Parking and Business Improvement Area (PBIA) members approved the recommendation to move forward and support the creation of the Olympia Downtown Improvement District (DID) to the city council Wednesday, August 2.
In the previous presentation to the PBIA and the city council in May, Todd Cutts, Olympia Downtown Alliance executive director and one of the key figures in establishing and promoting the DID, explained that the DID is a proposed private-sector funding mechanism aimed at bolstering the downtown environment. It seeks to finance services through a self-imposed assessment paid by downtown property owners, pending approval from the Olympia City Council.
The services provided by the DID would be exclusive to the district.
Cutts said the DID differs from the PBIA regarding its focus and governance. While the PBIA primarily concentrates on property maintenance and marketing, the DID's objectives are to:
The operational plan for the DID includes several key components:
Cleaning services. The DID would provide additional cleaning services, including litter removal, wiping fixtures, graffiti, and removing weeds, sidewalk power washing and maintenance, landscaping projects, paintings, and others.
Safety services. The DID would support a guide program – an Ambassador-style scope of services, including hospitality services, crisis outreach, providing a presence to support a welcoming environment, and coordination with city services.
Assisting small businesses. The DID aims to support small businesses through marketing initiatives, special events, special projects, and small business training.
Governance. The DID would have a board of directors, who will develop an annual work program, budget, and assessment rates and monitor the delivery of services for submittal to the city.
The downtown Olympia DID will encompass a large area of the downtown bounded roughly by Market Street NE to the north, West Bay and Capitol Lake to the west, 7th Avenue to the south and Plum Street to the east.
At PBIA's Wednesday meeting, Cutts explained that the projected budget was initially set at $750,000. The budget underwent several iterations and adjustments based on feedback and input from various stakeholders, including property owners.
When 20 blocks were removed from the initial plan, reducing the district's size, the budget was further adjusted to $575,000.
Before voting on supporting the creation of DID, the board members were given the opportunity to express their opinion.
In supporting the DID, Board member Oliver Stormshak said, "It is time to consolidate our efforts downtown and have a more focused approach."
Board member Jacob David offered a different perspective. He opposed the initiative, citing concerns about public sector privatization, which he said was contrary to good business practices.
David believed the initiative served the interests of property owners and doubted the long-term benefits for business owners. "I see this costing the business owners in the long run,” He said, emphasizing the need to address core issues rather than simply allocating funds, especially if the priorities were not aligned with the needs of business owners.
David also found the proposed 10-year renewal period too long, with no external voice allowed to provide input in the future. "The people in charge of renewal are the same people that we are voting for in the first place."
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pheong
pbia: scam. here's another one.
Tuesday, August 8, 2023 Report this
HappyOlympian
Improving downtown requires dealing with the crowds of broken and homeless people, many of whom openly consume drugs in public, notably in the vacant spaces adjacent to the transit center. Clearly, the area needs consistent police patrols.
Wednesday, August 9, 2023 Report this
Deanima
Definition of Pheong: Another do nothing who takes pot shots from the cheap seats.
Wednesday, August 9, 2023 Report this
jhender
The PBIA really should pay close attention to the results of the recent public opinion survey (seen here in your fine article) https://www.thejoltnews.com/stories/an-otherwise-disappointing-public-opinion-survey-shows-strength-in-olympias-neighborhoods,11705?inf_contact_key=de3c0d8f5be75673b2b8d2ae0f1bb9b84dfbc39d7283b2cb89d5189540b69330
Note the word cloud. "Homeless", "Homelessness", "Crime", and "Drugs" are the most obvious. If we can't as a community successfully deal with untreated substance abuse disorder and untreated mental illness there is no chance that we will ever improve the downtown area. Spending valuable resources on anything else is merely moving the deck chairs around on the Titanic.
Wednesday, August 9, 2023 Report this
Trcutler1
Tacoma recently passed a no camping ordinance. When are we. Since you all started shutting down wheeler and I-5 and with tacomas ban we have seen a ten fold increase in vagrants on the west side . Try calling them in. City of oly will not respond.
Wednesday, August 9, 2023 Report this
pheong
Deanima: perhaps wholly unaware of the history of PBIA. There remain merchants today who refuse to pay the ransom. Here is another proposed ransom. PBIA was instituted partly because business owners who were dues-paying members of the ODA became increasingly annoyed at those merchants who chose to not participate. Been here 35 years plus. Worked all around downtown for decades and am fully aware of what a scam PBIA has always been. My succinct assessment of PBIA and planned DID is not without background. I have commented here in greater detail to other articles in the past.
Succinct is utterly valid here.
Look it up. Ask some long-time merchants what they really feel about PBIA and what empty value it has.
Wednesday, August 9, 2023 Report this
Deanima
pheong, I have long been familiar with the PBIA, and I am also aware that it is not universally loved by the business community. What I object to about your comment, which is similar to other pot shots you regularly make, is that the best you can do is call it a "scam." Just because there is a program or policy out there that you disagree with does not make it a scam. You need to up your game.
Friday, August 11, 2023 Report this