Downtown plan bad for Batavia

Preferred Development of Chicago has presented a conceptual proposal for redeveloping downtown Batavia. Their plan involves moving the McDonald's restaurant to the corner of Wilson and Island, razing the underused shopping center and adding a parking garage with some retail space and including the Batavia Park District in the negotiations. The Batavia City Council has now approached this redevelopment with the use of TIF money. This is a poor decision by the city council.

Batavia needs retail sales tax revenue and downtown needs to re-establish its tax base. The redevelopment proposal does nothing to add to the tax base, only reduces it. McDonald's relocation will not add significant new revenue. The parking garage adds nothing and the proposed shopping center is smaller than the current one. The park district's recreation center will provide no sales tax and it will reduce the TIF income because the park district does not pay property taxes.

The park district suggests that the redevelopment will attract 1,000 people per day downtown. Is that a total of 1,000 people or an additional 1,000 people? Where will these people shop? Without additional retail stores the impact of this redevelopment will have a negative effect on the downtown.

Preferred Development of Chicago must present another concept for the redevelopment of the properties. They should question the park district's partnership because a referendum has not been passed for funding. TIF money can be better used other than a parking garage and there has to be more than 5,000 square feet of retail space.

Batavia needs retail tax dollars and this concept for redevelopment of downtown does not satisfy that need.

Jack McCabe

Batavia