What is the proposed Business Improvement District?
There has been a lot of interest and many questions regarding this issue, especially since the recent article in the Pine Cone. We thought you might want some more background and an update. Hopefully, many of you remember the article in the November 1999 issue of CRA News. Last fall, when the Council was told that there would be a serious budget shortfall, one of the potential revenue generators being considered was a 2% increase in the Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT). This would bring about $750,000 into the city’s General Fund. Former Mayor Ken White and City Administrator Jere Kersnar met with the members of the Innkeepers Association to discuss this. Out of these talks, alternatives to the increase were explored. One was the concept of a Business Improvement District (BID), which is provided by state law to assist communities in revitalization and the creation of new jobs and businesses. Since that time last year, the city’s Business District Advisory Committee (BDAC) has been asked
