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Batavia candidates give views on downtown business

Batavia businessmen want to know: What can candidates for city council do to improve the city’s economy?

The candidates responded: Continue to support city programs that already offer financial assistance. And support designs that encourage people to live in, and walk to, the downtown to get their goods and services.

The discussion came at this week’s Chamber of Commerce “Eggs and Issues” forum, at which candidates for Wards 3, 4 and 5 attended. Only the 4th Ward race is contested.

One of the matters on the mind of Dan Stellato, president of Batavia Enterprises, could be seen out the window of the Batavia Government Center: The almost-vacant strip shopping center where once was proposed a park district recreation center. Stellato asked the candidates what they would do if they were a developer.

All the 4th Ward hopefuls thought it should be replaced. Ed Tousana wants a mix of pedestrian-friendly businesses. Susan Stark said it might be a nice place for a development of row houses, with stores on the first level and residential condominiums on the second. Jamie Saam suggested something akin to the parking garage St. Charles built on First Street, which has shops and restaurants on the first floor and offices on the second.

Attitude and perception hurt Batavia, according to Stark and Saam.

“We have such character,” Stark said. But the major challenge is that “we have this perception that we need to keep up with St. Charles and Geneva. We have our own identity in our own right ... we need to stop comparing ourselves to these other towns and realize what a great town we have.”

Saam said that when she speaks to businesspeople about Batavia, they say the town is a great place in which to raise their families, but laugh when she suggests they open in downtown Batavia. “It has a stigma,” she said. She suggests offering financial incentives to get successful businesses from other towns, such as Geneva and Naperville, to move or open second locations in downtown Batavia. Tousana said the town needs a hotel, and Saam suggested it would be a good fit for the downtown, especially if it catered to banquet business.

Tousana disagreed with planners’ beliefs that adding a second bridge to the downtown will help business. “Right now it is more of a bypass and will hurt business more than it will help,” he said.

As for fixing traffic congestion on Wilson Street downtown, Stark drew a laugh.

“As the parent of a senior who feels he is too good to ride the bus and would rather have a ride from his mother or drive ... the easiest solution is to force all students to ride the bus (to Batavia High School and Rotolo Middle School),” she said. Backups on Wilson are worst during early-morning and midafternoon hours when people are driving to those schools.

All supported continuing financial incentives such as grants for facade, fire sprinkler and historic preservation work downtown and low-interest loans for other work. Stark noted, though, that nobody applied this year for preservation grants. Some of the incentives require owners to put up matching funds. “The barrier is that banks aren’t lending money to business,” Stark said.

Susan Stark
Ed Tousana