Batavia Government Center To Be Named For Mayor Jeffery Schielke

BATAVIA, IL — To the Batavia mayor's surprise, the Batavia Municipal Government Center is now known as the Jeffery D. Schielke Government Center, city officials said.

At Monday night's meeting, Batavia City Council unanimously approved the renaming in honor of Schielke, who has served as mayor since 1981. When he took over the role, at 32, he was also the city's youngest mayor.

In 2021, when Schielke won his historic 11th term, he became the second-longest-serving mayor in Illinois and 11th-longest-serving mayor in the United States.

"During his 41-year-tenure, Mayor Schielke has served his beloved hometown with high honor and distinction, having provided leadership during a period of unprecedented growth and prosperity," the Batavia City Council proclamation states. "Mayor Schielke’s extensive experience and ongoing dedication, there is likely no other person who has spent more hours in service to the citizens of Batavia at our Government Center."

Reacting to the news, Schielke said, "Thank you for the honor. I'm very honored to be the mayor of this town."

A life-long Batavia resident, Schielke graduated from Batavia High School in 1967, is a member of one of the first graduating classes of Waubonsee College, and is an alum of Aurora University. He has worked as a Batavia auxiliary police officer, a paid-on-call Batavia firefighter and a volunteer photographer for the Batavia Fire Department.

"The entire time I’ve been on council, you’ve been able to pull all 14 of us in a way forward that didn’t allow in-fighting," Councilman Alan Wolff said. "We could say what we wanted and know that we’d be heard. I really admire that."

He added: "You live Batavia. You are Batavia."

The name change coincides with City Council approving contracts for the government center's remodeling project.

The project will continue modernizing the 120-year-old building, which was last updated in the '90s, according to city officials. Plans include creating two separate and more functional lobbies with separate entrances — one for police and one for city hall reception, which includes the Utility Billing and Community and Economic Development departments.

The building's second floor will house more office space for human resources and information systems. The Albright Community Theatre will continue to be located on the third floor, accessible for shows via an elevator in the city hall lobby. A third-floor bathroom for theater patrons is also planned.

Geneva-based Lane+Pepa Architects designed the remodel earlier this year, which also includes updates to the exterior: new entrance doors and awnings, plus changes to parking, landscaping and signage on the building's west side, officials said.

The city awarded the following contracts for the project: $2.3M to Lite Construction, Inc., of Montgomery, Illinois for the construction; $259K to EHC Industries, of Wauconda, Illinois to remove asbestos and lead paint before the remodeling project; and $162K to Trane U.S. to install a new HVAC Building Automation System.