GENEVA
Officials limit parking close to Metra stop
The City Council has banned parking on some sections of streets near the Metra stop after residents expressed concern about commuters potentially parking all day in front of their houses.
Alderman agreed during a meeting this week to ban parking on the following areas: along both sides of 8th Street from South Street to Crawford Street; on Crawford Street from 8th Street to its eastern end; and Nassau Lane from 8th Street to its western end. Aldermen had discussed the issue at a July meeting and deferred a decision until Monday’s meeting.
Some Geneva residents are upset that they must pay for parking even though their taxes have gone toward paying for a commuter parking garage near the stop.
“Now I’m asked to pay $1.50 a day to use it, all because a few residents feel that one car on their street diminishes the environment in their neighborhood,” said resident John Devine.
Residents of the area oppose commuters parking in front of their homes for nine hours or more while they travel to Chicago to work. They say it is difficult for emergency vehicles to use the street when cars are parked on it.
Also Monday, one of the locations for red-light enforcement camera systems in Geneva was removed from the plan on the recommendation from the camera-installation company.
Redflex determined that the intersection at Kaneville/Keslinger Roads and Randall Road is not as suitable as other intersections, despite its high accident rate.
Most accidents at the intersection are rear-end collisions that result from drivers slamming on the brakes when a light turns red, police said.
Redflex will install the systems at no cost to the city in exchange for a monthly fee of $4,395 per camera system. Revenues to the city from enforcement are estimated to be at least $50,000 per year per camera system.
— Barbara Kois
BATAVIA
4-day fest to celebrate city’s 175th anniversary
The city will celebrate its 175th anniversary this weekend.
The four-day event will open Friday with “Batavia: A Peek Into the Past,” an exhibit of historic photos and artifacts, in the council chambers at City Hall on Duck Island.
Festivities will also include a play dramatizing the city’s founding, a Pioneer Parade march, performances by various bands, a rubber-duck derby, half-marathon and fireworks show.
For more information, visit www.cityofbatavia.net.
— Denise Linke
