Kane County Reporter

City of Batavia City Council met April 7

Here are the minutes provided by the council:

1. MEETING CALLED TO ORDER

Mayor Pro Tempore Wolff called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m.

2. INVOCATION followed by PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

Ald. Uher led the Pledge of Allegiance.

3. ROLL CALL

Aldermen in attendance at roll: Barraza (7), Lanci (6), Beck (5), Pieper (4), Malone (3), Wolff (2), Solfa (1), Baerren (1), Leman (2), Uher (3), Malay (4), Uher (5), Cerone (6), Vogelsinger (7).

Attending remotely: Beck (5), Malay (4)

4. REMINDER: Please Speak Into The Microphone For BATV Recording

5. ITEMS REMOVED/ADDED/CHANGED

Remove item M from the Consent agenda and add it separately as item 6a.

Motion by Ald. Solfa, seconded by Ald. Lanci, to approve the consent agenda. Motion carried by voice vote.

6. CONSENT AGENDA

Accept and Place on File:

A. Committee of the Whole Minutes March 11, 2025

B. Plan Commission Minutes February 5, 2025 and February 19, 2025

C. Historic Preservation Commission Minutes March 10, 2025

Approvals:

D. March 28, 2025 Payroll $1,058,371.12

E. Accounts Payable Check Register $3,530,277.82

F. City Council Minutes for February 3, 2025 & March 11, 2025 Special Mtg & March 17, 2025

G. APPROVAL: COW Executive Sessions from February 25, 2025 - Personnel

H. RESOLUTION 2025-046-R: Authorizing the Sale of Municipally Owned Real Estate West of 122 S Van Buren Street (SCB 3/14/25 COW 3/25/25 14/0) CD

I. ORDINANCE 2025-019: Amending City Code Relating to Construction of Utility Facilities in ROW (GPH 3/17/25 COW 3/25/25 14/0) CS

J. RESOLUTION 2025-047-R: Authorizing the purchase of a Digital Backup and Recovery System, (HC 3/19/25 COW 3/25/25 14/0)

K. ORDINANCE 2025-021: Declaring Certain Property to be Surplus and Authorizing Sale (SH 3/20/25 COW 3/25/25 14/0) CS

L. RESOLUTION 2025-048-R: Authorizing the Execution of a One-Year Renewable Contract for the 2025-2029 Janitorial Services for City of Batavia Facilities with Bravo Services, Inc. of Mt. Prospect, Illinois (SH 3/20/25 COW 3/25/25 14/0) CS

M. ORDINANCE 2025-022: Amending the Text of the Zoning Code for Chapter 2.6 for Ambulance Service (DR 3/20/25) CD

N. APPROVAL: 2025-2026 Late Night Class A Liquor License- Overflow Management Group LLC DBA Overflow, Manager Brian Panozzo

O. APPROVAL: 2025-2026 Late Night Class A Liquor License- RP3 Group LLC DBA Riverside Pizza & Pub, Manager Brian Panozzo

Ald. Beck read aloud the Consent Agenda.

Motion by Ald. Beck, seconded by Ald. Solfa, to approve the consent agenda. Motion carried 14 yea/ 0 nay/ 0 absent.

6a. ORDINANCE 2025-022: Amending the Text of the Zoning Code for Chapter 2.6 for Ambulance Service (DR 3/20/25) CD

Motion by Ald. Solfa, seconded by Ald. Lanci, to approve the ordinance. Motion carried 13 yea/ 0 nay/ 0 absent/ 1 abstain.

7. MATTERS FROM THE PUBLIC: (For Items NOT On The Agenda)

none seen

8. OATH OF OFFICE: Probationary Police Officer Robert Dase

Chief Blowers introduced Robert Dase and spoke to his qualifications and experience. He recommended him for appointment to the Batavia Police Department as Probationary Police Officer.

Mayor Pro Tempore Wolff administered the Oath of Office.

9. OATH OF OFFICE: Probationary Police Officer Brett Crissie

Chief Blowers introduced Brett Crissie and spoke to his qualifications and experience. He recommended him for appointment to the Batavia Police Department as Probationary Police Officer.

Mayor Pro Tempore Wolff administered the Oath of Office.

10. OATH OF OFFICE: Probationary Full-time Firefighter/Paramedic Nick Dean

Chief Hanson introduced Nick Dean and spoke to his qualification and experience. He recommended him for appointment to the Batavia Fire Department as Probationary Full-time Firefighter/Paramedic.

Mayor Pro Tempore Wolff administered the Oath of Office.

11. PRESENTATION: One Book, One Batavia Project: Operation Support Our Troops Care Package – Batavia Public Library

Kristen Zambo and Lisel Ulaszek from the Batavia Public Library delivered a presentation on the One Book, One Batavia Project for 2025. They encouraged Batavians to participate in the project by reading the adult, teen, or youth selections and attending programming. One of the initiatives of the project will be a “Comfort and Care Package” drive to collect needed care package items for active service members in the US military.

12. RECOGNITION: Recognizing Retiring Public Works Director, Gary Holm, for His 17 Years of Service to the City of Batavia

Mayor Pro Tempore invited Administrator Newman to address the Council. Newman spoke about the 16 years of service Public Works Director Gary Holm has contributed to the City of Batavia.

She said that he has been a consistent voice of reason and clarity, always pushing the city to more sustainable decisions. She noted that he is able to identify solutions that others might miss and communicate complicated ideas with confidence and clarity.

Newman said that Holm leaves behind a legacy of which he and his family can be very proud.

Mayor Pro Tempore presented Holm with a plaque recognizing his years of service to the City of Batavia.

Holm addressed the Council and thanked his family for their support. He said that the supervisors and staff of the department have been excellent, and expressed his appreciation for the leadership of Mayor Schielke. Please review the recording for comments in full.

13. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

President Maragret Perrault delivered her report on the recent and upcoming activities of MainStreet. The Inspire awards will take place on April 24th, to celebrate excellence in Batavia business. The organization is continuing the “Chamber Eats” program which encourages people to visit local restaurants by offering a gift card drawing. The organization will again host a Volunteer Fair at the Batavia Public Library on May 6th. Perreault introduced her guests, Sarah McCarthy and Lynn Queen from Batavia Apartments, a 290 unit family housing development. McCarthy, Resident Services Coordinator at Mercy Housing explained that Mercy Housing is the largest non-profit affordable housing organization in the United States. Lynn Queen spoke about some of the kinds of support residents at Mercy Housing can access through their work, including an onsite Girl Scout program, food pantry, community garden, art programming through Water Street, and more.

Ald. Vogelsinger asked what some of the most pressing volunteer needs are. Queen said that event support is a pressing volunteer need. Ald. Lanci asked if monetary donations are also accepted. Queen said that funding can be contributed to Mercy Housing Lakeside and that she would investigate how funds could be directly contributed to the Batavia Apartments.

14. ADMINISTRATOR'S REPORT

Administrator Newman delivered her report on the recent and upcoming initiatives of the City of Batavia.

She said that Max Weiss has been part of a Kane County “Safe Streets for All” Steering Committee which has identified an area of Randall Road between Main and Wilson Street as a top priority for safety improvements. Lori Botterman has created a website “Planning Batavia’s Energy Future” to share information with the community. The City has begun to use Code Red as a tool to communicate with areas affected by construction work.

Batavia has been awarded a Green Infrastructure grant for improvements to solve drainage issues along Mahoney Creek.

Ald. Pieper asked about Kane County identifying railroad crossings at Prairie and Wilson for safety improvements. Newman asked Pieper to share any documentation he has with her for follow up.

Ald. Baerren asked why the city is contributing to park improvements along Mahoney Creek considering it is a Park District property. Andrea Podraza responded that because Mahoney Creek is a City waterway, it was in the interest of the community to develop an intergovernmental agreement to address the issue.

15. OTHER BUSINESS

Ald. Cerone asked if there is a prescription drug drop off bin at the Police Department.

Chief Blowers responded that there is a 24 hour drop box accessible to anyone. He noted that 800 lbs of unused medications were collected in 2024, and kept out of waterways.

16. MAYOR’S REPORT

No report.

17. ADJOURNMENT

Motion by Ald. Solfa, seconded by Ald. Malone, to adjourn. Motion carried by voice vote. The meeting adjourned at 8:00 p.m.

https://www.bataviail.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_04072025-2399