This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Business Improvement Districts
19/03/2006
A total of £500,000 has been set aside for six pilot projects that Finance and Public Service Reform Minister Tom McCabe says will see local authorities and businesses working together to regenerate town and city centres and boost economic growth.
The pilots of Business Improvement District (BID) areas are:
- Business parks in Alloa, Tillicoultry and Alva
- Bathgate town centre
- Edinburgh city centre
- Falkirk town centre
- Glasgow city centre
- Inverness city centre
BIDs are a partnership between local businesses, engaging with their council, all with the aim of transforming their area by creating better business environments and promoting economic growth. The most famous example of a Business Improvement District is Times Square in New York.
Mr McCabe said:
"Our top priority is to grow the Scottish economy - and I believe Business Improvement Districts can play an important role in contributing to long-term economic growth. BIDs have proved successful elsewhere and I am confident these pilots projects will pave the way for successful BIDs in Scotland.
"This is not about what we can do for business but what businesses can do for themselves and I am delighted that the business community has thrown its weight behind the initiative. Each of the six pilot areas is being given up to £50,000 and an opportunity to change their economic outlook for the better - with the prospect of further funding as they move forward.
"It is now up to businesses, working in partnership, and engaging with their local council, to develop proposals to improve their local economies. They will choose what improvements or services they need with the proviso that any such services should be in addition to what is already being provided in the area.
"And, crucially, proposals will only go ahead if more than half of those businesses vote in favour of the proposals and that also represents more than half of the rateable value of those eligible to vote. This gives protection to large and small businesses.
"I urge local businesses to get together with their local authority and grab this opportunity with both hands - and perhaps we can look forward to having BIDs projects of our own which will be just as successful as the one in Times Square in New York.
"I am extremely grateful to the members of the Steering Group for committing their time to this work and making their recommendations on BIDs. The locations they have chosen ensure that BIDs pilot projects will now be taken forward in a range of cities and towns across Scotland.
"We will also continue to support efforts to develop and foster the groundwork for wider BID take-up in other areas."
Deputy First Minister and Enterprise Minister Nicol Stephen added:
"Business Improvement Districts can be a powerful tool in the ongoing drive to regenerate our town centres and grow the Scottish economy.
"Today's announcement represents an excellent opportunity to maximise economic growth at local level and help other parts of Scotland do the same. BIDs will be good news for business and good news for Scotland."
The organisations represented on the BIDs Steering Group are:
- Scottish Retail Consortium
- Chambers of Commerce
- Boots Group
- Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors
- Association of Town Centre Management
- British Property Federation
- Royal Town Planning Institute
- Scottish Enterprise
- Convention of Scottish Local Authorities
- Scottish Executive
BID projects are to be funded by the private sector once BID proposals have been developed and voted on. The Executive will provide £50,000 to each Pathfinder to fund the initial development costs.Thirteen applications were received to take part in the BID pilots. The Executive will fund the costs of taking forward these six pathfinders. The aim is to have six locations that are ready to vote on BID proposals once the legislative framework is in place, planned for April 1, 2007.The remaining £200,000 from the budget allocated will be available for those pathfinders which may require additional funding as the projects move forward. Recommendations on the use of this additional funding will be taken by the BID Project Director in consultation with the Steering Group.A BID is a precisely defined geographical area of a town, city, or commercial district, where ratepayers have voted to invest collectively in local improvements in addition to those delivered by local Government.The schemes will be paid for by ratepayers, where a majority have voted in favour of paying an additional levy, recommended to be no higher than 1 per cent of rateable value, on their rate bill to finance a BID. Before agreeing to the additional levy, the relevant ratepayers should be consulted regarding the size of the levy they will pay, and the type of services provided by the extra funding.Each ratepayer who will be asked to contribute to the BID will be able to vote on whether or not that BID goes ahead. An agreed percentage of voters will have to vote in favour of the proposal before the scheme can go ahead.The level of those in favour must represent over 50 per cent of businesses and 50 per cent of the rateable value within the BID area. Higher thresholds can be set by the BID proposers if they think this will help to reassure the local business community, particularly the small business sector.There must be a minimum turnout figure of at least 25 per cent for a BID vote to be valid, again a higher threshold can be set if the BID proposers think this would be helpful.
BIDs will be developed, managed and paid for by the business sector. They are not a substitute for central or local government investment, but an additional investment to strengthen an area's economic outlook with the ultimate aim of increasing profits for those businesses that are paying for the improvements.Businesses have often been frustrated at the lack of opportunities to invest in their surroundings in an equitable manner. BIDs are designed to ensure that all those businesses benefiting from improvements to their surrounding environment also help to pay for those improvements on a basis agreed by them.The type of services a BID could pay for could include measures such as more frequent policing, installation of CCTV cameras and litter bins, rapid response to graffiti and litter, and investment in the visual appearance of the area (i.e. tree planting, benches and tables). They can also be used to improve/expand local transport schemes in order to bring consumers into the area.Although those mentioned above are the typical "BID services" this does not mean a BID must be limited to these, as long as all parties in the BID process agree on the improvement that needs to be made and the steps required to achieve them. However it is important to closely involve relevant partners, such as the local authority, when drawing up business plans to ensure there are no obstacles in the way of any proposals.