BUSINESSES across Manchester city centre have voted to continue the Business Improvement District (BID) for a second term, which will last for five years until 2023.
The ballot saw 77 per cent of retailers voting yes to the renewal of Manchester BID, which will start in April 2018.
Jane Sharrocks, chair of Manchester BID, said: “After an incredibly successful five years we’re absolutely delighted to continue the BID’s work with a second term. At the heart of everything we’ve done has been building our community of 400 businesses. Their collaborative approach, commitment and willingness to work together has been key to the success of the BID so far and will be invaluable as we go forward over the next few years.”
We’re delighted to announce a successful vote for #MCRBID as retailers back a 2nd term for the city’s Business Improvement District.
The renewal ballot saw 77% say YES to the continuation of @ManchesterBID until at least 2023.
?https://t.co/djKUPN5lhR pic.twitter.com/u2ID3jGc1W
— ManchesterBID (@ManchesterBID) December 6, 2017
BID’s are precisely defined geographical areas where businesses work together and invest in agreed services, projects and special events and are financed by a levy made on the basis of rateable value, usually between 1% and 1.5%. Manchester BID brings together almost 400 retail, food and other customer-facing businesses in the central shopping district which is made up of Deansgate, King Street, Cross Street, St Ann’s Square, Market Street, New Cathedral Street and Manchester Arndale.
You can view all the sites which are under development or completed developments on this map:
Green = Under Construction currently
Blue = Approved projects or just about to begin construction
Orange = Projects holding planning applications
Red = Proposals without planning apps
Yellow = Projects completed within the last 6 months
Phil Schulze, Manchester BID Manager, said: “This is brilliant news for Manchester city centre. The £6 million investment this brings into the city will ensure we continue to grow and prosper and sustain our great track record of success to date. The BID has built up an incredibly strong reputation for action, intelligence and partnership working, and this is a real vote of confidence in what we have achieved in our first term. We now have ambitious plans incorporating food and drink operators into the BID and by continuing to work collectively, we can build on our thriving calendar of events and deliver more operational services that we know are vital to our members and the city centre trading environment.”
The main focuses for Manchester BID are:
Increasing football: during ‘dip’ periods of the football season, through a programme of public events in the heart of Manchester, including The King Street Festival and its recent Halloween in the City event, which helped boost sales by up to 40 per cent at the city’s flagship stores and saw footfall rise by 10%. The six main annual events by Manchester BID help see footfall growth of +4.8% over the last five years in the city, outperforming the UK average of -1.3%.
Increasing standards: to the city centre trading environment and operational and security support to assist businesses, which in May 2017 included an urgent operational support plan to assist BID members following the explosion at Manchester Arena.
Increasing the profile: of the city through promotional partnerships, marketing campaigns, support of Marketing Manchester’s national and international campaigns and ongoing positive PR, all of which has resulted in over £12 million worth of marketing and media coverage over the last five years.
Increasing communication: between the retail community and acting as a lobbying voice for retail with city authorities and stakeholders, including vital communications around the Metrolink expansion and in the wake of the Manchester attack. The BID also backs the Big Change MCR homelessness campaign and supports the Street Support website, where people can find out how to help rough sleepers, volunteer time to help and donate.
Manchester BID brings in a lot of revenue and visitors which is broken down here:
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