Batavia council members discuss new City Hall murals, bike routes, road diets at Aug. 13 meeting

Batavia City Council members at the Aug. 13 Committee of the Whole meeting made recommendations on a new mural project by local artists on the back side of City Hall, a road diet that would decrease the number of lanes on Route 31 and licensing for a new massage therapy business.

The Batavia Mural Series is a proposed public art installation that would turn the boarded windows on the east side of the Jeffrey D. Schielke Government Center into a mural series by local artists overlooking the Fox River and Batavia Riverwalk.

The project is an initiative by the Batavia Public Art Initiative, The Conservation Foundation and the city of Batavia. Local artists submitted design proposals for each of the windows that were reviewed by the project leaders.

Committee of the Whole members recommended approval of the mural series in a unanimous voice vote. The resolution was expected to go before the City Council for possible final approval at their Aug. 19 meeting. If approved, the work is expected to be completed in September and the exhibit unveiled in October.

At the same meeting, members of the Committee of the Whole recommended approval of a contract with Superior Road Striping Inc., of Bartlett, to conduct road striping as part of the road diet project on Route 31. It would reduce the route from four lanes to three with the center lane designated for left turns.

The road diet would reduce the lanes on Route 31 throughout the city except for the portion between Houston and Elm streets in an effort to reduce speeds after a fatal pedestrian accident and many near misses occurred in 2023.

The city is working with the Illinois Department of Transportation on permitting for the project, which is nearing completion. According to the striping contract, the city will pay $175,172 for the striping work, which includes 10% contingency.

With unanimous approval at the Committee of the Whole meeting, the contract was set to go before the City Council for possible approval at the Aug. 19 meeting and then go to IDOT for final approval. If approved by IDOT, the contract requires the work to be completed by Oct. 31.

Council members recommended approval of an ordinance that would allow a massage therapy business to operate out of the second floor space at 103 E. Wilson St., which houses the recently opened wellness business Zen Loft Collective.

The applicant, Emily Beaupre, would operate as a massage therapist in about 124 square feet of space at the north end of the unit. Beaupre currently operates her massage practice Sunshine Massage & Body Work out of the Zen Loft Wellness Center in Aurora.

Committee of the Whole members recommended approval of the ordinance in a unanimous voice vote.