Batavia may again try something besides those trees on light posts
Sentimental types who insist on doing things the same way every Christmas may have their jingle bells shaken this year: Batavia may try something besides its usual "Christmas Tree Lane" style of decorating downtown streets.
Monday night, the city council's public utilities committee reviewed a suggestion to go with garland, wreaths, bows and stars instead of trees on many of the 75 or so light posts.
The plan goes to the full city council next week.
Usually, Batavia electrical workers put up lighted evergreen trees, supported in steel rings, on street light posts. City administrator William McGrath estimates the city spends $30,000 a year to prepare and install the rings, make electrical connections for the lights, and put up and take down the trees. That doesn't include the cost of refurbishing the rings every few years.
Since there are brand-new decorative light posts on the new Wilson Street bridge - and because some people have complained about the looks of the decorations in community surveys and to their aldermen - it seemed like the right to time to experiment with a new look, McGrath wrote.
The Christmas trees would remain on light posts down Houston Street. Twelve-foot trees would be installed on the four scenic overlooks on the bridge. The 10 light posts along the bridge would be wrapped in natural, lighted evergreen garland and topped by 48-inch lighted stars, wreaths and snowflakes.
The poles throughout the rest of downtown would also be wrapped in lighted garland, and topped by big red bows.
The city is looking for a suggestion on something special for Route 31 and Wilson, and maybe at Route 25 and Wilson, the entrances to the downtown.
The Christmas trees have been put up since the 1950s, Mayor Jeffery Schielke estimated. In 1980, the city council decided to quit doing that. A public outcry that filled a local paper's "sound off" page ensued, and the city quickly reversed course, he said.
"The history here is the last time this was played with, it was a huge firestorm for the city council," said Schielke, who has been mayor since 1981.
Alderman Eldon Frydendall, chairman of the public utilities committee, has reservations about the plan.
"We have so many signs on light poles I don't know how you put something in the first 20 feet of any poles," he said. He also questioned whether people would bump their heads on the wreaths on shorter poles, and that "I think we are creating a monster by having two different things downtown."
"It can't look any worse than those trees," said Alderman Jodie Wollnik.
The rings will be saved, in case residents don't like the new decorations.
The move should free up city electrical workers to do regular electrical work, as it will take less time to wrap poles and plug in a string of lights than it does to put up the trees, according to McGrath. There are about 75 posts to decorate in an area bounded roughly by Main Street, Houston Street, Lincoln Street and Prairie Street.