Introducing a Business Improvement District to Bay View

In the past two meetings of the newly reorganized Bay View Business Association, there has been discussion of the creation of a Business Improvement District. A Business Improvement District (BID) is a group of businesses determined by location, not voluntary. Once the district is in place, by a majority vote of the tax-key holders in the district, a pre-determined amount is added to the property tax of commercial building owners within the district. Once the District is enacted, the additional tax levy is MANDATORY. All of the businesses must abide by the new ordinance enacted by the majority of the businesses.

The stated use for the money collected is the improvement of the district as a whole. One example are public relations items, (lamp-post banners, brochures, advertisements, etc.). Other proposed uses are for security -- graffiti removal and security cameras for example. Lots of the money is used for bureaucracy. An office is opened to help the businesses take advantage of various government programs and services, and to oversee the affairs of the District.

However, some are of the belief that this extra collection is excessive and unnecessary – just another layer of bureaucracy for the businessmen to answer to. The businesses do not receive equal benefits – some are more experienced and adept at extracting benefits from the system. Laborious studies conducted by cronies of the directors spend tens of thousands of dollars to point out the obvious. The purchases made by the BID are prone to no-bid contracts. Examination will reveal that the so-called benefits and results of BID activities are items that the businesses could have furnished by themselves at a far lesser cost