Uploaded October 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Mayor Daniel Biss and Economic Development Manager Paul Zalmezak were shaping this deal months before residents even knew it existed. Emails and letters show they worked with the developer to push a massive tax breakâŚall while keeping the public locked out. Residentsâ voices were ignored. Your neighborhood. Your wallet. Your future. All sidelined.
Politicians throw around âaffordable housingâ as a cover, but the devil is always in the details. Millions in tax breaks are on the line, âaffordableâ units still arenât affordable for working families, and city officials quietly shape deals to benefit developers while claiming theyâre helping the community.
This is what backroom deals look like. And if you let it slide, this is how every big development in Evanston will be decided. Ask yourself: If Mayor Biss is doing this here, what else is happening behind closed doors?
Tomorrow night, City Council will hold the introductory vote on the 605 Davis luxury tower - the first official step in moving this deal forward. If it passes, it will return for final approval on November 10. Residents need to pay attention now, because the decisions made in these votes affect our neighborhoods, taxes, and future transparency in city government.
Hereâs what public records revealed:
đ Mayor Daniel Biss sent a letter to Chase Bank urging them to sell their Davis Street lot to the same developer now seeking a massive tax break.
đ That letter wasnât innocentâŚit was drafted and edited with input from the developer, Vermilionâs CEO, and City Economic Development Manager Paul Zalmezak.
đ It was written months before residents were ever told what was happening.
That means the outcome was being shaped before the public ever had a voice.
Mayor Biss says it was about âaffordable housing.â
But look closer:
đď¸ 29 stories high.
đ° Millions in tax breaks the rest of us will cover.
đď¸ âAffordable unitsâ that still arenât affordable for working families.
When leaders use âaffordable housingâ as cover for developer deals, itâs not progress - itâs deception.
This isnât just about one building.
Itâs about a dangerous precedentâŚone that says developers get inside access while residents are told after the fact.
So tomorrow night:
đ Watch your councilmember.
đ Pay attention to who questions this deal and who stays silent.
đ Ask yourself if this is the kind of ethics youâre willing to accept from your government.
Because once we lose accountability, we lose control over our cityâs future.
The devil is in the details, people.
Save this post. Share it. Speak up.
Evanston belongs to the people - not the power players behind the curtain.
đ Deep gratitude to Jenny Washburn and Mary Rosinski for their dedication to uncovering and sharing these records. Their care for Evanston residentsâ wallets and their courage to speak up is what real leadership looks like.
#DanielBiss #MaryRosinski #JennyWashburn #MeleikaGardner #meleikagardner #Evanston #EvanstonIL #EvanstonResidents #EvanstonCommunity #CityCouncilWatch #localpolitics #TransparencyMatters #AccountabilityNow #PublicRecords #FOIA #GovernmentWatch #EthicsInGovernment #ResidentPower #DemandTransparency #AffordableHousing #HousingJustice #UrbanDevelopment #CommunityFirst #CityPlanning #DevelopmentWatch #NeighborhoodVoice #SpeakUpEvanston #SaveOurCity #CommunityMatters #ResidentsFirst #TakeActionNow #StopBackroomDeals
Mayor Daniel Biss and Economic Development Manager Paul Zalmezak were shaping this deal months before residents even knew it existed. Emails and letters show they worked with the developer to push a massive tax breakâŚall while keeping the public locked out. Residentsâ voices were ignored. Your neighborhood. Your wallet. Your future. All sidelined.
Politicians throw around âaffordable housingâ as a cover, but the devil is always in the details. Millions in tax breaks are on the line, âaffordableâ units still arenât affordable for working families, and city officials quietly shape deals to benefit developers while claiming theyâre helping the community.
This is what backroom deals look like. And if you let it slide, this is how every big development in Evanston will be decided. Ask yourself: If Mayor Biss is doing this here, what else is happening behind closed doors?
Tomorrow night, City Council will hold the introductory vote on the 605 Davis luxury tower - the first official step in moving this deal forward. If it passes, it will return for final approval on November 10. Residents need to pay attention now, because the decisions made in these votes affect our neighborhoods, taxes, and future transparency in city government.
Hereâs what public records revealed:
đ Mayor Daniel Biss sent a letter to Chase Bank urging them to sell their Davis Street lot to the same developer now seeking a massive tax break.
đ That letter wasnât innocentâŚit was drafted and edited with input from the developer, Vermilionâs CEO, and City Economic Development Manager Paul Zalmezak.
đ It was written months before residents were ever told what was happening.
That means the outcome was being shaped before the public ever had a voice.
Mayor Biss says it was about âaffordable housing.â
But look closer:
đď¸ 29 stories high.
đ° Millions in tax breaks the rest of us will cover.
đď¸ âAffordable unitsâ that still arenât affordable for working families.
When leaders use âaffordable housingâ as cover for developer deals, itâs not progress - itâs deception.
This isnât just about one building.
Itâs about a dangerous precedentâŚone that says developers get inside access while residents are told after the fact.
So tomorrow night:
đ Watch your councilmember.
đ Pay attention to who questions this deal and who stays silent.
đ Ask yourself if this is the kind of ethics youâre willing to accept from your government.
Because once we lose accountability, we lose control over our cityâs future.
The devil is in the details, people.
Save this post. Share it. Speak up.
Evanston belongs to the people - not the power players behind the curtain.
đ Deep gratitude to Jenny Washburn and Mary Rosinski for their dedication to uncovering and sharing these records. Their care for Evanston residentsâ wallets and their courage to speak up is what real leadership looks like.
#DanielBiss #MaryRosinski #JennyWashburn #MeleikaGardner #meleikagardner #Evanston #EvanstonIL #EvanstonResidents #EvanstonCommunity #CityCouncilWatch #localpolitics #TransparencyMatters #AccountabilityNow #PublicRecords #FOIA #GovernmentWatch #EthicsInGovernment #ResidentPower #DemandTransparency #AffordableHousing #HousingJustice #UrbanDevelopment #CommunityFirst #CityPlanning #DevelopmentWatch #NeighborhoodVoice #SpeakUpEvanston #SaveOurCity #CommunityMatters #ResidentsFirst #TakeActionNow #StopBackroomDeals
