(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Members of the Evanston City Council on Monday night debated a city proposal to renovate a vacant office building downtown for use as a shelter for migrants.
The two-story building at 1020 Church St. would house up to 65 migrants. Council members were not fully supportive. Mayor Daniel Biss spoke up.
“The posture that I’ve represented is that this is a moral crisis that we, as the city of Evanston, have a responsibility to figure out if we can help with, and that we would try to do what we could to be part of the solution,” he said. “Quietly, we’ve been looking for opportunities to do that.”
Evanston would apply for grant money to cover operating costs and some renovations, including fire sprinklers, showers and a fire escape.
Some council members said they want to help but added that they don’t like the idea of a migrant shelter at that downtown location.
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