Hundreds of affordable housing units are moving through Evanston's development pipeline after City Council adopted the Housing4All strategic plan on May 12, and the city is now actively recruiting tenants to fill them.

Evanston is expanding its affordable housing waitlist in anticipation of the new supply, Evanston Now reported on Friday, June 20. The city is seeking more potential tenants as projects advance, reporter Adrian Martinez-De La Cruz wrote, though specific waitlist figures were not immediately available.

The most concrete project: the Mt. Pisgah Apartments, a 33-unit complex at 1805-1815 Church Street in the 5th Ward. Officials broke ground May 12 on the four-story building, a partnership between the Housing Opportunity Development Corporation (HODC) and Mt. Pisgah Ministry. One-bedrooms will rent for about $800 per month, two-bedrooms for $950, and three-bedrooms for $1,100, all reserved for households earning below 60% of area median income. HODC targets move-ins for summer 2027.

The proposed 605 Davis Street tower would add another 86 affordable apartments among its 430 total units if approved. The Land Use Commission voted 3-4 against the 31-story project in August 2025; nearly a year later, it has not come before the full City Council.

Council adopted Housing4All in a 7-2 vote, with Ald. Clare Kelly (1st Ward) and Ald. Parielle Davis (7th Ward) dissenting. The 134-page plan sets goals of preserving 1,000 existing affordable units and creating up to 4,000 new ones, responding to data showing 35% of Evanston households were cost-burdened.

Mayor Daniel Biss called the adoption "a really exciting and big moment and a chance for us to move on to the next steps in the monumentally important work of expanding affordable housing throughout Evanston."

Council has not yet set a date for the zoning code update needed to implement Housing4All's changes.