Real Estate

Evanston Resident Starts Petition to Stop Harley-Clarke Mansion Sale

Alex Block started a petition on Change.org to stop the sale of the 2.5-acre lakefront property on Sheridan Road.

Evanston resident Alex Block wants the City of Evanston to stop the sale of the Harley-Clarke Mansion at 2603 Sheridan Road and has started a petition on Change.org.  

Addressed to Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl and City Manager Wally Bobkiewicz, the petition states, “Selling this historic lakefront property at a fraction of its value is shortsighted and contrary to our community’s values and interests.”  

Currently the home to the Evanston Arts Center, the city-owned mansion sits on 2.5-acres of lakefront property and Evanston officials are expected to begin discussion soon over whether to accept a $1.2 million bid from Col. James Pritzker for the property, according to city sources. Pritzker plans to convert the mansion into a 57-room boutique hotel.

Submitted earlier this year, the bid is only about half of the city’s appraised value of $2.1 million for the home itself, according to city sources.   

As of Monday morning the petition has some 200 supporters but Block writes that the petition is a first step and “to win this fight, we need to demonstrate to our policy makers that there are other feasible plans for the mansion that accomplish much more for our city.”  

To sign the petition, visit: Change.org.
 

Block plans to work with supporters of the cause to develop alternative plans for the mansion, a legal strategy to block the sale and communicate with city officials to suggest ideas and to express their concerns. Block invites people interested in supporting the cause to contact him at alexablock@me.com.  

History of the Mansion


Once a private residence, the historic English Tudor mansion served as the headquarters of the Sigma Chi National Fraternity from 1951 to 1965. The city purchased the three-story brick building in 1965. For more than 40 years since, the Evanston Art Center has called the site home.    

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