Evanston resident Jan Susner enjoys walking along the lakefront. She worries that the $151 million in building projects recently announced by Northwestern University could negatively impact the area for years to come.
“The lake is such a beautiful area,” Susner said as she walked with a friend near Evanston’s Clark Street beach. “In Chicago they’ve restricted building to keep nature by the lake.”
“It would make more sense to have buildings on the other side of campus,” she added. “Why destroy all the natural surroundings here? Don’t disrupt this.”
Northwestern University on Feb. 3 announced plans for a building boom of sorts along the lakefront on the south east tip of its Evanston campus next to Clark Street beach. Plans calls for construction of a 170,000 square-foot $32 million visitors center on a wooded area and migrating bird sanctuary on the west side of the beach.
In addition, NU said it is building a new $117 million, 150,000 square foot school of music and communications with a parking garage for 435 vehicles on the site of an existing smaller lakefront parking garage, and a new 5,000 square foot boathouse to replace NU’s old 1,500 square foot sailing school, on the north end of Clark Street beach.
As news of the ambitious $151 million construction project spread, Evanston residents and NU students expressed mixed emotions over the plan.
“I think it will completely change the landscape of southeastern campus, so I’m not sure how everything will play out will all the changes,” said NU freshman John MacGaffey. “I’m excited that the university is investing in new facilities and new buildings on campus.”
“My understanding is that these are pretty sizeable buildings so I expect the area to look pretty different when it’s finished,” he added. “But I think they’ll be good resources for the community to have.”
Features will include a geothermal heat exchange system to heat and cool the garage area and reserved spaces for charging electric cars, the university said. Construction is expected to begin later this summer and take 18 months with completion slated for early 2014.
“The visitors center doesn’t thrill me,” said Evanston resident Janelle Walker, who was walking her dog on the lakefront on a recent morning. “The lakefront is very beautiful.”
“Northwestern hasn’t messed up too much, so I have some trust it won’t be horrible,” she added. “I don’t like the idea of high rises right along the lake because it blocks the rest of Evanston from the lake.”
The new visitors center will be a great recruitment tool for the university because it will provide a “beautiful new front door” for Northwestern, and enable it to start campus tours on the main part of campus, rather than having to cross Sheridan Road with large groups of visitors, Michael Mills, associate provost for enrollment management, said in a statement. He also said locating the visitors center directly on the lakefront will give visitors a wonderful first impression of Northwestern.
“As a music student I’m very excited about the new music school,” said NU senior Cornelius Bouknight. “It’s a pity we won’t get to see it. We definitely need a new music building and the new one looks beautiful.”
“I was a little unsure about the visitors center because it does seem to block such a view of the lake,” he added. “It does seem to kind of cut off this whole wildlife area right here. It’s hard to imagine. They are beautiful buildings but it does seem to change the landscape.”
Much of the NU campus is in Evanston’s 7th ward and the alderman there, Jane Grover, said she thinks that the new buildings will be a welcome addition to the lakefront.
“I think it’s good for Evanston and I certainly think it’s good for the university,” she said.
“I think it’s a nice addition to the Evanston landscape.”
She also said she has received assurances from the university that the construction project will not end up closing off the southeast end of campus and scenic landfill to the larger Evanston community.
“I’ve got reassurance from the university that they have every intention to preserve the connected lakefront path, which would be a primary concern for the larger Evanston community,” Grover said. “I think of primary importance to the Evanston community is preservation of that connected lakefront path that so many us use and enjoy.”
Evanston resident Jan Susner is concerned that Northwestern University's recent announcement of a $151 million building of sorts on the southeast tip of campus next to Evanston's Clark Street beach could impact the natural splendor of the area. (Brian L. Cox / Special to the Tribune)
