City of Alexandria, Virginia
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MEMORANDUM
DATE: MAY 21, 2024
TO: THE HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL
FROM: JAMES F. PARAJON, CITY MANAGER /s/
DOCKET TITLE:
TITLE
Amendment of Business Improvement Service District Guidelines.
BODY
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ISSUE: Amendment of Business Improvement Service District Guidelines.
RECOMMENDATION: That City Council adopt the amended Business Improvement Service District Guidelines.
BACKGROUND: Code of Virginia ? 15.2-2400 gives localities the power to create service districts to provide additional, more complete, or more timely services within certain geographic areas. This is the mechanism through which Business Improvement Districts/Business Improvement Service Districts (BIDs) are created in Virginia. BIDs are a proven model to deliver supplemental and additional services to urban areas in addition to what is currently provided by the local government. BIDs are typically overseen by a nonprofit organization which is governed by stakeholders that operate businesses or own commercial property in the district. There are currently more than 1,200 BIDs operating throughout the United States, with dozens of those located in the Washington, DC metropolitan area.
Groups of businesses in the City have expressed interest in exploring this tool, and in recent years, the City has encouraged or required the formation of BIDs in new development areas. Regional competition for customers and visitors is more prevalent and communities with existing BIDs and mixed-use developments with professional management have the advantage of pooling resources and more quickly executing new strategies. Alexandria business districts are aware of this disadvantage and believe that this tool can help address their competitive and sustainability needs. The business and real estate community in various neighborhoods (eg. Old Town, Landmark/West End Redevelopment, Potom...
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