Batavia rec center soundly rejected

There will be no new community recreation and fitness center for the Batavia Park District, citizens decided Tuesday.

Voters overwhelmingly rejected - 9,628 votes to 4,813 - a plan to have the district borrow $36 million to build a center in Beach Park, combining it with the revamping of Quarry Beach.

The plan called for reducing the size of the outdoor pool and converting it from a sand-covered limestone-bottomed facility to a concrete one.

In one of the precincts, nearly 75 percent refused it, according to unofficial results. In several surveys, residents indicated they wanted a community center, but not as many of them agreed they would pay more in taxes for it.

A group called Save Our Quarry also sprung up, protesting the plans for Quarry Beach. There are no indoor pools in Batavia.