A familiar Central Street corner is getting a caffeine-fueled second act. Colectivo Coffee is moving ahead with plans for a second Evanston cafe, rehabbing the long-quiet Lincolnwood Service Station into a neighborhood coffee spot with a sizable patio and a preservation-minded facelift.
The Milwaukee-based roaster says it is targeting a late 2026 or early 2027 opening for the Central Street location. The building, a 1930s Pure Oil service station that later operated as Lincolnwood Service, has been out of service since 2024 and carries local landmark protections.
In a July 24 news release, Colectivo detailed its proposal for 2945 Central St., outlining a full espresso bar and a made-from-scratch food menu with room for about 48 customers inside and roughly 80 on the outdoor patio, according to Colectivo Coffee. The company notes that Central Street would be its second Evanston cafe as it continues to build out its Chicago-area footprint.
The cafe would take over from the long-running Lincolnwood Service Station. The building was constructed in 1938 and became a local landmark in 1977, The Daily Northwestern reports. State records list the facility at 2945 Central Street and mark the site as closed, indicating gas operations have shut down in recent years, according to the Illinois State Fire Marshal. Because of the landmark status, any exterior changes will need to go through Evanston’s preservation review process before construction can really get going.
Preservation Review And Permits
City paperwork shows the corner has already started its journey through Evanston’s approval pipeline. The City Manager’s weekly zoning report lists a 2024 zoning analysis to “restore existing 1930's service station to convert to a cafe/restaurant” at 2945 Central, with the application still marked as pending staff review.
At the same time, a commercial listing for the address notes that renovation drawings, including new roll-up doors and a larger outdoor patio, have received a nod from Evanston’s Landmark Preservation Commission, according to CommercialCafe. That early coordination with preservation officials could streamline the building permit phase, though the project will still need final permits, inspections and adherence to any preservation conditions before hammers start swinging in a serious way.
What It Means For Central Street
Central Street functions as a compact, walkable business corridor where independent bakeries, restaurants and coffee shops cluster together. The neighborhood organization that supports the district highlights its pedestrian-friendly public spaces and small-business mix, according to Central Street Evanston. Dropping a sizable new patio cafe into that mix is likely to tweak the corridor’s rhythms, even if the historic building’s bones remain intact.
Colectivo opened its first Evanston outpost on Church Street downtown in 2018. Local reporting suggests the Central Street cafe could shift where people linger and how nearby independent cafes share the pie, according to The Daily Northwestern. The company’s plan to combine indoor seating with a large outdoor patio lines up with a broader Central Street tilt toward al fresco dining and public seating.
“We’re excited to continue growing in Evanston and become part of the Central Street community,” Colectivo President Scott Isabella wrote in the company announcement, which emphasizes a preservation-first approach to the conversion and a patio-heavy seating layout, according to Colectivo Coffee. The release encourages neighbors to keep an eye out for construction updates and opening news as the project advances. The company has not pinned down anything more precise than the late-2026 or early-2027 window.
How quickly the old service station morphs into a coffee hangout will hinge on final permitting and preservation conditions. The City’s weekly zoning report still lists the 2024 application as under staff review and notes that full sign-offs are required before major construction can begin, according to the City of Evanston. If approvals stay on track, neighbors are likely to see a restored exterior and a new patio rather than a complete teardown. Colectivo says it plans to share construction updates as work progresses and is still aiming for that late-2026 or early-2027 debut.
