On June 7th, Charles Davidson of Catapult Real Estate Solutions gave a brief presentation on the 120-unit apartment building that will replace the former Vogue Fabrics store, 718 Main St. The building will include a rooftop deck, a central lobby, a courtyard in the back, retail space on the bottom floor and 47 parking spaces.
“We’re really excited about being here and doing this project,” Davidson said to the small crowd. He showed a construction timeline, which sets the demolition in June. Workers will excavate the site and lay the foundation between July and September.
Fourth Ward Council member Jonathan Nieuwsma warned his constituents that construction is often noisiest at the beginning of a project. Davidson also pulled up a slide showing the construction work hours, which are between 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends.
“How do you guys plan to be good neighbors during the construction,” a community member asked Davidson. In the past, the speaker said, construction projects on Main Street have started well before 7 a.m, workers have left her street trashed and construction vehicles have taken up neighborhood’s parking.
The site won’t open until 7 a.m. and a project superintendent will oversee the project, Davidson responded. Several parking spots are designated for the contractors, he added.
Other community members reiterated the speaker’s parking concerns, during the construction process and after its completion, because the 120-unit apartment only provides 47 parking spaces.
The timeline for the apartment building to replace the former Vogue Fabrics store.
Several of the meeting’s attendees also wanted to know how the representatives from the two projects feel about coming downtown, given the crime and safety concerns. Neither representative expressed much concern about crime.
Nieuwsma said that the projects should draw more people downtown and help make Evanston a safer place to live. “We’re doing the best we can with the resources we have available to make Evanston a nicer place to live,” said Nieuwsma.
SOURCE: Evanston Round Table
