A downtown Evanston street corner with shade trees. Photo: Eric Fredericks from Rancho Cordova, CA, United States / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
Evanston’s summer sidewalk sale calendar is split across two weekends this year, with the Central Street shops going first and two other commercial districts joining in two weeks later.
Central Street’s sale runs Friday, July 10, through Sunday, July 12. Merchants along the strip plan to put out clothing, gifts, food and other goods at reduced prices, and the district has built a few outdoor events around the shopping. On Saturday, Independence Park hosts yoga, dance and live music through the day. The district’s event listing also mentions a City of Evanston water truck on Friday and an optical pre-screening from the eyewear shop Spex on Saturday.
Shops that have signed up include Maya Papaya & Tony Macaroni, Notice, Foodstuffs and Allegro Dance Boutique. The district’s own listing also names Happy Husky Bakery, Perennials, Stella and The Spice House. The full roster and schedule were posted on the Central Street district’s website.
Central Street has a village feel, with small locally owned shops strung along the street and Northwestern’s Ryan Field and Welsh-Ryan Arena nearby, so the sale draws a mix of neighborhood regulars and people passing through for other reasons.
Downtown and Chicago-Dempster on July 24-26
Downtown Evanston and the Chicago-Dempster business district both hold their sales on the weekend of July 24-26. Downtown retailers have advertised markdowns of as much as 75 percent at some shops. Downtown organizers also set aside Saturday, July 25, for local artists, inviting them to set up and sell their work alongside the stores. Artists who wanted a spot were asked to contact the downtown organization in advance.
Chicago-Dempster, the cluster of independent shops and restaurants around Chicago Avenue and Dempster Street, scheduled its sale for the same three days.
Why the dates are staggered
Sidewalk sales are a familiar way for small retailers to clear summer stock and draw foot traffic. In Evanston they are organized district by district through the merchant groups rather than by one citywide body, which explains the separate dates. Central Street goes alone on the second weekend of July. Downtown and Chicago-Dempster share the fourth, so a shopper can cover both in a weekend.
Dates and participants come from the Central Street district’s event listing and the downtown and Chicago-Dempster merchant announcements.
Rachel Lindqvist covers community life, the lakefront, dining and the arts for The Evanston Edge.
