Batavia council OKs German festival

An Oktoberfest got unanimous "ja's" Monday in response to its requests for a liquor license and street closure from the Batavia City Council.

The Fox Valley chapter of the German-American National Congress wants to serve beer and wine at its proposed three-day party Oct. 1-3 on the Batavia Riverwalk. It also wants to close Houston Street from Island Avenue to Water Street for a carnival.

Organizers are also considering collecting donations for the Batavia Interfaith Food Pantry.

When discussed at the city services and government services committee meetings the past few weeks, some aldermen were worried about having a non-Batavia entity running a festival downtown plus the potential size of the crowd.

The riverwalk is owned by the Batavia Park District, which was waiting for city council action before voting on granting a permit.

But checks with the Elgin and South Elgin police departments, where the festival was previous held, allayed some of their fears.

The German-American National Congress has members across northern Illinois. The Lake County chapter will help with the festival in Batavia. It takes about 2,000 hours worth of volunteer labor to put the festival on, according to Willi Gohs, president of the Fox Valley chapter.

Admission would be free, but the club would charge for food and beverages. Profits would support a college scholarship program.