The Evanston Economic Development Committee unanimously backed Evanston Made’s request for up to $217,015 in Tax Increment Financing money, to go toward turning the H&H Printing facility at 1800 Dempster St. into a new, permanent home for a decade-old Evanston arts organization.
Evanston Made founder and co-director Lisa Degliantoni told the committee her organization had been approached by a family foundation that would provide a $1.2 million grant to help buy the building. One of the grant conditions was that the city must chip in.
Degliantoni said that Evanston Made would use TIF funding only for interior renovation of the 5,000-square-foot building.
During the meeting Wednesday evening at the Lorraine Morton Civic Center, several artists and art enthusiasts spoke in favor of the project, describing it as necessary for the continuing West Village neighborhood revitalization and something that would draw visitors to Evanston.
The committee supported the requests, but with a caveat. Council Member Bobby Burns (5th Ward) said that he would normally be leery of using TIF funding to help projects that could lead to a property being taken off the tax rolls, and he hoped it wouldn’t set a precedent for other nonprofits.
The request now goes to the City Council for final approval. Degliantoni told the RoundTable that most of the building could be up and running by the summer of 2025 if there are no issues.
A place to call its own
Since it was founded in 2014, Evanston Made evolved from a series of tours seeking to bring attention to local artists into a support organization for them. It organizes events and programs, providing professional development and networking opportunities. Since the early days of the COVID pandemic, it provided an Etsy-based online platform where artists can sell their work. Degliantoni said it currently counts around 400 members.
What it doesn’t have, Degliantoni said, is a place to call its own.
“We are a 400-person organization that has no space,” she said. “I work out of my kitchen.”
Degliantoni said they would leave the exterior mostly as is, simply adding a sign and removing black vinyl covering the windows. Inside, renovation could create exhibition space, artist studios and meeting venues. The building would be a place for burgeoning artists to work and have access to resources. Member artists would get a permanent exhibition space.
“And what we have learned working with the artists is one of the things they need is visibility,” she said, explaining that shows and events are where artists network, and it’s not unusual for that to translate into greater exposure.
Degliantoni also argued that the city as a whole benefits when art lovers flock to shows and events. Extra sales tax revenue is just a part of it.
‘Citywide benefit’
“I think City of Evanston has an opportunity to really invest in culture, and a project like this — yes, it’s rooted [in Evanston], but it’s going to have a regional impact and a citywide benefit,” she said. Degliantoni said she is confident that H&H is willing to sell.
Under terms of the grant, Evanston Made must have a nonprofit partner (it already secured the support of Northwestern University’s Department of Art
Theory and Practice), raise $1.2 million in matching funds through donations and secure city support to renovate the building.
In a TIF district, the tax increment dollars — the difference between the property tax revenues on the parcel as it went into the TIF and as it is improved — remain within the special district to benefit the public.
According to meeting documents, the West Evanston TIF had $1,557,546.00 in uncommitted funds.
Public Support
West Village Business Association member Dickelle Fonda and her husband, artist Jevoid Simmons, were among many speakers supporting the Evanston Made project. Fonda said that the area around Dempster Street and Dodge Avenue became safer and more vibrant since they moved there, and an art gallery and incubator “will solidify the revitalization of this block, this neighborhood.”
Simmons said there was value to turning the printer building into “a place where artists can have their work and socialize and that kind of thing, where people can actually come and see it.”
“I really, as a man of color, would like to see it in this neighborhood,” he added.
Artist and Northwestern professor Inigo Manglano-Ovalle said that he thought that the H&H building was well-suited for Evanston Made’s needs.
“A large part of that building is almost set to become exhibition space,” he said. “And there are all those wonderful [areas] that could become artist studios.”
Manglano-Ovalle added that he was especially excited at the thought of having the space near Evanston Township High School.
Council Member Krissie Harris (2nd Ward), who represents the building site, said she supported the project. The ward is already home to many artists and one other incubator, she said, and Evanston Made will be a good fit for Dempster/Dodge.
“And the culture of this area has pulled itself together, not one [entity], no one thing, but the pieces that are continuing to add to the spice and flavor of it,” she said.
Burns said that “we feel good about [approving the TIF funding] because it’s Evanston Made and because it’s Lisa,” but he is uneasy about giving funding that’s supposed to lead to higher property taxes to a nonprofit. The fact that West Evanston TIF “struggled to generate the tax increment” didn’t help.
“This is not how the pile of money is supposed to be used,” Burns said.
Paul Zalmezak, the city’s economic development manager, responded that the property may not come off the tax rolls just because of the nonprofit status. While churches are automatically tax-exempt, it’s more complicated with entities like Evanston Made, he said.
After the vote, Degliantoni told reporters that she was happy to see the proposal clear the committee.
“It’s really exciting,” she said. “It’s a vote of confidence.”
Funding for new Evanston Made HQ clears Economic Development Committee is from Evanston RoundTable, Evanston's most trusted source for unbiased, in-depth journalism.