Windermere & Bowness Business Improvement District
(BID)
Windermere and Bowness Chamber of
Trade has recently been successful in securing funding to enable
the Chamber to carry out a ballot of all businesses paying business
rates within the LA23 post code area to ascertain if they want a
Business Improvement District (BID).
A BID means that, for a small
investment, businesses will develop projects and services that will
benefit the trading environment within the area. The money raised,
through a very small levy based on the rateable value of the
business premises and collected through the business rate demand is
"ring fenced" solely for this purpose.
If successful at the ballot, the BID will be
run and managed by the Windermere and Bowness Chamber of Trade
through a BIDS company which the Chamber will establish.
An official Notice of Ballot will be
distributed before Christmas to all businesses in the LA23 area.
The ballot will run throughout January via a postal ballot which is
conducted by the Electoral Reform Service. The outcome of the
ballot will be announced by the ERS on the 1st
February 2012.
For a BID to go
ahead the Chamber must achieve a "yes" vote of
50% of those who voted together with 50% of the rateable
value of those who voted has to be achieved. This means that all
businesses have a say and the process cannot be influenced by
higher rateable valued companies .
This initiative is being supported by South
Lakeland District Council, which is the organisation which will
collect the levy and pay it back to the BIDS company, the
Lake District National Park Authority, Windermere Town Council,
Lakes Hospitality Association, Cumbria Tourism and a number of
local businesses. It has been acknowledged that if successful, this
will be a first for South Lakeland.
The Windermere and Bowness Chamber of Trade
Working Group are meeting shortly to put together a series of
leaflets which will give more details and why it is hoped that
local businesses will vote "yes." These are going to be sent to all
businesses. There will also be a series of public meetings arranged
within Bowness and Windermere together with publicity through the
local media.
Please visit The Chamber website and click on
BIDs for more details. Any inquiries about BIDS should be directed
to the Windermere and Bowness Chamber of Trade.
Windermere and Bowness Business Improvement District ballot
results