Batavia Main Street highlights grant-funded marketing, scavenger hunt and Boardwalk Shops vendors

The executive director of Batavia Main Street told the City Council on March 17 the organization received a $5,000 Illinois Main Street grant and is using the funds to support volunteer outreach and marketing initiatives downtown.

The grant supports a new "hype team" of volunteer ambassadors who will staff farmers markets, help at Main Street events and promote downtown on social media. The executive director said the program includes branded materials and a modest volunteer commitment.

Batavia Main Street also hired a paid influencer for a collaborative video that, the director said, generated roughly 84,000 views, about 92,900 likes, more than 780 shares and more than 200 new social‑media followers for the organization. The director said those metrics came from the influencer's collaborative post that featured five downtown businesses.

To kick off the hype team, Main Street is running a downtown scavenger hunt March 8–April 6 with foam‑finger prizes and downtown dollars: three winners will receive $100 in downtown dollars and additional smaller prizes. The director said the scavenger hunt prizes total $800 in downtown dollars.

Main Street also announced the 2025 Boardwalk Shops vendor lineup and listed returning and new vendors, and said the Boardwalk Shops season will open May 9.

Mayor praised the Main Street program and said other communities have asked to visit to learn from Batavia’s farmers market and downtown programming. The Main Street director said staff time and attendance at a national conference are among strategies the organization uses to sustain its programs and support peer learning.

No formal council action was recorded on these items during the presentation.