The Batavia City Council on Monday unanimously voted to establish a special services area in its central business district to help fund participation in the Illinois Main Street program.
The city will collect an annual tax beginning in December from the businesses in the special service area for three years at 28 cents per $100 assessed value, with a cap of $280. Those funds will be paired with funds pledged by the City Council and funds raised by a Main Street Committee.
The city found out in March it had been chosen to participate in the 8-year-old state program intended to help revitalize downtowns by providing help in several areas, particularly technical assistance.
In May, the city postponed a public hearing on the area in response to objections by several business owners and last month added five businesses mistakenly omitted from the irregularly shaped area.