Sixth Ward Candidate Mark Tendam: Increase Programs For At-Risk Youth

Sixth Ward Ald. Mark Tendam is running for re-election to a second term on the Evanston city council against challenger Mark Sloane. Here are his answers to the questions we posed to both candidates.

1. How long have you lived in Evanston/the sixth ward?

My husband Neal Moglin, and I moved to Evanston and the 6th Ward in 1995, almost 18 years ago.

2. How long have you served as sixth ward alderman?

I am about to complete my first four-year term. I was sworn in with the rest of the current Council in May 2009.

3. What would you say are your greatest accomplishments so far as an alderman?

It is difficult to rank the work I have done over the past four years. Some of the most rewarding achievements for me personally have been the things that I have done to help individual residents; like helping a family with a special needs child obtain the zoning variances they needed to make their home accessible and safe.

In terms of more public projects, I am very proud of the work that I did to save the North Branch Library. The branch was under siege when I came into office.  Although nobody disputed the fact that the Branch was well used and well loved (particularly by children and Seniors in the 6th and 7th Wards) or the fact that the operating budget for the Branch represented only a tiny fraction of the library’s total budget, the entire City at times seemed divided over whether it should be closed. I (along with my colleagues Alderman Grover and Alderman Wynne) worked to bring the stakeholders in the debate together to work on a solution. It took two budget cycles and a lot of hard work by the Council, the library board, and interested citizens but in the end, we wound up saving the North Branch, and transforming the way the library system will be funded going forward. I should stress that I am proud of this achievement for two reasons, first, because we achieved a result that made sense on both a fiscal and human level but also because at the end of the day, patience, hard work and cooperation won out over grandstanding and divisiveness. 

I am also proud of the public safety improvements that I have secured for the Ward. Crosswalks, like the new one on Central Street opposite Bent Park, the improved crosswalk on Gross Point Road opposite Lovelace Park and two more that I have gotten approved for next year (one at Cartwright Park and another at Lovelace Park) have the power to save lives. What could be more rewarding than that? Likewise I am proud of the work that we have all done in the Ward to reduce property crime.  We had a big spike in vehicle and home burglaries a few years ago. I worked with our Beat Cop and the department to increase patrols in our area and worked with residents to form and revitalize neighborhood watch groups. As a result of this, crime is down and we (and our property values) are more secure.

4. What do you think are the biggest issues for sixth ward residents? How would you address those?

Residents in the 6th Ward have the same concerns as residents of the other Wards. We want the level of services we receive to be high and the amount of taxes we pay to be low. We want our streets, sidewalks and neighborhoods to be safe, we want the city to spend its money wisely and we want the issues that impact us personally to be handled quickly and with a minimum of red tape.

During my 4 years on the Council we have adjusted the city’s budget to reflect the challenging economic times in which we are all living. We have cut the rate of growth in the budget from close to 8% a year under the prior Council to 1.45% a year. As a consequence, we have been able to continue providing quality services to all residents and hold the line on taxes (currently, the City’s levy accounts for only about 20% of every resident’s tax bill). Keeping services and taxes at or near current levels going forward will require us to look beyond the status quo, however. We need to be smart about spending and make additional cuts where we can but the real answer is that we need to find ways of increasing revenue other than through taxes and fees. 

In a second term, I will continue to pursue economic development opportunities that will increase City revenue without disrupting or changing the character of our neighborhoods. (It is important to note, by the way, that the city’s economic development efforts are not funded by property taxes.) I will also continue to push for capital improvements that will make the Ward safer for all of our residents. Finally, I will continue to be an advocate for individual residents whenever and however they need me.

5. What are the biggest issues for Evanston as a whole? How would you address those?

In addition to the issues discussed in the prior response, the City needs to continue to deal with the problem of youth violence. While I have supported (and will continue to support) efforts to improve the city’s sports facilities, we need to make sure that these facilities are open to all of the City’s youth as youth who are engaged in sports are less likely to become involved in crime. We also need to increase programming for at risk youth and support innovative programs (like Curt’s Café) that have the power to turn young people’s lives around. 

6. How will you balance development interests with those of residents? (I’m thinking of the Chase Bank with drive-through going in at Crawford and Gross Point.)

I think it is important to balance ALL interests in these circumstances. The only way to do this is to listen to all of the residents who will be impacted by a project (not merely the most vocal ones) and ask appropriate questions of the City’s professional staff.

The best way to illustrate this is by contrasting my support for the Chase proposal with my opposition to the McDonalds that was proposed for the same general area. In the case of the McDonalds proposal at Old Orchard and Gross Point, I spoke with the residents and business owners who would be negatively impacted by the project and with the City’s engineers regarding the feasibility of what the developer was proposing. I also spoke with owners of the businesses that would be displaced (and potentially forced under) had the project gone through. Weighing these interests against the interests of the developer, it was clear to me that the right answer was to oppose the project. The majority of the residents who live in the vicinity of the proposed Chase development are supportive of that project. The abandoned Citgo station that is currently occupying the site is an unattractive eyesore. Additionally, because of the conditions that exist on that site, there are limited options for development. A bank (which will not be open at night and will have limited activity on the weekends) is by nature a better choice for that area than a fast food franchise or another gas station. The City’s staff agrees with this assessment.

7. What can you offer that your competitor doesn’t?

The obvious answer is four years of experience and a record of working with residents to resolve problems both large and small. During my term in office, I have been an advocate for all of the Ward and City’s residents and have been successful in building consensus around difficult and potentially divisive issues (from saving the North Branch Library to making a meaningful down payment on the City’s pension crisis). I am, by nature, a bridge builder.  My style is calm and determined and my approach to problem solving is to strive for balance and fairness at all times.