(File photo)
By Mike Pettinella
For Video News Service
The Batavia Town Board on Wednesday voted to end an agreement to provide code enforcement services at the WNY Science & Technology Advanced Manufacturing Park in the Town of Alabama and, according to Supervisor Greg Post, it has nothing to do with the possible siting of a 500-megawatt data center at the 1,250-acre site.
“We’ve offered support and done contractual code enforcement and inspections for several communities across the county over the years, but as our town continues to grow, we’ve gotten more and more work,” Post said. “We’re always available to help (neighboring towns and villages) when we can, but we have to look to the needs of our community first. The data center does not factor into this.”
In November 2021, the Town of Batavia entered into the contract with the Town of Alabama to extend zoning, fire and building code enforcement within STAMP. The pact called for a 90-day notice if either party wished to terminate it; thus, the agreement is set to terminate on Sept. 16.
Post said Town of Batavia employees worked on zoning related issues during the development of Edwards Vacuum at STAMP, adding that the town has been in the process of ending similar agreements with other towns and villages in Genesee County.
“As our community has grown, we just don’t have the resources to continue to work outside of our town,” he said. “More and more inspections and plan reviews, plus requests for information that take up a lot of time.”
Alabama Town Supervisor Rob Crossen said the Batavia board’s action was expected as he and Post have been communicating about the topic over the past year.
“They’re (Batavia town employees) just very busy with their work and their work keeps piling up and they’re trying to pull back a bit on what they do (outside of their borders),” Crossen said. “They’re going to finish up with Edwards (Vacuum) and the substation if there’s any work left on that, and we’ve already found somebody to do the work on STREAM (U.S. Data Center), should it be approved.”
Crossen said the Alabama Town Board is in the process of finalizing a contract with its new code enforcement officer, adding that it will be an hourly position treated as a outside contractor or vendor.
Post said that other neighboring municipalities have hired their own code enforcement officers. He also advanced the idea of communities banding together to provide these services or possibly asking the county to support them.
Currently, the county employs a part-time code enforcement officer who is responsible only for buildings owned by the county, said County Manager Matt Landers.