BID (business improvement district)

[shawnw]

Our first business improvement district was implemented in the year 2000. The BID is 10 years in duration. We renewed in 2010, but not much was changed because we were in recovery from 2008. Of note, the consultant that helps us with this (PUMA -- they've assisted with all 3 as well as with other BIDs in other cities) states our BID is in the top 3 for complexity (for good reasons) of all the BIDs they deal with.

It's 2018 and we are in active discussion regarding BID 3.0 for 2020-2030. Attended the strategic plan meeting this morning (was open to the public).

Something I found interesting was the slide presented showing a comparison between our BIDs and some others.

[Pete]

What entity is organizing this and the events?

[shawnw]

Downtown OKC, Inc.

[warreng88]

Downtown OKC Partnership could need more money

By: Molly M. Fleming The Journal Record April 18, 2018

OKLAHOMA CITY – Downtown Business Improvement District property owners could see an increase in the amount they pay. But that’s if in 2020 the BID is approved for a third time.

During the Downtown Oklahoma City Partnership strategic planning meeting on Wednesday, Progressive Urban Management Associates President Brad Segal said the BID might be undercapitalized. Segal’s company was hired by the partnership, DOKC, to create a strategic plan for the organization. He did a similar plan for the group in 2008.

“There are expectations from the community that (DOKC) will excel in certain areas and activate spaces,” he said. “The resources aren’t in line with those expectations.”

In a survey done by PUMA, the partnership received a B grade on its overall work.

“The B grade might have been because there’s not enough money,” Segal said.

About half the BID is used for maintaining assets like the Bricktown Canal, but there also needs to be money to host activities and events.

In downtown, property owners pay an assessment, and that money is used by DOKC for maintenance, activities, and other events that bring people to downtown.

Everyone pays an initial rate, but there’s likely more added to that amount. The total paid by property owners vastly varies, depending on where the building is located – not only in what district but where it’s placed in accordance to the street or the Bricktown Canal. A building next to the Bricktown Canal pays a different amount than someone who owns property in the Underground.

The assessed total creates most of DOKC’s budget. Vice President Jill Brown DeLozier said the budget goes up about 7 percent annually.

President Jane Jenkins said if people are satisfied with the activities that DOKC does, then there won’t be a need to change the BID formula in order to collect more money.

“If we want to do more, then it will cost more money,” she said. “We’ll have to look at, ‘What will it take to get an A grade? What are we not doing now?'”

Changing the BID rate could ultimately trickle down to rental rates, which was a concern for Price Edwards & Co. retail broker Jim Parrack. But Segal said when the BID was reassessed in 2008, the rates weren’t changed.

“We need to find a balance between what’s an appropriate way to capitalize this thing,” Segal said.

The survey and Segal’s own work with the districts inside downtown concluded there are several updates needed for the vast area, some of which will require more BID money. He said there needs to be an increase in retail and residential options.

Price Edwards & Co. retail broker Allison Barta Bailey asked how other cities get people to open retail stores downtown. She said she has trouble getting retailers to downtown because of the high rent rates. Segal said one way is to have additional programming.

“If you turbo-charge the experience, then it adds to the marketability,” Segal said.

He said DOKC improvement priorities need to switch from being large projects to smaller-scale, with more frequent community-wide events. He also encouraged getting spending flexibility for the BID, and using the money for needs that are likely to change over the next 10 years.

The other idea was to implement a leadership-development organization, where millennials and Generation Z can start working their way onto district boards.

[shawnw]

The main fiscal takeaways from the meeting regarding funding was:

- we didn't raise assessments for 2010 (BID 2.0) so we're operating on 1999 assumptions
- we're VERY cheap for a BID our size and complexity when you look at the graphic I posted above that shows other BIDs and their rates

[Ross MacLochness]

The main fiscal takeaways from the meeting regarding funding was:

- we didn't raise assessments for 2010 (BID 2.0) so we're operating on 1999 assumptions
- we're VERY cheap for a BID our size and complexity when you look at the graphic I posted above that shows other BIDs and their rates

I agree that the BID could use more funding, DOKC could do some amazing projects in addition to their regular maintenance duties and events. That graph, however, is somewhat misleading. The amount a bid can generate per acre is a function not only of the rate of taxation, but also that of density. We have a much lower density downtown than say Downtown Denver or Nashville so naturally we wouldn't be able to generate such high revenues even if our rate of taxation was the same as those other cities. It seems like the amount of revenue Our BID generates proportional to its density is still lower than that of other cities but it isn't clear from this graph. I would advocate for more BID funding but it needs to be closely and thoroughly studied so as not to deter growth and development before raising rates.

I'd imagine there is a +- sweetspot too, where the positive services provided by DOKC most greatly outway the negative impacts of the tax. That spot probably falls at a higher rate, but not so high as to equal the amount of revenue a Denver or Nashville is able to get.

[shawnw]

Agree. PUMA is being sensitive to that in their recommendations. They definitely don't want to kill growth.