Uploaded November 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
They tried to stall it. They thought weâd move on.
But weâre not going anywhere.
After Monday nightâs explosive meeting, where five council members clearly hadnât even read the packet, they voted to stall the Evanston Property Tax Circuit Breaker Program and send it to the Housing & Community Development Committee (HCDC) for âinput.â
Letâs call this what it is...a delay tactic that could kill the only program designed to help longtime residents stay in their homes.
đĽ Tuesday, November 18th at 6PM, the program will be discussed again at the HCDC meeting.
Councilmember Clare Kelly, who co-created the program with me and Northwestern University student Amaad Garrett, will be there to speak (even though sheâs not on the committee). Amaad Garrett and I will speak too.
And we need you, the people, to show up or log in and speak up.
This isnât just another meeting. This is the moment Evanston decides:
âĄď¸ Do we protect the people who built this city?
âĄď¸ Or do we make it easier for developers to profit when homeowners are forced to sell?
Because when taxes rise from the...public library, school districts, city staff...the families holding on by a thread will be the first pushed out.
And without this program, thereâs no safety net.
Hereâs what the Evanston Property Tax Circuit Breaker really is:
đ Homeowners in Evanston 15+ years
đ° Household income under $95K
đŤ Mansions donât qualify
đ Renters join after the pilot year
Itâs fair. Itâs focused. Itâs funded responsibly, using only a portion of the Northwestern Affordable Housing Fund - not the whole thing.
So why are certain council members fighting it?
Transparency demands the question:
If property tax relief keeps getting blocked, who benefits when residents are forced to sell? The developers who have been calling residents to sell their property? Is this the underlying motivation of Envision Evanston?
Evanston, we built this program because no one else had a plan to stop displacement due to property taxes. Now itâs our job to protect it.
đ Tuesday, Nov 18, 6PM - HCDC Meeting
đĽ Watch both videos (Part 1 + Part 2) free to the public - click the Patreon link in bio.
đ˘ SAVE this post. Speak on November 18th. Email your council member before 5PM Tuesday, November 18th. Share.
HCDC council members' email addresses are in the first comment.
This isnât about politics. Itâs about people.
When the people show up, the truth canât be buried.
#Evanston #CircuitBreakerProgram #ForThePeople #WhereThePeopleMeet #StopDisplacement #HousingJustice #TransparencyMatters #EvanstonStrong #CommunityOverPolitics #MeleikaGardner #ClareKelly #AmaadGarrett #danielbiss
They tried to stall it. They thought weâd move on.
But weâre not going anywhere.
After Monday nightâs explosive meeting, where five council members clearly hadnât even read the packet, they voted to stall the Evanston Property Tax Circuit Breaker Program and send it to the Housing & Community Development Committee (HCDC) for âinput.â
Letâs call this what it is...a delay tactic that could kill the only program designed to help longtime residents stay in their homes.
đĽ Tuesday, November 18th at 6PM, the program will be discussed again at the HCDC meeting.
Councilmember Clare Kelly, who co-created the program with me and Northwestern University student Amaad Garrett, will be there to speak (even though sheâs not on the committee). Amaad Garrett and I will speak too.
And we need you, the people, to show up or log in and speak up.
This isnât just another meeting. This is the moment Evanston decides:
âĄď¸ Do we protect the people who built this city?
âĄď¸ Or do we make it easier for developers to profit when homeowners are forced to sell?
Because when taxes rise from the...public library, school districts, city staff...the families holding on by a thread will be the first pushed out.
And without this program, thereâs no safety net.
Hereâs what the Evanston Property Tax Circuit Breaker really is:
đ Homeowners in Evanston 15+ years
đ° Household income under $95K
đŤ Mansions donât qualify
đ Renters join after the pilot year
Itâs fair. Itâs focused. Itâs funded responsibly, using only a portion of the Northwestern Affordable Housing Fund - not the whole thing.
So why are certain council members fighting it?
Transparency demands the question:
If property tax relief keeps getting blocked, who benefits when residents are forced to sell? The developers who have been calling residents to sell their property? Is this the underlying motivation of Envision Evanston?
Evanston, we built this program because no one else had a plan to stop displacement due to property taxes. Now itâs our job to protect it.
đ Tuesday, Nov 18, 6PM - HCDC Meeting
đĽ Watch both videos (Part 1 + Part 2) free to the public - click the Patreon link in bio.
đ˘ SAVE this post. Speak on November 18th. Email your council member before 5PM Tuesday, November 18th. Share.
HCDC council members' email addresses are in the first comment.
This isnât about politics. Itâs about people.
When the people show up, the truth canât be buried.
#Evanston #CircuitBreakerProgram #ForThePeople #WhereThePeopleMeet #StopDisplacement #HousingJustice #TransparencyMatters #EvanstonStrong #CommunityOverPolitics #MeleikaGardner #ClareKelly #AmaadGarrett #danielbiss
