Council eyes BID rates and veterans monument

Proposed changes to downtown businesses assessment rates will be considered at the Crescent City Council meeting Monday.

At the same meeting, a public hearing will be held on an appeal of the Planning Commission’s approval of a veterans monument at the S curve off of U.S. Highway 101.

Business Improvement District board members have come up with changes to the assessment rates that each business has to pay or risk losing its business license.

“This is a requirement of the state law that governs business improvement districts,” said City Manager Rod Butler. “There’s a detailed, specific process we have to go through if we’re making changes to the basis of the assessments.”

“We felt it was important to get those things changed,” said Cheryl Corpstein, the secretary for BID.

The city discovered earlier this year that it hadn’t been enforcing assessment collection. In addition, the assessment rates had not been changed since BID was created in 1993.

Billie Kaye Gavin-Tygart, the president of BID, said that board members had a meeting with business owners and discovered some problems with the assessments. So, BID is proposing to eliminate one of the district’s zones, add several business categories and adjust assessments rates.

The proposed BID annual assessments include:

• Retail, 10 or more employees, $432.

• Retail, 7-9 employees, $333.

• Retail, 4-6 employees, $250.

• Retail, 1-3 employees, $167.

• Restaurants, $150.

• Professional, $100.

• Financial, $400.

• Lodging, $50.

• Service, $50.

• Nonprofit, $50.

“There’s good and bad out of this,” Gavin-Tygart said. “A good thing is that people want to be downtown and that creates a great atmosphere and makes for that nice downtown feel.”

The downtown business district is from L to G Streets and from 5th to Front Streets. The district was divided into two zones, one was basically 3rd Street and the other was everything else.

Those operating on 3rd Street paid a higher assessment because there’s more activity and foot traffic there. BID has proposed eliminating the 3rd Street zone so that business are taxed the same.

“The two zones added a lot of confusion,” Corpstein said. “With one zone all the businesses will be getting the same thing.”

Board members decided to find a middle ground between the rates for each zone.

In addition, if one person has two business licenses, but is operating out of the same location, he or she had to pay two assessments. BID is proposing that the business owner only have to pay the higher of the two rates.

Another issue was that salon booth renters, such as a hair stylist, were paying the same assessment as the beauty salon owner, Gavin-Tygart explained.

“It ran from $100 and on up depending on what zone they were in,” she said. The proposed change is that booth renters only pay $50 a year.

BID also wants to add two categories: nonprofit and lodging. Those business owners will now have to pay an assessment, but can also participate on the board.

Lodging not only applies to hotels, but downtown buildings that rent out apartments, Corpstein said. If that happens then the money collected from the assessments will help offset the cost of more people parking downtown and lighting, she explained.

“We’re trying to think ahead,” Corpstein said.

Butler said the city supports BID’s proposed changes. Based on the city’s figures, the new assessment rates should generate an additional $12,121 for BID.

Monday night will give business owners and the public a chance to voice their concerns about the proposed changes, Butler said.

“This will give us some sense of what the level of concern is,” he said.

On Nov. 16, the City Council will hold a public hearing and then decide whether to approve the changes.

The assessments pay for BID’s efforts to promote, beautify and improve downtown, as well as for its annual events.

“I hope that people understand there are a lot of benefits to having a viable, walkable downtown,” Corpstein said.

BID advertises in travel guides, she said, and would like to have public restrooms downtown. One beautification project under consideration involves putting up tile murals along the concrete wall between J and K streets on 3rd Street.

“We have tangible goals that everyone will be pleased with,” Gavin-Tygart said. “We’re getting everyone on board.”

The Council will also hold a public hearing on an appeal of the Planning Commission’s approval of a use permit, architectural review and environmental review for a veterans monument on the S Curve.

The monument is proposed to be a five-sided pentagram, 80 feet in diameter, with five 30-foot-tall flag poles, red, white and blue lighting; stone walkways and bronze plaques.

Eileen Cooper with the Friends of Del Norte appealed the decision, saying the monument would obstruct views of Elk Creek and would impact migrating birds and the surrounding habitats, among other reasons.

“At the public hearing anyone will have their chance to talk,” Butler said, adding that Council members could make a decision after hearing public comments. “They’re in a position to make a call.”

If you go 

WHAT: Crescent City Council meeting

WHEN: 6 p.m. Mon.

WHERE: Flynn Administration Ctr., 981 H St.