City centre businesses have voted to go ahead with an Edinburgh Business Improvement District (BID) - the first in the capital and the fifth such scheme in Scotland. The area takes in the length of George Street, Princes Street, and Rose street from the East edge of Charlotte Square Garden to the St James centre.
The turnout at the ballot was 44.4% and there were 58.3% votes in
favour of the proposal and 41.7% against. A total of 573 businesses
were eligible to vote on the BID proposal.
Businesses within the area will contribute 1% of their rateable value towards the BID, unless a business's rateable value is less than £25,000.
The successful ballot means that work will begin on the formation of the new Essential Edinburgh BID company, with operations expected to begin over the next few months.
“This is a fantastic result and one that has significant
implications, not just for the city centre, but for the whole of
Edinburgh," said City Centre Manager, Ian Broadfoot.
"People have already seen how projects, such as the
redevelopment of the St Andrew Square Garden, can bring positive
results. Now we have had a successful ballot, it means that we can
really start to work on implementing a number of other exciting
projects, which will allow Edinburgh to fulfil its potential as one of
the UK’s very best retail, commercial and leisure locations.”
The BID company will be charged with implementing a number of key tasks within the BID area, such as environmental improvements, enhanced security, safety measures, and focused marketing
The five areas the BID company will focus on are:
• Area Promotion - through visitor guides, advertising, marketing and a programme of annual events to draw more people to the city centre
• Clean and Attractive - the creation of a clean team to tackle issues, specialist equipment, improved street décor, and an annual street survey for cleanliness and maintenance
• Safe and Secure - enhanced CCTV, better lighting, transport marshals, the sharing of crime intelligence with businesses, and a Child Safe Scheme
• Accessibility - parking promotions, PR and marketing campaigns, creating a more pedestrian friendly environment, lobbying the relevant authorities for improved access
• Facilitation - encouraging businesses to work with each other and other stakeholders to make the area a better place to do business
The concept of BIDs originated in North America and is now in place
in over 60 locations in England and Wales.
Edinburgh City Centre Management is a not-for-profit
public-private sector partnership whose overall aim is "to promote,
develop and improve Edinburgh City Centre for the benefit of
businesses, residents and visitors."