The Business Improvement District (BID) is a non-profit organization that charges an assessment fee to participating local businesses in exchange for multiple benefits, like promotions and farmers’ markets meant to bring attention to businesses in the area.
Not only does the BID actively promote its businesses, it also provides graffiti clean-up and other maintenance services, like street light installation and repair, to improve the College Area.
For the College Area BID Executive Director Jennifer Finnegan, it’s not just about letting people know that these stores and restaurants exist. As she put it, “It’s about creating an identity for the area.”
Currently, the BID is hard at work on preparations for their annual Boo! Parade and Carnival. The event is an opportunity to showcase restaurants in a festive setting that is free to the public. Finnegan says a lot of planning goes into the festivities. In fact, work on this year’s Boo! Parade started shortly after the end of last year’s. The attendance numbers from the previous year’s parade are used to determine the best use of advertising and allocation of funds to run the event.
In addition to crunching numbers, much of the time spent organizing the event is spent getting approval from the city. When asked why they would jump through so many hoops and deal with so much red tape, Finnegan said simply, “It’s fun.”
Nice start to the beat. Good photo and copy to go along with the photo. I've driven by that building so many times and I had no idea what was in it!
ReplyDeleteI would've liked a little more content/information. How many businesses are involved? What area, geographically? How much do they pay? What are the benefits? What accomplishments do they have?
Also, would like to see stronger quotes.
Has some GSP/AP mistakes...we'll talk about editing on Thurs.