“The BID movement is a great example of localism in action” says NWEC CEO

Richard Dickinson, Chief Executive of New West End Company the Central London BID representing businesses in Bond Street, Oxford Street and Regent Street says:

The BID movement is a great example of localism in action, now a central part of government policy. As BIDs develop into their second and even third terms their relevance as agents of change and improvement at the very local level continues to grow, action which is particularly needed given the poor state of many of the UK’s high streets.

This was in response to a report published in October which looked at UK BIDs.

BID seeks government loan for regeneration at expense of local people

The New West End Company BID in London’s west end is to approach the British treasury on behalf of  landowners to seek loans for regeneration, reports the Financial Times. The loan would be secured through a new mechanism called Tax Increment Finance (Tif).  “The group will approach the Treasury this autumn about joining a pilot for Tifs, a means of raising funds for regeneration by allowing property owners to borrow money from the government based on the future tax gains from the resulting developments. Tifs have been widely used in the US,” says the FT.

Derwent London want to create business improvement district

Fitzrovia News reports that Derwent London, a real estate investment trust, is trying to set up a business improvement district in central London to be operating by the spring of 2012.

Anna Minton’s critique of Business Improvement Districts

Anna Minton’s 2009 book Ground Control: Fear and happiness in the twenty-first century city, dedicates a chapter to Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) and is one of the few books taking a critical look at the subject.

It feels like we are being scammed, to pay for someone’s salary

I received this email yesterday from a small business in Scotland. The writer was referring to Clacks First which was one of the first BID organisations in Scotland.

Why all Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) are bad

I had an email this morning that raised some important criticisms of this news blog. Here is an edited extract and my response.

BIDs in Dublin increase rents

Ireland after Nama has a good article about BIDs and increasing rents. One of the worries for small businesses is that although they may be under the threshold to pay the BID levy, BIDs do tend to increase rental values. Hence small businesses tend to get priced out as they can less easily absorb higher rents. http://irelandafternama.wordpress.com/2010/02/22/the-retail-sector-business-improvement-districts-and-increasing-rents/