Rachael Tabelski

A streetscape plan for Bank Street in downtown Batavia is gradually coming to fruition, albeit with fewer carbs than what was originally on the menu, City Manager Rachael Tabelski says.

The “traffic calming and streetscape enhancements” that have been studied, surveyed, and even laid out visually for folks to check out more than a year ago along the section of Bank Street between Main Street and Alva Place have gone out for bid, with the lowest coming in at just over $1.1 million, Tabelski said during this week’s City Council meeting.

“Because of the cost measures, it’s very pared back. There will be curbing; I call it a road diet. There will be turning lanes as well,” Tabelski said. “As many of you are aware, the city was awarded a TAP grant to make improvements along Bank Street from Washington to Main. After public input, design and engineering, the project has been bid, the bidder was Keeler Construction. The TAP grant will pay $945,000 roughly, and the city can use CHIPs money for the remainder of the project for $548,000.

“The split is about $371,000 of engineering, $1.12 million of construction. This is a bit higher than we anticipated when we got the estimates for the project three and a half years ago. So we will be using more CHIPs funding than we originally anticipated,” she said. “We really don't want to delay this project in any way because with the police station finishing up, the YMCA finished, we want to get in there and do that sidewalk streetscape project to kind of finish that block. So we are recommending to move this forward.”

Keeler Construction Company of Albion's bid was $1,121,391.

Council President Eugene Jankowski Jr. asked about the original plans that included a crosswalk “in a weird location” that would have required pedestrians to cross twice to get across the street.

“So I’m just curious how they solved it?” he said.

“So we did a lot of deep dives into mid-block crossing. And if you think about any around the city, it's really the only place that has a crosswalk mid-block. This actually can be more dangerous to pedestrians and drivers because when you're on Jackson Street and I park my car and I'm going to go over to Bourbon and Burger, I wait and watch so it's clear and I cross to the store I'm going to,” Tabelski said. “So there was a lot of back and forth between public safety mid-block crossings and a crosswalk. So we will retain one crosswalk, and we will also, like I said, through the curb cut shrink the size of the street so cars will naturally have to go slower, and it will feel safer to make that mid-block crossing at any of the points across that street itself.”

The enhancements will include bump outs, curb extensions, bike lanes, re-striped lanes and on-street parking, new ADA-compliant sidewalks, and decorative crosswalks, according to a memo to council from Public Works Director Tom Phelps.

The bid is to go for a council vote during a future business meeting.

City management’s “hold over tenant” status has apparently been replaced with an official offer of a lease for Batavia Players to pay $4 per square foot plus back rent of at least $500 per month in an effort to move forward from an original lease in December 2019.

The nonprofit group and city officials had been communicating through their attorneys since the rent had gone unpaid due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the Players’ Main St. 56 Theater shutdowns, and there was no renewal in January. 

City Manager Rachael Tabelski had asked for a five-year financial plan, and the Players had submitted and revised plans three times, Patrick Burk had said. 

The two sides were to meet after Tabelski issued a statement toward the end of 2024 that Batavia Players would be considered a “holdover tenant,” and the matter would be further discussed.

The new lease agreement is up for discussion at Monday’s City Council conference session. The commercial lease is for city properties 2, 35 and 39 in Batavia City Centre, including 11,052 square feet of “improved commercial space that was renovated by Batavia Players through a Downtown Revitalization Initiative and Anchor grant,” Tabelski said in a memo to council. “Base rent will remain $4 per square foot to be paid $3,684 monthly. Back rent will be paid $500 per month or more until the balance is satisfied. 

"The lease also recognizes the city’s capital projects for the roof and HVAC units previously approved by City Council and clarifies how the Batavia Players shall submit requests for maintenance to the property,” she said.

The lease is to take effect April 1 for a period of 60 months to March 30, 2030. The tenant would have the option to renew “so long as the tenant is not in default under the terms of this lease” for a five-year renewal term at a negotiated rent not to exceed $6 per square foot. 

If the city were to sell the premises, it would have to provide a six-month written notice of cancellation, and the tenant would be able to negotiate with the city to purchase the property at any time during the lease term, according to the lease. 

City residents that own property and pay utility costs have an opportunity to learn more and speak up about the proposed 2025-26 budget, which includes 3.5% raises for non-union, management and City Council members; a $50 increase toward city employees’ gym memberships; and 6- and 9-cent increases for water and sewer rates, respectively.

A City Council conference session set for 7 p.m. Monday includes public hearings about the proposed budget, a related tax cap override, and increases that push the water rate to $6.52 per 1,000 gallons and sewer rate to $3.23 per 1,000 gallons. The session will be on the second floor of City Hall.

During a recent council meeting, City Councilman Bob Bialkowski reminded citizens that “this is a good time” for the public to attend and speak up about the budget and related items before council members take a final vote to adopt the $38.8 million plan.

The projected tax rate is $8.46 per $1,000 assessed property value, for a 50-cent decrease from the current rate of $8.96, or a total decrease of $50 per year for a home assessed at $100,000 — if property assessments remain the same. 

The entire amount necessary, property and legal be raised by tax to defray the expenditures of the city of Batavia for fiscal year 2025-26 is $7.2 million

Total of all funds is $38,847,699, including City Centre and health insurance costs of $4,405,781, total water, wastewater and workers’ comp of $12,062,421, $511,177 for street maintenance, $486,042 for snow removal, $113,039 for street lights and traffic signals, $300,000 going into sidewalks, $130,000 for parking lots, $617,255 for parks, and $437,423 for inspection.

Other costs include:

• $43,391 for Dwyer Stadium and $18,007 for David McCarthy ice rink
• $87,847 for summer recreation programs, per a contract with the YMCA
• $5,000 for Genesee Orleans Council on the Arts and $14,585 for community celebrations
• $256,519 for administrative services, $116,699 for economic development
• $269,235 for legal services, $900,000 for general fund reserves
• $49,857 for City Council expenses, $160,517 for city manager

Employees, including the Police Benevolent Association, CSEA administrative personnel, are slated for a 2.5% increase, firefighters for a 3% increase and AFSCME, City Council, manager and non-union are to receive a 3.5% increase. 

City Council gave itself a raise in April 2022, bumping up its salary from $3,500 to $5,000 for all council members, except the president, whose role earns a larger sum of $7,000, an increase from $4,900. This raise will add another $175 for each member and $245 for the president. 

Public safety costs have increased by $800,000 for full staffing, contractual raises, technology subscriptions, additional spending on the Neighborhood Enforcement Team and retirement expenses, City Manager Rachael Tabelski said in the budget summary.

Other matters for discussion include a summer recreation agreement with the YMCA, bid awards, Empire State Development Pro Housing Incentive funding, and a lease agreement with Batavia Players.

With $1 million more in expenses, an expected flat sales tax per the state comptroller and unstable revenue sources such as video lottery terminal money, the city should consider a tax cap override this year, Manager Rachael Tabelski says.

She talked Monday evening about the juxtaposition of raising the tax cap due to increased property assessments, even though the tax rate itself is to decrease by 50 cents per $1,000 assessed value.

“I believe the city has been extremely fiscally responsible in restraining tax hikes for our citizens, but keeping up with the inflationary demands of our expenses continues to remain challenging. This year, we face a million dollars of additional expenses for health care and retirement alone, as well as a nearly flat sales tax projection, so we need to rely on more revenue from other sources, including, in this case, property tax,” Tabelski said during City Council’s conference meeting at City Hall. "Obviously, the city needs to be careful and conservative in projecting our revenue, especially the sales tax, and find a balanced approach to raise enough money to support current services with our property tax while also using reserves, unassigned fund balance and other revenue sources to keep a healthy financial position. 

“Recently, the state comptroller's office was very vocal in advising municipalities to stay flat on your sales tax numbers because we didn't know what the economy was going to do with the new administration,” she said. “And it's only a few days in, and we're still finding out how quickly the economy will change and move.”

That tax cap is not absolute, she said and can be overridden by a vote of 60% of the local governing body. Because the tax cap “seldom actually equals 2%,”  it's extremely hard for governments to use this formula and remain under 2% while expenses for employees, wages, health care and retirement continue to grow, she said. 

“The only way that the tax cap is fair is if the tax cap actually equals the inflation rate, so therefore, it can keep up with the additional spending just to provide the same core services we do today,” she said. “Right now, inflation is three, three and a half percent. As you see, our general fund budget, as proposed at this time, increased by 2.6%, which is $600,000 over last year. Even with the override consideration, property tax owners will see a 50-cent decrease per $1,000 in their taxes this year. 

“At this time, I recommend the City Council move forward to schedule the tax cap override legislation to be considered at the February business meeting, and the legislation does call for a public hearing.”

A public hearing is to be set at the next business meeting on Feb. 10. On that date, the council is also expected to set hearings for the 2025 budget and both the proposed water and sewer rate increases.

Council also had its first budget session, at which Tabelski reviewed city data numbers for the $38.8 million total proposed 2025 financial plan and the municipality. These are the numbers that tell a story of decreased population from a high of 18,210 in 1960 to 15,596, according to the latest census, with males tipping over at 52% and females at nearly 48%.

The median age in the city is 40, and healthcare and social services jobs weigh in at a hefty 4,240, with manufacturing in second at 3,488 jobs, retail at 2,080, and public administration at 1,778. Healthcare was at its peak in 2022, with more than 6,000 jobs here, which fell to 4,186 a year later. 

The 64% white-collar and 35% blue-collar workers total 9,476 employees in Batavia, and more than half of the businesses — 54.96% — employ one to four people, followed by nearly 21% employing five to nine people, and the lowest of 2.36% having 100 or more employees under their roof. 

At least 34% of the population has obtained a high school degree, with more than 39% going on for an associate’s degree or higher.

Demographics aside, property owners are to pay a projected $8.46 per $1,000 assessed value, or $846 for a home assessed at $100,000, and a $50 decrease from last year if assessed property values remain the same. The current rate is $8.96 per $1,000.

Tabelski arrived at that decrease by pulling revenue from several other areas, including $526,000 from the unassigned fund balance, $310,000 from retirement reserves, a $300,000 water fund transfer and $250,000 departmental income. 

“You're basically saying that you're using a bunch of variety of funding sources to balance the budget so that we're not taking too much out of savings, and we're balancing it between the decrease and the reserves. So we're trying to get a little bit from everything to kind of balance it all out,” Council President Eugene Jankowski Jr. said. “Hopefully, we'll see more information in the next year, and we'll have a better prediction of how inflation is going to either level up or increase. We don't know yet, so right now, we're being cautious about funding. Correct?”

That’s right, Tabelski said, and if city officials could have raised sales tax, “we wouldn't have needed to have done the override.”

“Particularly if we could have had a flat year in health care and retirement, same thing, but those costs are essentially out of our control,” she said. 

It’s about trying to “rough it out,” Jankowski said. These calculations help.

“It’s not a huge savings, but it is a big savings, “ Jankowski said. “And I think that's where we should continue to work on is trying to keep that tax rate as low as possible, and even lower, if we can do that extra with good sales tax and possible, the governor increasing the AIM aid on a permanent basis instead of throwing a little out here and there. 

"I just think it’s amazing this is the lowest tax rate we’ve had in 17 years,” he said. “It’s nice to see that even though inflation is going up.”

Water rates are to increase by 1% or 6 cents to $6.52 per 1,000 gallons and sewer by 3% or 9 cents to $3.23 per 1,000 gallons. An average family of four can expect to pay about $850 to $900 a year, including meter and capital improvement fees, Tabelski said. That does depend on consumption at the property and a home with no leaks, she said.

Police and fire expenses make up 47% of the budget, Tabelski said, and with healthcare, it's more than 55%. Property taxes go toward services, including police and fire response to emergencies 24 hours a day and for similar responses from the public works department, she said. Taxes also go for repair and replacement of infrastructure, including streets, sidewalks, parks, water and sewer plant and lines, storm sewer and parking lots, and investing in economic, business, job, housing and community development, plus maintenance of street lights. 

Given the close proximity that homes were built to one another at one time, Jankowski is grateful to have a paid fire department nearby, he said. 

“It's important to have a fire department that can respond very quickly, or else, my house goes up when my neighbor’s house goes up and the next neighbor, but you end up in a chain reaction kind of thing. So that good response time, I think you said you're approximately three to four minutes … when I had the experience of my neighbor's house was on fire, and it was a dramatic one years ago, it's nice to have the fire department there very quickly to bring it under control and contain it,” he said. “I mean, we're an old-style city, so everything nowadays, they spread things out. But that's important. Same thing with police and fire police as well. I think a lot of people I talk to when they live in the city, kind of expect a paid fire department, a paid police department, DPW, actively involved, because it's just the nature of the business of having that many people in a small area. 

“So I think it's important that that's why Council focuses on public safety, police, fire, DPW, those are our core funding. So for our tax base, that's what people want. They want their infrastructure, want their police, they want their fire,” he said. “So that's the feedback I'm getting. So that's where we've kept our focus, and we're not looking for pet projects here and there that maybe would cost a lot of money to try to stay focused on.”

The next budget session will include a review of the fire department, general government and administrative expenses. It’s set for 5 p.m. Feb. 4 at City Hall. 

When she suggested that the city of Batavia could lower its tax rate by 50 cents earlier this week, City Manager Rachael Tabelski reserved other aspects of her proposed 2026 budget for more formal discussions, including the biggest expenses, utility increases of $300 a year for an average family, and being able to maintain a same level of services.

UPDATE 1/18/25: Tabelski said on Saturday that the 2024 estimated water and sewer total of $600 that she provided was incorrect and did not include meter and capital improvement fees. That number should have been $850, making this year’s increase about $50 for a family of four.

City Council has agreed to a budget workshop schedule that is to begin Jan. 27. However, Tabelski agreed to review the $22.4 million general fund budget Friday, the first time she had done so before council workshops began, she said. 

What are some key takeaways?  
Two drivers of budget expenses are a $628,000 increase in health insurance costs and about $400,000 more in retirement fees, she said. 

The unassigned fund balance is at a healthy 21% level, which is close enough to the ideal percentage of 25%, she said. As a result, Tabelski is suggesting moving $526,000 from that fund balance into the general fund revenue to help balance it out with expenses. 

The property tax levy is expected to be $7.2 million from a total taxable assessed value that increased by $102 million from this last year, she said, and a flat sales tax to be at $7.8 million.

“We typically do not see an increase in value like this in the city of Batavia. Not only have residential property sales and comps and the hot seller's market contributed to this increase but so has the reassessment of commercial properties that have done work and added to their value. So we're seeing the economic development strategies starting to actually add value to the overall assessment,” she said. “And when we add new assessment, especially in our commercial buildings, we're spreading out the tax payments across the community and across the residential properties as well. So the point being, it's always great to add value, especially in commercial buildings to your city.” 

In 2017, the city started tracking all of the projects being managed by the private sector, in addition to what was being tracked in the public sector, “and we've had over 152 million in completed projects, 30 million right now under construction, and another 70 million planned by 2028,” she said. 

“So again, the investment in the private sector projects will equate to increased tax base over time,” she said.

Video lottery terminal revenue is not being used because there is no guarantee from year to year that the city will receive this aid and how much it will get, she said. The recent yearly amount has been $440,000.

Major expenses include $10.5 million for public safety, $5.1 million for public works, $4.9 million for health care, $2.9 million for retirement, $1.2 million for street and sidewalk repair and replacements; $540,000 of capital costs — vehicles, buildings, and parking lots/sport court resurfacing; and $1 million being put away in reserve to pay the first bond payment for a new city police facility when that time comes.

“The goal is to not let our debt payment affect the taxpayers,” she said. 

The city’s debt service, paying off prior purchases, still includes construction of City Hall, a fire truck, water project, and now the $15.5 million police station will get added to the list.

The property tax rate may decrease by 50 cents per $1,000, which would mean a rate of $8.46 per $1,000 assessed value, or a savings of $50 a year on a home assessed at $100,000 if assessments are stable from last year.

Tabelski has proposed water and sewer rate increases. A 1% water increase would add 6 cents per 1,000 gallons, and a 3% sewer rate increase would tack on 9 cents per 1,000 gallons. A family of four can expect its total annual bill to be about $900, she said, including water, sewer, and the meters and capital improvement fee (which are not slated for an increase).

In 2024, she estimated that the family of four’s total would be $149 per quarter, or a total of $600, making this new water and sewer bill $225 a quarter, or $300 more per year.  

In an inflationary world, with rising labor, supplies, and materials costs, “the city will need to continue to prepare for economic unpredictability and continue to invest in infrastructure and safety for our citizens,” Tableksi said in her budget message.

In order to do that, priority must be placed on security, health, and safety of city employees and residents, she said.

Speaking of infrastructure
More than $4 1/2 million has been invested into the water plant to “keep it going for the next, we’d say, 15 years,” she said.

“We’re about 85% done with the projects inside of that. We again partnered with the county with Phase Three moving forward of the water project, we still see the plant being able to continue to produce water with these investments for about the next 15 years. And then, if we need to continue to use the plant, we’ll have to look at more investments,” she said. The wastewater treatment plant, we're planning for multiple projects, including sludge removal, some bypass systems. Our wastewater plant is one of the most unique systems east of the Mississippi. There's no other plant like it in New York. It's a fully biological system, unlike all other wastewater plants in New York, which are chemical systems.”

The new ice rink chiller system will be installed once the season is over this spring, the Bank Street streetscape project will continue this summer, another main Cohocton and Walnut water project bid has just been awarded for a spring construction start, and the Austin Park playground has been delayed due to New York State parks legal easement language that had to be inserted into the documents since grant money is tied to that project, she said. 

Street and sidewalk resurfacing and replacement is scheduled in this budget for Kingsbury, Watson, Morton, Ganson, South Spruce and Union Square, using $900,000 of consolidated highway improvement program (CHIPs) funds and two parking lot mill and repavings near City Centre.

There will be a tree removal and planting project to add 1,000 trees to the city’s urban forest over the next three years, mainly in the Fifth and Sixth wards, with a portion also in the Second Ward, she said.

The first budget session is set for 6 p.m. Jan. 27 at City Hall. 

To view the proposed 2025-26 budget, go HERE.

During the first city meeting of the New Year, Manager Rachael Tabelski threw down a gauntlet of sorts about the impending budget before the usual departmental requests and line-by-line reviews by City Council.

“We’re looking to lower the rate by 50 cents,” she said at this week’s council meeting, clarifying that it’s 50 cents per $1,000 assessed value.

If council follows through with that recommendation, with no changes to property assessments, the tax rate would go from $8.96 to $8.46 per $1,000 assessed value, or $846 a year. That would be a $50 yearly decrease from the current tax rate at the same property valuation.  

There are five budget sessions lined up before council is to adopt a final version, and a public hearing will be scheduled for questions and comments from city residents. 

City leaders agreed to alter the meeting schedule so that when there are both council and budget meetings on the same dates, the council meeting will be at 5 p.m., followed by a budget session at 6 p.m.

The schedule is as follows:

• City Council meeting at 5 p.m., followed by budget revenue discussion at 6 p.m. Jan. 27
• Budget work session at 6 p.m. Feb. 4 to discuss fire, general government and administrative
• Budget work session at 6 p.m. Feb. 6 to discuss police and DPW
• City Council at 5 p.m., followed by budget work session at 6 p.m. Feb. 10 to discuss water and wastewater
• Budget work session at 6 p.m. Feb 13 if needed

Once again the question of residency — and of fairness — in the city of Batavia has come up as another employee has requested a waiver from the municipality’s code requiring that people in certain positions live in city bounds.

This issue has affected several police, fire, inspection, and administrative management positions over the years. 

Perhaps city leaders need to consider widening the circle of that residence boundary, City Council President Eugene Jankowski Jr. says.

“I mean, if the person shows up to work on time, why would we tell them where they have to live? If they’re responsible and they’ve got to drive an hour, that’s their life. That’s what they choose to do. People drive,” Jankowski said during this week’s council meeting while reviewing the latest request. “So we address it as any other employee. If they’re late for work and we gotta address it, that’s a different story. I have no problem with living wherever you want, within a reasonable distance. It’s something we should be considering, I think we are. So we need to move that forward and get it figured out.”

The dilemma this time is that city police officer Matthew Smith said that he is unable to relocate from his current home outside of the city because “given the very high interest rates and market price for housing at this time, it would be a financial burden on my wife and I to try and make a move.” His wife also received a promotion recently, which requires her to travel to other locations, and their current residence is more conducive to that, Smith said in a letter to Chief Shawn Heubusch.

Heubusch vouched for his officer’s work ethic and for being “very, very dedicated” to the job since being employed with the city police department in July of 2023. He has shown nothing but “an exemplary work history” and “is always available when called for extra details,” Heubusch said in his official request from City Manager Rachael Tabelski.

Batavia Municipal Code section 22-9 (1) requires residency for current police officers. The department has been working on a plan for how to deal with these situations, which Heubusch said have been more frequent issues as candidates have taken the civil service exam for vacancies. 

“As we discussed in November, the city's department has been working on a residency plan to better meet the city's hiring needs that will be presented to council in the future,” Tabelski said.

Jankowski suggested that maybe the city could offer incentives to prospective employees to move here “instead of demanding they do based on a residency requirement.”

“Keeping in mind we just have to be a little more flexible and understanding of this,” he said. 

Another whole issue, beyond the difficulty of uprooting one’s life and moving and the higher interest rates and housing costs, is that there are fewer homes available, officials said. Assistant City Manager Erik Fix said that he went online to Nothnagle Realty and found only 10 to 12 houses for sale in the city at the time. 

Tabelski was optimistic about projects in the works. 

“Hopefully, through all the initiatives we have in single-family housing at North Pointe Drive, we’ll be able to add some residents to the tax base and give those employees that want to be in the city a better option to be here.”

During a business meeting that followed, council approved the residency waiver for Smith.

City Manager Rachael J. Tabelski issued a statement Tuesday afternoon about the situation between the city and Batavia Players in which the nonprofit owes back rent for Main St. 56 Theater and has been awaiting word as its lease comes up for renewal Wednesday.

"Currently, the City of Batavia considers the Batavia Players as a holdover tenant in the space that they rent at City Centre.  The Theater has provided myself and the City Attorney an executive plan and proposed budget forecast for the next five years," Tabelski said in an emailed statement. "The City recognizes the Batavia Players as a valuable asset to the community. However, they must prove their ability to remain viable and pay debts while continuing to operate.  We look forward to meeting with members of the Players' executive committee in the New Year. 

For as much detail as there’s been for newly configured flood maps in the city of Batavia, there are still unknowns that city officials want to get their hands on, City Manager Rachael Tabelski says.

One key detail is the list of structures being added to the 100-year floodplain. Out of the total 147 structures, “60 are potentially commercial,” which could have a huge impact on the city’s economic growth, Tabelski said during an interview with The Batavian.

She wanted to first define the difference between the city experiencing more frequent flash floods and more severe overflowing creek floods.

“Sometimes we have severe flash flooding that occurs where our storm system can't drain the water away quick enough, but then it goes down really quickly, totally separate from when the creek actually floods and goes above the banks of the creek,” Tabelski said. “And I'm just looking up some of the dates of the last flood. Since I've been manager, we have not had any creek flooding. So that's since I've been with the city, that's at least five years. 

“And the maps were set in the 80s, and they were, I'll call them paper maps,” she said. “As a way they're doing it now, is with LiDAR, and that's electronic, and it takes a lot of measurements of cross sections of the creek every 1,000 feet. And then what their model does is try to predict where the water will move throughout the city, if it does press over the banks of the creek, and then that becomes your flood zone in the city.”

FEMA established a new floodplain map using the new technology and asked for feedback with a 30-day public comment period. Preliminary maps will be issued, and homeowners who would be affected will be invited to a presentation early next year to learn more and have the option to challenge the findings if they have been inserted into the flood plain. 

“We also had our engineers get the baseline data from FEMA and make sure how their modeling was scientifically standard, which they agreed, but they had one finding that they believed that the floodway was too expansive and that they were asking in this draft round of proposals to reduce the floodway,” City Fire Chief Josh Graham said. “So the floodway is once you cross the banks of the waterway, that immediate area that will be flooded, I guess, that's the best way I can explain it. It's the area where the water flows in a flood. So this is what they have for the updated maps.”

So, what does this updated map signify to the city? 
“In terms of development in the city, it's much more difficult to get a building permit in a floodway than it is just in a flood zone, so it would hinder development efforts of any of the properties in the floodway, and that could be properties the city owns; commercial properties or residential for structures such as sheds, barns, things of that nature,” Tabelski said. “So the larger the floodway is, the more properties will have difficulty developing in any way, is one way I like to look at it from an economic development standpoint.”

When a property owner wants to get a permit for home renovations and lives in a flood zone,  they would have to fill out a separate Department of Environmental Conservation permit application, she said. And there are other restrictions for commercial buildings that aren’t compliant or don’t have flood insurance — they can only invest 49% of their building’s value, either by an independent appraisal or their assessed value, she said. 

“So I find this a critical issue for our businesses on Route 63 and our buildings. I mean, on Route 63, who the majority of them are in the flood zone, and when they want to make investments, they can be hindered by higher costs to become flood compliant, to be insured or to only invest up to 49% of their appraised value of their building,” she said. “And we've seen that a lot on the economic development side successfully. It has been done by Stephen Valle and his sister Carrie, with the building on the corner that houses the vegan bakery and apartments upstairs, so they were able to get an appraisal and invest in the building after that appraisal, but they are in a flood zone.”

For homeowners and renters, being added to the flood zone signals the push for buying flood insurance to ensure coverage in the event of damage from a flood, since regular insurance doesn’t usually cover that type of damage; and it serves as caution for when people are considering a construction project, since the city has an ordinance covering development in the floodplain or flood hazard area. 

Other challenges exist for commercial property owners, such as the inability to invest more than 49% of the property’s assessed value. So, for 60 additional commercial properties, that’s a potential problem, she said.

Properties that are and were in the 500-year flood plain did not have to buy flood insurance, and while those 147 structures are moving into the 100-year flood plain, another 282 are being removed since the map has been recalculated.

“Under the new draft, there’ll be 917, so we end up losing 135 structures,” Graham said. “At the end of the day, there’s going to be 135 less structures in the flood zones than there are right now, 282 that will no longer be identified, but 147 new ones that will be.”

How did that happen?
An electronic survey was done using LiDAR technology, a remote sensing method that uses light to measure ranges and map out the flood zone every 1,000 feet, predicting where water will move within the city, he said. That reconfigured the original number of 1,052 people and reduced the total to 917 by shifting—and reducing the footprint—of the overall floodway. 

The flood zone is predominantly on the south side, with the largest flooding happening on Law and Walnut streets in recent years. If you live on the South Side, you may be, or want to become, familiar with a few common acronyms that might come in handy when dealing with flood zones and flood plains:

Property owners can challenge a finding by paying for a survey to determine if they live on a higher elevation than previously established. This is called a LOMA — a letter of map amendment — and the process will involve the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Does that mean they will no longer need flood insurance if they were required to have it while classified in a flood zone?
“If your property is no longer in a flood zone, you can drop insurance with proper documentation from FEMA,” Tabelski said.  “So there is a process that those properties will have to take. And that’s why, when we have FEMA host these preliminary meetings, we’ll be inviting anyone in the areas of the flood zone area, the new ones that are coming in will have to be educated now that they’re in a flood zone, and they can … go through that process, and when the  property sells, it is my understanding if you have a mortgage on it, you’re going to need that flood insurance.”

They want city property owners to know that not only will FEMA be on hand during a meeting in early 2025 to work with folks and answer questions, but city officials also want to help out.

“Nothing's final, but there are changes coming,” Tabelski said. “You'll be getting some hands-on assistance early next year straight from FEMA, absolutely, and we'll do our best to interpret it and be the go-between and be as informed as we can to help residents.”

Batavia Development Corporation, which established the real estate company Creek Side Batavia, LLC, has put the sale of the property behind the McCarthy ice rink and along Tonawanda Creek on hold due to this change of floodway.

Anyone who has walked or cycled down a city street may have experienced some trepidation when dealing with automobile traffic on major routes and wished there were more options for pedestrians and bicyclists to get from home to shopping, recreation, work and appointments.

City management is hoping to do just that with a citywide transportation study, with the eventual goal of improving transportation options and safety for people who use modes of transportation other than motorized vehicles. 

City Council has tentatively approved the study for $80,000, which will be paid for with a $70,000 federal grant and $10,000 from the city, and City Manager Rachael Tabelski briefed council members about the study during this week’s conference session.

“The corridors we've identified that we really want to focus on include downtown Batavia, the Uptown Connection, which would be connecting transportation options from downtown to the Harvester campus, the Healthy Living triangle that connects the McCarthy Ice Arena, Austin Park and Ellicott Trail with the newly constructed Healthy Living campus, improving the Ellicott Street corridor — that's one of our main focuses of the study is to look at the traffic in that corridor and look at any type of traffic calming measures that help it help pedestrians and bicyclists feel safer in the Ellicott Street corridor — the West Side commercial corridor, and then parks and recreation areas and how they connect to neighborhoods,” Tabelski said. “So those would be the goals and the focus of the study. Once the study is done, you can then apply for grant funds using the study in the future.”

The city has been awarded a $70,000 grant from the Genesee Transportation Council. It will match the funding with $10,000 of committed funds and establish a steering committee to work with a consultant to complete the project.

The study will identify opportunities for enhanced connectivity between neighborhoods, reduce reliance on single-occupancy vehicles, and ensure that all residents, including those in underserved areas, have access to safe and efficient active transportation options, according to the plan. It will also aim to bolster the use of non-motorized transportation, such as walking, cycling, and multi-modal transportation options, which align with the goals of the city’s 2017 Comprehensive Plan.

The city has already made progress on improving pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure through various initiatives, Tabelski said, including the Transportation Enhancements/Alternatives Program, Healthy Schools Corridor, approximately $5 million in sidewalk investments over the past decade, and the creation of the Ellicott Trail that winds throughout the city. However, officials believe there remains a need to identify and implement further improvements to create a more connected and accessible transportation network and a healthy living corridor.

Once the final plan is adopted, it should provide a framework that will help the city achieve the following:

Create a citywide transportation plan as a guide for implementing and enhancing safety, access, and connectivity for all modes of transportation.

Provide opportunities to promote healthier, more active lifestyles for city residents by improving mobility and connections to jobs, shopping, and recreation in the downtown area, focusing on the "Healthy Living Triangle."

Improve access to the South side of Batavia through improvements to the Ellicott Street corridor, including pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure.

Connecting downtown, Ellicott Street/Ellicott Trail and the Uptown corridor (Harvester Street and Swan Street) will improve walkability, access to businesses, arts and culture, and create a feeling of safety for pedestrians and bicyclists.

Reduce the risk of traffic accidents on major routes within the city.

There are several projects underway that will have an impact on transportation in Batavia, city management says, including:

Ellicott Street Corridor -- a key route through Batavia that connects Routes 63 and 5 -- had a major overhaul several years ago to make it a two-lane highway for trucker traffic and seemed to hamper much of the traffic entering from side streets, is in need of improvement to better connect neighborhoods, key destinations, and the growing pedestrian and cyclist traffic. 

Ellicott Trail, a multi-use path that runs through the corridor, requires upgrades to enhance safety and accessibility for non-motorized users. Additional housing developments and mixed-use projects have added affordable and market-rate housing units, increasing pedestrian and bike traffic. With 38% of traffic consisting of light trucks and an active rail line crossing near downtown, the corridor faces significant challenges.

Planned upgrades will focus on improving traffic flow, ensuring pedestrian and cyclist safety, reducing speed, exploring traffic-calming measures, improving crossings, and improving signage. 

Environmental Justice and equity: the city is home to several environmental justice block groups, and the demographic composition underscores the importance of making the transportation system more accessible, inclusive and safe for all residents, especially the Ellicott Street Corridor. The transportation plan will focus on addressing the needs of these vulnerable populations, ensuring that improvements benefit all residents, particularly those in underserved communities.

Downtown/Uptown Connection: In 2017, the city began advancing downtown revitalization projects to stimulate economic growth and revitalize its downtown. To date, it has resulted in $65 million in improvements. These grant-funded improvements have enhanced the downtown, improving connectivity for residents, supporting multimodal transportation between downtown, the uptown connection of Harvester Avenue and surrounding residential neighborhoods, helping to sustain economic momentum.

Zoning code update: For the first time in more than two decades, the city is reevaluating and comprehensively updating its city code. The code update will be comprehensive, user-friendly, pro-economic development and simple to read.

The mandatory task is to form a project steering/advisory committee by identifying all applicable stakeholders, such as state transportation facilities and other infrastructure (road, bridge, bike or pedestrian facilities or transit). If stakeholders are not part of the committee, they must have the opportunity to review and comment on draft recommendations that impact their facilities.

Other tasks include publicly announcing a request for proposals, and a designated group will evaluate the responses and hire a consultant with specialized experience in active transportation planning; having the consultant collaborate with the committee, which may include representatives from the Genesee County Planning Department, town of Batavia, Batavia Development Corp., Batavia Improvement District, Genesee Community College, Chamber of Commerce, City Council, Genesee County Economic Development Center, Batavia Police Department, local business owners, GTC staff, Regional Transit Service and Office for the Aging. These entities will assist by providing relevant data, reviewing project tasks and evaluating feasible options. 

The consultant is to perform an analysis of current conditions and assess the needs of the project area, including the city’s background, historical context, planning documents, existing land use, ownership and zoning regulations; a comparison of the findings to the goals and priorities outlined in the city’s strategic plan, ensuring alignment with the vision for the community’s future development, including integration of complete street and traffic calming elements where applicable; analyzing motor vehicle traffic patterns, identifying physical and program needs; and engaging the public through meetings, surveys, stakeholder interviews and/or focus groups.

The committee and consultant will collaborate to identify opportunities to enhance active transportation throughout the city based on the needs previously identified and eventually recommend improvements to multi-modal circulation and access throughout the area, in preparation for a final report that summarizes the key findings and recommendations. 

Public participation is crucial to the study, and the consultant plans are to include and engage low-income, minority, disabled, senior and youth populations. Two public meetings will be scheduled to gather input on existing conditions, needs and goals and to then present draft findings and recommendations and obtain feedback before finalizing the study. 

A tentative schedule has been set to begin with November for scope of work approval, an RFP release in January 2025, selection of the consultant and City Council approval in March, a signed contract by April, a kickoff meeting in May, existing conditions analysis and needs assessment finalized by August, concept plans, strategies and recommendations finalized by October, a draft final report by the end of 2025, and a completed study by February 2026. 

What to do when there are vacancies and few good candidates, but then qualified employees want to live beyond residency requirements for the city of Batavia?

That was a question on the table for the City Council during its conference session Monday evening after city management explained the dilemma of a Batavia Police officer. He would like to purchase a home that is “merely minutes” outside of the city residency boundaries — and therefore Chief Shawn Heubusch requested a residency waiver.

“Officer Samuel Freeman has been a member of the department since April of 2020 and has displayed a strong commitment to the department based upon him taking on additional roles,” Heubusch said in a memo to City Manager Rachael Tabelski. “Officer Freeman’s current residence meets the residency requirement, but he does not own the home. He is seeking a waiver of the residency requirement so that he may purchase his own home in a neighboring township to his current residence.

“Officer Freeman is a very dedicated officer,” Heubusch said during the meeting. “He works second platoon or the three to 11 shift. He has indicated to me he has no intentions of leaving our department. He loves it here.”

City Council has granted waivers before, usually for management positions including assistant manager and fire chief  to code enforcement officer — and at one point several years ago approved 14 waivers at one time, allowing employees to live within Genesee County when it seemed more prudent to do so than risk losing employees.

Tabelski spoke about a time about five years ago when the city reconfigured its residency borders and how that may need to be recalculated.

“I provided everyone with a map so you can look at it. As you can see, several years ago, back in 2019, I'll say, yep, April of 2019, defined our border as the adjacent towns to the city. However, when you look at the 15-minute and 20-mile radius, there are actually locations where you can't live but are closer than some of the locations inside this border,” she said. “So with this waiver, if council does grant it, I'd also like permission for a work group to be assembled to reexamine the residency proposed policy for the city of Batavia, because giving away waivers isn't the point of having a residency requirement.”

When the city used to get 120 candidates for the police officer Civil Service jobs, there were just 100 this last time, Tabelski said. Recruiting and hiring is getting more difficult as it is, not even accounting for having the residency requirement on top of that, Heubusch added, which further exasperates the situation of potential loss of current employees.

“I would just add that Officer Freeman is a very dedicated member of the department. He is a field training officer. He's currently a member of our emergency response team. He has become a firearms instructor in the Department. He takes on a lot of additional responsibilities.  He loves the city of Batavia and working here, but he's a country boy at heart, and he's just looking for some property so he can go hunting,” Heubusch said. “Quite honestly, that's what it boils down to. And again, we've had issues with locating candidates. To Rachael's point, we did discuss this residency back in 2019 with other department heads over here at the time. We made some changes to it. There still are issues with retention and recruiting because of our residency, it comes up from time to time. So we'd like to take a look at that.”

While the waiver is an understandable request, perhaps the issue does need a more thorough review, Councilman Bob Bialkowski said.

“Maybe we’re doing something wrong here,” he said. “At 4:30, there’s a whole line of people leaving. I’d like to see more and more people becoming stakeholders in the community.”

They all agreed that a waiver was the right thing to do now, with a workgroup appointed in the future to review the overall problem and determine if there are other solutions. 

During the business meeting that followed, council approved the waiver by a vote of 6 to 0. Members David Twichell, Kathy Briggs, Al McGinnis, Eugene Jankowski, and Tammy Schmidt all said yes, and Bialkowski added, “Sadly, yes.” 

The fencing has been removed around Ellicott Station in downtown Batavia and a small work crew was spotted Monday on the premises performing some landscaping -- weed-whacking and the like -- to remove overgrown grass and weeds on the Ellicott Street property. 

City Manager Rachael Tabelski has recently said that property owner Sam Savarino would be cited for lack of property maintenance as the area "is an eyesore" with overgrown weeds and grass. She did not respond to The Batavian's request for further comment Monday about the fencing being removed, and whether there's any concern about anyone getting onto the property during the time period the fencing is down, including later this year when the weather turns colder and the vacant site might be a tempting resting spot for transients. 

Savarino likewise did not return a request for comment about the fencing, how long it was expected to be down, concerns about anyone getting onto the property, and how secure the building is at this point. 

The Batavian will update this article when/if responses are received.

Previously: Documents reveal Ellicott Station built on foundation of misunderstood housing terms

By a vote of seven to one, City Council agreed to the second three-year contract for current City Manager Rachael Tabelski during Monday’s business meeting.

The contract, effective March 8, 2024, includes a starting salary of $123,290. That salary takes effect April 1.  Subsequent salaries will be equivalent of the percent of nonunion pay raises in 2025 and 2026 in accordance with the city’s normal payroll practices for other non-union employees of the city of Batavia.

During the Nov. 27 City Council meeting, member Bob Bialkowski raised the issue of tying Tabelski’s salary to other nonunion employees and suggested that her salary instead be a stand-alone salary, raise and benefits. Council President Eugene Jankowski said that he agreed with the contract as is, and the remaining council members agreed with him.

The vote came before the council Monday evening, and Councilman Bob Bialkowski again voiced his objection.

“I’ll restate what I’ve stated in the past, no reflection on the city manager, whatsoever, but it should be a totally stand-alone contact, it shouldn’t be tied in with other employees,” Bialkowski said just before the vote at City Hall. (Editor's Note: this statement has been revised because it was misinterpreted in the original version.)

Members John Canale, Rich Richmond, Eugene Jankowski, Paul Viele, David Twichell, Al McGinnis and Kathy Briggs voted yes to Bialkowski’s no. Councilwoman Tammy Schmidt was absent.

Tabelski was appointed as city manager in March 2021 after working as interim manager since June 2020. 

As per other non-union employees, the contract also includes retirement benefits, medical insurance from the employer that agrees to provide for health, hospitalization, surgical, vision, dental and comprehensive medical insurance for the employee, spouse and her dependent children;  paid time off of five weeks equal to 25 work days, in addition to accrued sick, personal and/or bereavement time, allowances of costs associated with a “suitable automobile for the business use only of employee,” that shall include commuting to and from work and not for personal use.

The employer shall also provide the employee with a cell phone, which may be used for business and personal use, or a $100 monthly stipend, and reimbursement of any travel and business expenses incurred on behalf of the city, life insurance benefits, deferred compensation access of 4 percent of the annual salary to be contributed to the deferred compensation of employee; professional development of dues, subscriptions, travel and expenses for the manager for professional participation and travel, meetings, and occasions necessary to continue her professional development.

The position includes a background check and understanding that suspension with full pay and benefits at the discretion of City Council and termination are options under Chapter Five of the Batavia City Charter and/or if the voters of the city substantially change the form of government of the city and the manager elects to treat that amendment or change as an act terminating her employment; plus a slew of other reasons, including that the manager dies or becomes disabled; admits to, is convicted of or pleads solo contendere to any crime which is injurious to the interests, business, operations or reputation of the city or which involves moral turpitude or which involves the misuse or misappropriation of public funds, engages in illegal drug use, misconduct in connection with the performance of her duties, misrepresentation to the city, fraud, misappropriation of city assets or property, embezzlement, breach of any fiduciary duty owed to the city or any violation of any law or regulations to which the city is subject, engages in any intentional or grossly negligent act, omission or conduct that is injurious to the interests, business, operations or reputation of the city, or materially breaches this agreement.

The manager may terminate the agreement at any time and for any reason as long as she provides the city with advance, written notice of at least 60 days before the termination of the agreement, unless the parties agree in writing otherwise.

In the first year of employment, the manager shall receive a verbal informal review from the city on a quarterly basis, and in the second year receive an annual review on or about March 8. City Council is to provide Tabelski with a written statement of the findings and provide an adequate opportunity for her to discuss the evaluation with council.

After what has seemed like a lengthy ordeal, a set of new, downscaled, and more affordable designs for the City Centre entryways have finally come back for final approval, City Manager Rachael Tabelski says.

This project has been time-consuming, especially since prior bids have been too high for the city’s allowance, and redesigns have had to incorporate different elements to adjust the price.

“Because the first round of designs came in way over budget. We didn't have to bid this out to realize we were over budget. We use a cost service company that kind of costs out your design and says, oh, this is what we think it'll cost, and it was higher than it needed to be,” she said to The Batavian Tuesday. “So we had to scale back a little bit on the design side, but we think we'll have a really nice project, and those silos will be coming down. 

“And we're going to be asking council to award those Tuesday.  It's going to be on a special conference, and then, hopefully, the business meeting (agenda).”

The four silos are separate tubed sections within each of the entryways of Batavia City Centre. They have been leaking and getting moldy, and city officials have wanted to change them out for quite some time.

They hit a snag when prior bids came in beyond their budget, and designs had to go back for revamping to reduce the scope and price tag. The city has set aside $1 million of grant money for the project.

City Council’s business meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 10 at City Hall. 

City Manager  Manager Rachael Tabelski and Chief Shawn Heubusch issued a letter to the community this week regarding three shootings that occurred in the city, and The Batavian asked them a few related questions about crime in Batavia.

The first one was about a family with a Ring camera that apparently caught disturbing video of strangers attempting to break into their home by opening the door where the camera was placed. That family has packed up and moved and put their home up for sale.

Police have access to such camera databases, and The Batavian asked have there been any such incidents reported, and if this type of criminal activity is on the rise?

“That is indeed sad news that someone in Batavia feels they need to move away to be safe.  That is exactly the issues that we have been working on.  Anyone who sees suspicious activity on their property should call 911.  Also anyone that wants to register their cameras with the police we encourage that as well,” Tabelski said.  “We want residents to feel safe and will be allocating more resources to address this type of criminal activity. I did check with the chief. We have been made aware of instances of people forcing themselves in the homes, but have not seen the video of it.”

“Investigators can review video from Ring systems provided to them by homeowners where a crime has occurred in order to gather evidence. The police department does get reports from time to time of people stealing packages from porches,” she said. 

The Batavian asked if Batavia’s population and climate is changing with increased crime, and if so, how do citizens win back their streets?

“Residents should be cautious and aware of their surroundings when out in the City, or anywhere.  Always take basic safety measures with your property to protect it,” Tabelski said.  “From what we currently understand, the gun incidents were targeted.  If you see an altercation, get yourself to safety and call 911.  If you see something, say something.”

“Batavia is not unique in this regard as communities like ours face significant challenges.  There are enormous socio-economic pressures that are impacting communities, including a rise in crime. As a micropolitan in-between Buffalo and Rochester we see some criminal activity here similar to larger cities, however, we have much less crime and a much more tightknit community,” she said. “Many criminals move on after they are arrested or they realize it is too difficult to operate here. Citizens can win back their streets by cooperating with police and reporting crime or suspect activity when they see it. Neighborhoods are stronger when they are united, residents need to get to know their neighbors and take care of them. Simply put, it means we all have a responsibility to police our community.”

While there were many kudos and thank-yous issued online for the city's letter and the police department's efforts, there are some steps that citizens can also take to ensure a safer community, per Tableski's comments:

• If you have a Ring camera system and experience any suspicious activity, allow police to view the footage.
• If you see anything suspicious, report it to police. If you witness an altercation, get yourself to safety and call 911.
• Get to know your neighbors and watch out for them. 

Batavia City Council president Eugene Jankowski and City Manager Rachael  Tabelski faced off in GO ART!’s Celebrity Bartender Challenge at Seymour Place tonight.  Tabelski and Jankowski both said they weren't really competing and that tips would be combined, though.  All tips are donations to the arts council. 

Batavia City Manager Rachael Tabelski was spot on Monday night when she predicted the “lower figure” would be allocated to the city through the $1.9 trillion federal relief act known as the American Rescue Plan.

Tabelski reported at this week’s City Council meeting that she received estimates “ranging between $1.57 million and $2.5 million, so I’ll go with the lowest figure -- 1.5 to come into the City of Batavia, specifically.”

Tentative dollar amounts released Wednesday by Sen. Charles Schumer’s office and the National Association of Counties indicate that the city will get $1.58 million as a result of the legislation.

Tabelski categorized the funding as a “windfall” in that the money must be used for certain projects such as infrastructure and not to “stabilize our operations.” Municipal leaders are waiting for more details on how the money can be spent.

Genesee County is targeted to receive $11.11 million, in range of what County Manager Matt Landers had forecasted. 

The county’s 14 towns are expected to receive $4.66 million, divvied up as follows:

• Town of Alabama, $190,000;
• Town of Alexander, $270,000;
• Town of Batavia, $750,000;
• Town of Bergen, $320,000;
• Town of Bethany, $190,000;
• Town of Byron, $250,000;
• Town of Darien, $330,000;
• Town of Elba, $250,000;
• Town of Le Roy, $810,000;
• Town of Oakfield, $330,000;
• Town of Pavilion, $260,000;
• Town of Pembroke, $450,000;
• Town of Stafford, $260,000.

Allocations to Orleans and Wyoming counties are expected to be $7.83 million and $7.73 million, respectively.

In other City of Batavia government news:

• Tabelski and City Council President Eugene Jankowski Jr. said they are waiting to receive some outstanding invoices before determining the total amount that was spent to conduct the nationwide search for a permanent city manager.

Jankowski previously told The Batavian that he figured it would be around $5,000. The city contracted with The Novak Consulting Group of Cincinnati, Ohio, to assist in the search following the departure of Martin Moore last June. (The Batavian has requested an itemized list of all expenses).

Some residents have criticized the city for conducting another search (Novak was involved in the search that resulted in Moore’s hiring in 2018) when it could have hired Tabelski, who had been serving in an interim role for the past eight months.

Council opted to conduct a full search, however, as a stipulation in the contract with Novak indicated it would be provided at no cost, other than travel, advertising and related expenses.

As it turned out, even if the expenses involved to reach a decision to appoint Tabelski as the permanent city manager increase to $6,000, for example, the city will have saved significantly in salary over that time.

If Tabelski was hired in July, her salary would have jumped from (approximately) $7,398 per month to $9,166 per month – a difference of $1,768 per month. Multiply that times eight months and you get $14,144. The city did give Tabelski a stipend of $1,000 per month for the additional duties, so the savings decrease to $6,144.

But what also must be considered is that if Tabelski was hired in July, she would have brought on an assistant manager in short order. Even at a salary of $75,000, for example, that would have cost the city another $45,000 to 50,000 or so in personnel expenses.

Jankowski said initially he was in favor of “speeding up the hiring process” as he supported Tabelski for the job, but he thinks the decision to conduct the search was the right one.

“Looking back on that, I’m glad I acted on the feedback I received and supported moving on with a full and complete search,” he said. “It was fair and thorough. The search committee did a great job and I’m proud to have been a part of the process.”

• Tabelski, responding to an email from The Batavian, confirmed that Ray Tourt had opted not to accept the permanent position of Department of Public Works director.

“After additional consideration, Ray Tourt has decided not to take the permanent/provisional appointment of Director of Public Works,” Tabelski said. “Ray, a 20-plus-year veteran of the city, is committed to the City of Batavia and will remain the interim director while the city conducts a full search, and hiring process for a new director.”

Once a new director is hired, Tourt will go back to his former position of superintendent of the Bureau of Maintenance, and the city’s Human Resources department will begin to advertise for the position of DPW director in the near future, Tabelski added.

Tourt was appointed DPW director in December after Matt Worth’s announcement that he would be retiring.

While the focus was on Rachael Tabelski as tonight’s Batavia City Council Business Meeting drew to a close, she preferred to keep her eyes on the task at hand – working to find the best ways to "move forward” in her new role as the municipality’s permanent city manager.

In an 8-0 vote, Council approved a resolution appointing Tabelski as city manager following her eight-month stint as acting/interim manager. Council Member John Canale was unable to attend the proceedings (a Special Conference Meeting preceded the Business Meeting).

Council and Tabelski agreed on a three-year contract with a starting salary of $110,000 plus benefits.

“I feel very, very excited. I obviously have a big passion for the City of Batavia – for the residents, for the work that Council does,” she said. “I think they’re a great body and I think they get along really well and they make really good policy decisions.

“So, I can’t wait to see and keep the planning that has been done in years before, that started through many members of this Council and (former City Manager) Jason Molino to move forward.”

When asked if she had any personal goals, she instead talked about: neighborhood issues; a strategy for the Batavia Ice Rink; the economic activity on Main Street; the impact of the state’s $10 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative awarded to Batavia; and the importance of bringing on an assistant manager.

“I was asked to do kind of your first 90 days and, first and foremost, I’m going to be hiring an assistant city manager and I think that will really be helpful … in terms of moving forward some neighborhood priorities and getting some community members that are interested out there in cleaning up their community -- because we know how many passionate residents we have,” she said. “And I think that is one thing the city just hasn’t had the personnel to help with.”

Tabelski, a 2000 graduate of Byron-Bergen Central School, said she couldn’t support a push to privatize the ice rink on Evans Street (formerly Falleti Ice Arena) until “coming up with a strategy – kind of figuring out where we are today and what is the strategy.”

She noted the validity of comments at tonight’s meeting from Stafford resident Bob Gray and Council members citing the importance of the facility as a community recreational outlet.

“We do have a great ice rink but it’s aged and there’s infrastructure investment that needs to go in there. We need to really strategize on how to do so,” Tabelski said, adding that a potential option could be finding a buyer or developer to purchase the rink and tie it in with residential property on a parcel (Creek Park) behind it.

Building owners in downtown Batavia have capitalized on grant funding to make improvements in recent years – enhancements that are ongoing.

“The businesses on Main Street and the buildings have been doing a great job improving with all the grant programs we have, and they’ve invested their own capital. That attracts new business to the building and downtown residents also,” she said. “So, once you start building the density of downtown residents, you’re going to start seeing businesses open on their own. I think that’s the only way we get there, and so I’d like to see more of that happen.”

Tabelski, who previously worked for the Genesee County Economic Development Center and the Batavia Development Corporation, said seeing the DRI projects advance means a great deal to her.

“I was very fortunate to be on the front end of that, writing the grant in conjunction with the city back when I worked for the GCEDC, and I can’t wait to see the projects that happen and how they transform our downtown,” she offered. “And when you start to transform the downtown and have more activities for people and youth, you’re going to start to transform your neighborhoods in positive ways as well. I think it’s all cumulative. So, each investment we make here will continue to spur new investments in our community.”

She said she envisions the assistant city manager working through some of the DRI grants that the city is coordinating and work on extra project tracking, grants, software projects and project management. The assistant also will assume the role of administrative department head.

“That’s important to oversee the clerk’s office, youth services as a whole, and (being able) to interact with the residents – like I said the neighborhood and housing issues,” said Tabelski, who was hired as Batavia’s assistant city manager in August 2019.

Tabelski predicted that Council’s decision tonight to contract with the GLOW YMCA to run the city’s afterschool program and summer recreation youth services will turn out well. She proposed that idea a few months ago after the city had to close the Liberty Center for Youth due to COVID-19 and also as the city was looking to save money in its budget.

“It was an option for Council to consider and I think they did very good due diligence in considering the options and determining how to move forward and serve residents still, and children – youth of our community – and choosing an agency that already is in that business to do the job well,” she said.

Tabelski recalled working for Assemblyman Steven Hawley’s office, answering the phone and listening to constituents’ requests.

“I understand how important your concerns are and when it comes to the city, I hope you always feel free to call Council members, to call City Hall and let us work with you. If it is a city issue, we’ll try to fix it. Also, we love people who want to volunteer and do certain things as we have numerous boards.”

Before the roll call to make Tabelski’s selection official, a few Council members commended Tabelski for excelling under difficult circumstances. One of them was Robert Bialkowski, who publicly voiced his opinion to conduct a thorough nationwide job search while some of his colleagues had hoped to promote Tabelski at the time.

“I would like to thank Rachael because as the acting city manager she really has gone the extra mile. You’ve been doing a great job and we all appreciate that,” Bialkowski said.

That prompted Jankowski, a Tabelski supporter all along, to quip – and draw a few laughs – “(City Clerk) Heidi (Parker), you want to make sure you get that whole statement there. And I feel the same way.”

Photo: Rachael Tabelski at tonight's City Council meeting where she was officially appointed as permanent city manager. Photo courtesy of Alecia Kaus/Video News Service.

Previously: Council set to appoint Rachael Tabelski as city manager on Monday

Council President Eugene Jankowski Jr. today said he has been impressed by Tabelski’s job performance, especially during a difficult time.

“I supported Rachel for the position because she is doing a great job under extraordinarily tough circumstances, and she’s also a local person who has been in the community for many years and is familiar with Batavia and the surrounding area,” Jankowski said today. “And she has served as our assistant city manager since August 2019.”

Jankowski said Tabelski has worked hard to deliver a budget for 2021-22 and was instrumental in the success of the City of Batavia Police Collaboration Stakeholder Group.

“She’s doing well with getting the city back on track, hitting goals, on strategic planning, and all that important stuff we look forward to as a community,” he added.

Council is expected to formalize the selection at its Business Meeting on Monday night at the City Centre Board Room. A Special Conference Meeting will precede it, starting at 7 o’clock. The resolution on the agenda of the Business Meeting stipulates that Tabelski's employment as city manager will begin on that date.

Contacted minutes ago, Tabelski said she would comment on the appointment during Monday's proceedings.

Tabelski's experience in the public sector arena includes serving as a Bergen Town Councilwoman, legislative aide to Assemblyman Steven Hawley, director of marketing & communications for the Genesee County Economic Development Center for eight years and director of economic development for the Batavia Development Corp. for a year before beilng hired as assistant city manager. 

Jankowski shared details of the search process coordinated by a committee of Council members Patti Pacino and John Canale, (former DPW Director) Matt Worth and Human Resources specialist Dawn Fairbanks, working in conjunction with The Novak Consulting Group of Cincinnati, Ohio.

The city had contracted with Novak for the search that brought Moore to Batavia in August 2018.

“The committee met with Novak and they started the process, which consisted of advertising and setting up the job requirements,” Jankowski said. “Initially, there were 35 applications and all applicants were screened to make sure that they were qualified. At that point, it came down to three people for final Council interviews, but one of the three people dropped out.”

That left two finalists – Tabelski and another candidate.

“I’m not at liberty to mention the other person’s name.

Council and three city department heads -- DPW Director Ray Tourt, Police Chief Shawn Heubusch and Fire Chief Stefano Napolitano -- conducted extensive interviews in executive session last Thursday (Feb. 25) with the two candidates, Jankowski said.

“While Council members were interviewing one candidate, department heads were interviewing the other candidate, and then we switched candidates – with the entire interview process taking about four hours. All told, the executive session went from 8:30 a.m. to 1:42 p.m.,” he said.

Additionally, Council engaged in a phone conference with the city’s psychologist, Jay Supnick, Ph.D., who had previously met with Tabelski and the other candidate to conduct a character/temperament evaluation.

“This is normal procedure during the hiring process for key positions of the city,” Jankowski advised.

After final discussions among Council members and the department leaders, Council decided to direct Fairbanks to start contract negotiations with Tabelski.

“The offer we are making is the same one that we made to Martin Moore when he started in 2018,” Jankowski said, noting that the contract will commence on Monday after the final vote by Council. “The agreement includes a salary increase of $2,000 in 2022 and again in 2023.”

Canale said that he preferred to comment after Monday's meeting, but did say that the residents of Batavia will be pleased to learn of the process used by Council to reach a decision.

Moore and the city departed ways on June 20, 2020, prompting Tabelski to move up from her assistant city manager role while a professional search for a permanent manager was taking place.

Advertising and other costs to the city came to approximately $5,000, he said, noting that expenses were kept in check because prior interviews and meetings were held via Zoom videoconferencing and there were minimal travel costs.

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As the Yellow Zone restriction was lifted from Batavia, this meeting will be open to the public with appropriate facemasks, social distancing and temperature screening upon arrival.

Options for viewing the meeting:

Batavia News Service Youtube Channel:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOdvZ9lGH0FiD9ADz6Cg6EQ

Streamed LIVE on Facebook: 

https://www.facebook.com/bataviany/

Spectrum Channel 1301 – Wednesday, March 10th  at 9:00 a.m. and Friday, March 12^th at 8:00 p.m.

The agenda is posted on the City website under the City Council page.

The Batavian file photo of Rachel Tabelski.

We plan to speak with Rachael Tabelski, Batavia's interim city manager at 2:30 p.m.

The livestream will appear right here on The Batavian's home page. Or you can view it on YouTube at this link, where you can ask questions in the live chat and we will try to get them answered for you. Or you can go to The Batavian's page on Facebook and watch the interview there and ask questions through that chat.