BATAVIA — A sharply divided Batavia City Council voted 7-7 Monday night on a proposal to fund a $1.2 million expansion of the police department's body-worn camera program, with Mayor Jeffrey Schielke breaking the tie to send the measure back to committee for further review rather than killing it outright.
The proposal, introduced by Alderman Drew McFadden of Ward 3, would equip all 58 sworn officers with next-generation cameras and fund five years of cloud storage through a reallocation from the city's capital improvement reserve. Opponents, led by Alderman Kathy Garrett of Ward 5, argued the reserve fund is already stretched thin by upcoming water main replacements on Wilson Street and should not be raided for an operating expense.