Evanston, Illinois

In October 2006, the city voted to sign the United States Conference of Mayors Climate Protection Agreement,[26] and a number of citizen task forces convened to develop a plan to reduce the city's carbon footprint.[27] The Evanston Climate Action Plan ("ECAP"), accepted by the City Council in November 2008, suggested over 200 strategies to make Evanston more sustainable, principally by reducing carbon emissions associated with transportation, buildings, energy sources, waste, and food production.[28][29] In June 2011, the United States Conference of Mayors awarded Evanston first place in the small city category of the Mayors' Climate Protection Awards, based largely on the city's use of the ECAP, which the city asserts has reduced emissions by 24,000 metric tons per year.[30][31] On September 15, 2011, Wal-Mart presented Mayor Tisdahl with a $15,000 award in recognition of the honor, which the mayor donated to Citizens' Greener Evanston.[32]

Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.

As of the 2020 census[36] there were 78,110 people, 27,918 households, and 15,184 families residing in the city. The population density was 10,012.82 inhabitants per square mile (3,865.97/km²). There were 34,462 housing units at an average density of 4,417.64 per square mile (1,705.66/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 59.06% White, 16.06% African American, 9.92% Asian, 0.67% Native American, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 4.46% from other races, and 9.78% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race were 11.24% of the population.

There were 27,918 households, out of which 26.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.44% were married couples living together, 8.71% had a female householder with no husband present, and 45.61% were non-families. 34.79% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.46% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.22 and the average family size was 2.40.

The city's age distribution consisted of 19.9% under the age of 18, 16.0% from 18 to 24, 25% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $82,335, and the median income for a family was $130,494. Males had a median income of $56,582 versus $42,589 for females. The per capita income for the city was $53,685. About 4.6% of families and 11.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.5% of those under age 18 and 6.6% of those age 65 or over.

As of 2015, according to the State of Illinois Dept Commerce and Economic Opportunity and Individual Employers,[39] the top employers in the city are:

• Magnetar Capital, a hedge fund based in Evanston[40]
• ZS Associates, a consulting firm
• Clayton Mark and Company, steel product manufacturer[41]
• Legacy.com, online memorial provider

• Frances Willard House
• Free School of Evanston
• Grosse Point Lighthouse
• Ladd Arboretum
• Mount Trashmore
• Northwestern University
• North Shore Channel Trail

Once the home of one of the first Marshall Field's[42][43] and Sears stores in suburbia, Evanston has several shopping areas:

• Downtown - centered on the Davis Street Metra and "L" stops,[44] Evanston's downtown adjoins Northwestern University. There are over 300 businesses,[45] several high-rise office and residential buildings, three traditional low-rise shopping areas and over 85 restaurants. It is roughly bordered by Emerson Street to the north, Dempster Street to the south, Ridge Avenue to the west, and the Lake to the east.
• Central Street - actually several shopping districts linked along the northernmost of the city's principal east–west arteries,[46][47] with the most active clustered around the Central Street Metra station and characterized by specialty shops and restaurants.[48][49][50]
• Dempster Street - just off the Dempster "L" stop; over 60 shops.[51][52]
• Main Street - approximately three blocks of mostly independent boutiques and restaurants[53] abutting both a CTA and Metra stop. The neighborhood is also home to the Evanston Arts Depot.[54]
• Howard Street - Howard Street forms the southern border between Evanston and the City of Chicago. The Howard Street CTA station is a transfer point between the Red, Purple, and Yellow line trains as well as several CTA and PACE bus routes.
• Chicago Avenue - not a separate shopping district per se, this extension of what is called Clark Street in Chicago runs parallel to the rail lines and is the principal north–south artery in Evanston from Howard Street north to its terminus at Northwestern University. Chicago Avenue connects the Main Street, Dempster Street, and Downtown shopping districts.
• Noyes - Bordering the Noyes "L" stop with around a dozen restaurants, dry-cleaners and convenience stores.

Main Evanston Public Library

The Evanston Public Library was established in 1873,[55] and has a satellite branch at the Robert Crown Community Center. Heather Norborg is the Interim Library Director. The North and South Branches of the Evanston Library were closed in 2021.

In the 2012 presidential election, Democratic incumbent Barack Obama won 85% of Evanston's vote, compared to 13% for Republican challenger Mitt Romney.[57] In the 2016 Democratic primary, Hillary Clinton received 54% of the votes of Evanston Democrats to Bernie Sanders' 45%.[58] During that year's general election, Clinton won 87% of the vote in Evanston, while Republican Donald Trump received just 7%.[59] Evanston's turnout for presidential elections has grown steadily since 2004, with 80% of registered voters voting in the 2016 general election.[60]

In the 2020 presidential election Democrat Joe Biden received 90% of the vote while Republican Donald Trump received only 7%.[61]

Evanston Township High School

Most of Evanston (and a small part of the village of Skokie) is within the boundaries of Evanston Township High School District 202.[62] The school district has a single high school, Evanston Township High School, with an enrollment of just over 4,000, covering grades 9 through 12.

Evanston-Skokie Community Consolidated School District 65, covering all of Evanston and a small part of Skokie, provides primary education from pre-kindergarten through grade 8. The district has ten elementary schools (kindergarten through fifth grade), three middle schools (grades 6 through 8), two magnet schools (K through 8), two special schools or centers, and an early childhood school. Devon Horton is the Superintendent of Schools.

Private schools located in Evanston, Illinois include:

• Beacon Academy, a Montessori high school
• Chiaravalle Montessori School, a Montessori school for children ages 2–14
• Midwest Montessori School
• Pope John XXIII School, a Catholic school serving children pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. The school dates back to 1886 with the establishment of separate schools serving St. Nicholas and St. Mary's parishes in Evanston. The original St. Nicholas School was in the building now called the Annex. The main school building was built in 1954. In 1986 the two parish schools consolidated and the new school was renamed Pope John XXIII School.[63]
• Roycemore School
• St. Athanasius School, a Catholic school for children from junior kindergarten through eighth grade. "St. A's" is a popular shortened nickname for the school and it is part of the St. Athanasius parish in Northwest Evanston. The mascot is RedHawks. The school focuses on three key themes; Love, Learn, Lead.

In 2006, National-Louis University closed its former main site, which had 6.5 acres (2.6 ha) of land, with about 33% in Evanston; the majority of the land was in Wilmette.[64]

Founded in 1855, Evanston is home to Northwestern University. Located along Lake Michigan, Northwestern's campus spans 240 acres with an estimated 250 buildings. Since 1908, Kellogg School of Management as well as Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary (1853) have institutions, of which both share the campus with Northwestern.

Evanston's variety of housing and commercial districts, combined with easy access to Chicago, make it a popular filming location. Evanston as of December 2008 is listed as a filming location for 65 different films, notably those of John Hughes.[65] Much of the 1984 film Sixteen Candles was filmed in and around Evanston,[66] the 1988 movie She's Having a Baby, as was the 1989 film Uncle Buck,[67] the 1993 film Dennis the Menace,[68] and the 1997 film Home Alone 3.[69] A number of scenes from the 1986 Garry Marshall film Nothing in Common were filmed on the Northwestern University campus and Evanston's lakeshore.[70] Although not filmed there, the 2004 film Mean Girls is set in the Chicago suburbs, and makes several references to the area. The movie's screenwriter and co-star, Tina Fey, had worked at the Evanston YMCA when starting her comedy career. In the 2003 film Cheaper by the Dozen, the family moves to Evanston.[71] Additionally, the baseball movie Rookie of the Year, featuring Gary Busey and Thomas Ian Nicholas, was partially shot at Haven Middle School.[72] The 2015 ABC Family reality series Becoming Us was filmed in Evanston.

In The Princess Bride, according to IMDb, the screenplay says that the boy and his grandfather live in Evanston.[73] This was also stated by Mandy Patinkin in a behind-the-scenes interview.[74] The story's author, William Goldman, was born in Chicago and grew up in Highland Park a little more than ten miles north of Evanston.

Shops along Davis Street, looking west, August 2006. The Davis Street Metra stop is visible in the lower half of the photograph.

Evanston's growth occurred largely because of its accessibility from Chicago by rail. The Northwestern founders did not finalize their commitment to siting the university there until they were assured the Chicago & Milwaukee Railway line would run there. C&M trains began stopping in Evanston in 1855.[75] Evanston later experienced rapid growth as one of the first streetcar suburbs. The North Shore Line, the interurban railroad that gave the area its nickname, ran through Evanston and continued to Waukegan and Milwaukee.

The city is still connected to Chicago by rail transit. The CTA's Purple Line, part of the Chicago 'L' system, runs through Evanston. From its terminal at Howard in Chicago, the line heads north to the South Boulevard, Main, Dempster, Davis, Foster, Noyes, and Central stations, before terminating at the Linden station in Wilmette, Illinois. Metra's Union Pacific North Line also serves Evanston, with stations at Main Street, Davis Street and Central Street, the first two being adjacent to Purple Line stations. The CTA's Yellow Line also runs through the city, though it does not stop there. Evanston is served by six CTA bus routes as well as four Pace bus routes.

Automobile routes from Chicago to Evanston include Lake Shore Drive, the Edens Expressway (I-94), and McCormick Boulevard, although the first two of those do not extend to Evanston itself and require driving through Rogers Park (via Sheridan Road or Ridge Avenue) and Skokie, respectively. The main routes from the north are the Edens, Green Bay Road, and Sheridan Road. Active modes of transportation include miles of sidewalks and bicycle lanes.

Two hospitals are located within Evanston's city limits:

• Evanston Hospital, part of NorthShore University HealthSystem
• Ascension Saint Francis Hospital Evanston, part of Ascension[76]