Erica O’Donnell said she learned at an early age the importance of community participation and hopes to have the opportunity to impart her views as a member of the Batavia City Council.
“I’ve been involved on the sidelines in local politics for a long time. I grew up in the Town of Alabama and my grandfather, Joe Cassidy, was on the town board for a number of years,” O’Donnell said. “I spent time with him when I was very young -- stuffing envelopes and helping out with fundraisers and things like that – and kind of caught the bug that way.”
That was about 20 years or so ago, said O’Donnell, now a Batavia resident who has been the chair of the City of Batavia Democratic Party for the past three years.
She has completed the petitioning process and will be on the ballot in November seeking one of three open Councilperson-At-Large spots. She will be facing three Republican incumbents: Jeremy Karas, Robert Bialkowski and City Council President Eugene Jankowski Jr.
The current makeup of City Council is 100-percent Republican, a fact not lost upon O’Donnell.
“I think it is time to get some diverse and fresh ideas, and I think I would bring that to Council,” she said, noting that she is all for supporting businesses and activities that will attract young families to buy homes and settle in Batavia.
She said she has been “very lucky” that her husband, Patrick, is able to commute to his job in Rochester because it is affordable to live in Batavia. The couple bought a home in the city’s Fifth Ward in 2012, and since then have had two children, Lila, 7, and Connor, soon to be 5.
“When we purchased the house, I said to a good friend, ‘You sent your kids to the school district here. You lived here your whole life. What do think about raising kids in the city?’ ” she recalled. “And she said the best advice I can give you is to get involved. Get to know your neighbors, go to meetings – get involved. That’s what I have been trying to do and encourage everyone to do.”
O’Donnell said she realizes that Genesee County and Batavia have an aging population, and would love to see millennials purchase some of the “beautiful historic houses being chopped up into apartments or just crumbling.”
“I think we could do more to attract young people,” she said.
Along those lines, she said she is happy the city received the $10 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative award from New York State – “that is a huge success and I give a lot of credit to City Council and former City Manager Jason Molino for that,” she offered – but had hoped more of the funds were directed elsewhere.
“I would like to have seen more of that money put towards retail and things to attract people downtown,” she said. “The YMCA and Healthy Living Campus are going to be wonderful -- and both of my kids have benefitted from preschool at the Y -- but that was a big chunk of money that went to nonprofit groups. There are other things that would have been my favorites for that money.”
O’Donnell said she is in favor of an expansion of the city-owned ice arena on Evans Street, possibly including an indoor recreation facility nearby.
“I think the city should make some type of investment there,” she said. “Not necessarily take it over but give some support to encourage (the use of the facility).”
She pointed to the outdoor soccer fields off Bank Street Road as a prime example of a successful venture for youth that brings revenue into the city.
“If you drive by there during a soccer tournament, there are vehicles everywhere. If we put some sort of indoor sports facility in the city – maybe near the ice rink -- the businesses would no doubt benefit hugely from those types of tournaments and events. People come from all over and it’s packed,” she said.
Her thoughts on some other issues in the city:
Construction of a new police station
“It was actually when I started getting involved several years ago when they formed the police task force. At the time, that was such a huge deal and it was covered so heavily in the media. I understand that their first choice is no longer an option (Swan Street), so that certainly was my first choice. Obviously, I think it would be beneficial to have more police presence on the Southside. Alva Place, which is where they’re looking at now, was their second choice. I think that is the best thing to do – listen to the citizens – and go where it was recommended.”
COVID-19’s impact on city finances
“I’m concerned more about the ability to spend compared to the (Council’s) willingness to spend. So much of what we’re going to be able to do is going to depend upon aid from the state and aid from the federal government. COVID really through a wrench in everybody’s plans going forward, and who knows for how long – probably generations. We’re going to have to come up with some pretty creative solutions to be able to spend.”
Government meetings via Zoom, YouTube
“We’ve learned a lot in the past year as a society and I think there are some things that we can take away and keep, including the transparency that allows us to have those meetings streamed live or even a couple hours after the fact. It’s difficult to make it to all those meetings, whether it’s the legislature or board meetings. Also, there is so much going on with my kids at school that it’s nice to be able to watch the school board meetings to keep up with everything.”
The city manager hiring process
“While I think Rachael Tabelski is doing a good job and was the obvious choice for city manager. I am glad that we went through the whole process of interviewing. I think that is the correct and transparent way of hiring someone for a position such as that. But I’m glad that she ended up with the job, and am sure she will do a great job going forward.”
O’Donnell said going door to door to get signatures for her petition was a valuable experience and she’s looking ahead to meeting more people in the coming months.
She conceded that the past two years have been a bit hectic with “nonstop elections” but thought “that the best way to get other people involved was to lead by example and jump in myself.”
In closing, she shared that Joe Cassidy is still the chair of the Town of Alabama Democratic Committee and is her biggest supporter.
“He’s definitely a proud grandfather,” she said.
