comprehensive plan, those that were inconsistent with the plan or had limited information and those for individual consideration. Following discussion and changes to an amendment to include language that would expand the definition of coliving arrangements to include dorm-style housing, Council accepted all amendments in the first category recommended by staff for approval.

» See HOUSING, page 15

Mt. Pigsah plan Bienen talks NU-Q , federal funding breaks ground Interim president discusses University future in interview with The Daily Affordable housing project in 5th Ward officially underway By MAX TURETZKY

assistant city editor

City officials, residents and activists gathered Monday at a ceremonial groundbreaking for a new affordable housing project in the 5th Ward, where Ald. Bobby Burns (5th) announced monthly rents that would otherwise have seemed unthinkable in Evanston: $650 for a one-bedroom, $850 for a two-bedroom and $1,050 for a three-bedroom. Burns and other key figures

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involved with the project, including Mayor Daniel Biss and representatives from the nonprofit Housing Opportunity Development Corporation, wore hard hats as they took shovels to plots of dirt at the site. The ceremony marked the beginning of construction for the Mt. Pisgah Apartments, a longawaited development that will provide 33 new units to households earning less than 60% of the area median income. “Today, I’m happy because this is an occasion that should be celebrated,” Burns said. “There are going to be people that this building houses that, but for this

» See APARTMENTS, page 15

By DESIREE LUO

campus editor

Interim President Henry Bienen told The Daily in October he planned to step down from the role by late spring. Bienen’s second presidential term has included negotiating and signing a deal with the federal government Nov. 28 to restore hundreds of millions of dollars in frozen research funding. Exactly three months later on Feb. 28, Iran launched a series of strikes on Gulf Arab states following a U.S.-Israel joint-militar y operation,

forcing Northwestern’s Qatar campus, established during the tail end of Bienen’s first term in 2008, to initiate remote operations. Just after his 87th birthday, Bienen sat down Thursday with The Daily to discuss issues affecting the University, including NU-Q’s future, the federal agreement and where he hopes the next president will lead NU. This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity. The Daily: W hat would you like to see from the next University president? Bienen: I think you get somewhat ambitious people for these jobs, but you want

Cayla Labgold-Carroll/The Daily Northwestern

Interim President Henry Bienen sat down Thursday with The Daily to discuss topics affecting Northwestern.

» See BIENEN, page 15