Residents near Evanston's Police and Fire Headquarters want the building to stay where it is, even as city consultants say the aging facility would need an $85 million rebuild to remain functional.

At a virtual meeting Tuesday, June 23, neighbors living near the headquarters at Lake Street and Elmwood Avenue urged the city to keep police operations in place. The meeting was part of the Putting Assets to Work program, which is evaluating potential redevelopment of several city-owned properties.

Steve Lewis told consultants he strongly favored keeping police in the neighborhood because of "significant vagrancy and crime" downtown. "Keep the police near our home, please, we love the police," Lewis said.

Resident Sari Kadison-Shapiro proposed adding a second floor to Fire Station 1 on Emerson Street and giving police the entire headquarters building. But consultant Ryan Porter said that arrangement still wouldn't provide enough space, because the building's layout is dysfunctional and inefficient for modern policing needs.

Consultant Michael McLean was blunter: the building would effectively have to be torn down and rebuilt for police to remain there. "The facility is so antiquated," McLean said. "It simply doesn't function the way it really needs to."

Neighbors also pushed back on what might replace the building. Nick Patera warned that residents would be "screwed" if a structure as tall as the nearby Albion residential building went up on the site, blocking sunlight. Donald Ziegler said he opposed any high-rise, arguing that low-rise single-family housing would better preserve the neighborhood's character.

The Putting Assets to Work program launched in 2024 with a $985,000 federal grant. Consultants flagged the police/fire headquarters as a top priority after a preliminary inspection in October 2025 raised safety concerns. Earlier in 2026, they said it was unlikely the facility would remain at its current location.

Consultants plan to present a recommendation to City Council in fall 2026. Any proposal would still require zoning and land use approval.