Evanston City Council Unanimously Approves Goals

Council adopts six priorities focused on climate, finances, public safety, and housing affordability

Published on Feb. 11, 2026

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The Evanston City Council unanimously voted to adopt six goals for the current term at their Monday night meeting. The goals cover areas like climate action, financial performance, public health and safety, parks and infrastructure, housing affordability, and economic development. Some community members expressed dissatisfaction with the goals and their implementation, but the council made minor wording changes before approving them.

Why it matters

The city's goals help guide council members in creating work plans and organizing quarterly updates. They serve as an overarching framework to align the city's various plans and initiatives, such as the recently-approved comprehensive plan, economic development strategy, and climate action plan.

The details

The six goals adopted by the council include: 1) Climate action and resiliency, 2) Financial and operational performance, 3) Public health and safety, 4) Parks and infrastructure, 5) Housing affordability, and 6) Economic development. The council made a few wording changes, such as replacing 'fossil fuel pollution' with 'greenhouse gas emissions' in the climate goal. There was some debate over the housing affordability goal, with the council ultimately agreeing to strike the word 'supply' from the summary.

  • The City Council reviewed and adopted the goals at their Monday, February 11, 2026 meeting.
  • The council will revisit the goals with more specific action items during their next meeting on February 23, 2026.

The players

Ald. Matt Rodgers

An Evanston City Council member who noted the goals align with the city's other plans like the comprehensive plan and climate action plan.

Kiera Kelly

An Evanston resident who urged the council to be more specific in detailing the housing affordability goals.

Ald. Clare Kelly

An Evanston City Council member who argued the goals should be more broad and shorter in their summaries.

Ald. Krissie Harris

An Evanston City Council member who expressed support for applying for a federal transportation grant, saying 'You never know what you're going to get until the end.'

Chris Sous

Evanston's Assistant City Engineer, who provided details on the federal transportation grant the council authorized applying for.

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What they’re saying

“Everything up here has a plan that works with it — the economic development, Evanston Thrives, climate action plan. That's our overarching goal here.”

— Ald. Matt Rodgers, Evanston City Council member (dailynorthwestern.com)

“I do also want to urge you to sort of detail out, in terms of the housing goals, to expand affordable housing supply.”

— Kiera Kelly, Evanston resident (dailynorthwestern.com)

“We have one goal and that's really to deliver city services to our residents as cost effectively as we can, as efficiently as we can, and as well as we can, and all of this kind of falls underneath that.”

— Ald. Matt Rodgers, Evanston City Council member (dailynorthwestern.com)

“I think it's a great opportunity. You never know what you're going to get until the end. Then we say, 'Yes, we like it,' or we may say we don't.”

— Ald. Krissie Harris, Evanston City Council member (dailynorthwestern.com)

What’s next

The Evanston City Council will revisit the goals with more specific action items during their next meeting on February 23, 2026.

The takeaway

Evanston's City Council has adopted a set of six overarching goals to guide the city's priorities and initiatives over the current term, covering areas like climate, finances, public safety, and housing affordability. While some community members expressed dissatisfaction, the council made minor changes before unanimously approving the goals, which will now be further developed with specific action plans.