Most neighbors of Northwestern’s Ryan Field speak out at meeting against proposed rebuild and potential concert noise
The second Evanston Land Use Commission meeting on Northwestern University’s Ryan Field rebuild proposal saw residents within 1,000 feet of the field give their public testimony, with a majority speaking against the plan.
The meeting served as an extension of the first held on Sept. 6 where representatives for Northwestern outlined the school’s plan for the $800 million rebuild of the nearly 100-year-old stadium. Part of that plan includes commercial ventures such as concerts with up to 28,500 attendees.
Residents continued to voice concerns over traffic, parking and noise issues they believe would come with the proposed six annual concerts. Original plans called for up to 12 annual concerts but that number has been slowly whittled down as the public has protested.
Northwestern’s Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Luke Figora said during the Sept. 6 meeting that upkeep for the field would not be financially viable if the concerts weren’t held.
Evanston resident and nonprofit finance professional Jill Greer, who lives just northeast of the field, argued the university has more than enough to fund the field if properly managed.
“It’s simply not reasonable for one of the wealthiest universities to claim that without $2 million in concert revenues the new Ryan Field will fail,” Greer said.
Eric Harper, a neighbor of Greer’s, chose to focus on the noise issue during his public comment and asked the board how he should manage helping his children when they’re unable to sleep at night from the concert noise.
“Northwestern is gonna build this stadium or renovate no matter what,” he said. “Even if you say no to the concerts, it’s just not credible that they will completely abandon this project. Call their bluff; say no. Everything will be fine.”
His comments were met with boos from supporters of the project, a few of whom spoke in support of the stadium. Peter Kelly said appraisals made by representatives for Most Livable City Association saying home values would depreciate due to the venue were incorrect, noting homes in the area sold quickly and above asking price even after the concert plan had been announced.
Andrew Lines, head of the real estate evaluation group CohnReznick, spoke on behalf of the Most Livable City Association. He compared Ryan Field to Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, New York, another older stadium nestled into a residential neighborhood. According to his analysis, when concerts were reintroduced to the stadium’s plan in 2013 there was about a negative 3% drop in home values and homes closer to the stadium sold about 11% less than asking price.
“Single-family homes are very sensitive to changes in land use around them,” he said. “You can see right away whether or not something impacts it.”
Lara Hamann, who lives near the field and is a member of Field of Opportunities, which supports the proposed field plans alongside Select Neighbors of Ryan Field, said plenty of residents close to the stadium back the project.
“I can’t wait to see an architectural gem in my backyard. I feel like it fits the neighborhood perfectly,” Hamann said.
Another supporter, Susan Barrett Kelly, asked the commission to consider that Northwestern is building a stadium where one has been for almost 100 years with a smaller number of potential attendees than it can currently house.
“In six blocks surrounding where I live in downtown Evanston, there are 13 vacant businesses and more every month,” she said. “We would like some traffic. We would like some people in our business district downtown.”
Meredith DeCarlo, who lives four blocks south of the stadium, spoke about her family’s history in the neighborhood stretching back to when the field was built. She told the commission she was happy to be back in the area until Northwestern announced its plans for commercialization.
“We never imagined that was within the realm of possibility when we bought our house and we never would’ve bought our house if we did imagine that,” she said. “It is clear from the proposed zoning change that Northwestern’s primary goal is to make as much money as possible with as little oversight as possible.”
Fiona McCarthy told the commission she and her family moved from Wrigleyville in Chicago to avoid the chaos of the area and better take care of her ill mother.
“We put games on our home calendar the second the schedule is release and start planning around them. We know we can’t leave or go two to three hours before or after the game,” McCarthy said. “Those games, where there’s 20,000 to 30,000 people in attendance, you feel the shift in the neighborhood. You feel it start to squeeze and it is at capacity. It is no longer livable.”
After 4 ½ hours of public comment from presenters, Northwestern was not able to give its final statement before the commission. That is scheduled for the Oct. 11 Land Use Commission meeting where the university will also be questioned and the commission will deliver its ruling.
The commission will consider two issues — the demolition and rebuild of the field and the changes to zoning that would allow for commercial uses. Regardless of the outcome, the matter will be brought before the Evanston City Council later in October. The council can accept or reject the commission’s recommendations.
