Newcastle’s BID to be best in Europe

May 6 2008 by Adrian Pearson, The Journal

Businesses in Newcastle are being asked to consider a radical proposal to transform the way they fund city centre improvements – increasing their rates bills in a bid to bring more trade to the city. Regional affairs correspondent Adrian Pearson looks at the issue involved.

IT may sound like turkeys voting for Christmas, but businesses in the centre of Newcastle could be about to vote to increase their rates bills.

The owners and mangers of every business in the city centre have received a pack telling them of an upcoming vote which could see their annual bills rise as they contribute towards a funding pot for projects designed to get more shoppers spending more time and money.

The proposal has come from leaders of the City Centre Partnership (CCP), who want to raise more than £7.5m over the next five years in order to make Newcastle one of Europe’s top shopping destinations, with the cash spent on everything from chewing gum free streets to an annual carnival.

Their plan is simple: set up a Government-approved Business Improvement District (BID), collect extra cash from local firms and spend the money making the city a more enjoyable place to visit.

And while the fund may be topped up with contributions from the public sector, it will be led by businesses.

Sean Bullick, CCP director, said he is optimistic the majority of Newcastle businesses will “back the BID”.

He said: “We think that this is the simplest way to see the improvements we all want. It’s the most cost effective. The contributions are proportional to the size of the business so it remains fair for all, it’s not just something for the bigger companies to get involved with. It’s about all businesses large or small working together.”

Mr Bullick said the contributions are based on a levy of 1% on the rateable value of all businesses in the BID area with a rateable value in excess of £10,000.

So a businesses with a rateable value of £20,000 per annum would pay out £200 a year, which is collected by the council but spent by the CCP.

The partnership expects the scheme to be up and running early next year if it is approved by a vote this October.

If the scheme is passed, all eligible businesses in the city centre are obliged to pay the fund, regardless of whether or not they voted for it.

There are other BID towns across England, although Newcastle will be one of the largest, and Mr Bullick insists the day-to-day winners will be people visiting the city.

He said: “Customers can expect to see cleaner, brighter streets, they can expect to see more happening in the streets, more performers and better Christmas lights. And we will want to highlight to people in the region just how much more will be going on in Newcastle.”

City council leader John Shipley said the extra cash was not meant to replace the services already carried out by the council.

“The key point about a BID is that all the projects and services it delivers are in addition to those guaranteed by the council,” he said. “With business choosing what these should be according to the benefit they will have on bottom lines, a BID would make a major impact on the city centre.”

The BID already has support of some of the city’s leading players, with Newcastle United chairman Chris Mort having put his name to the document.

“This is about the city’s businesses, large and small, working together, dare I say it, playing as a team and leading from the front. Newcastle United is committed to the project,” Mr Mort said.

The BID is also guaranteed a vote in favour by managers at Fenwick’s, who are key members of the City Centre Partnership.

Managing director David Quinn said: “We recognise the need to compete with other regional centres and are absolutely committed to building on the city centre’s dynamic retail scene.

“This BID will be one of the key tools in ensuring the city’s competitiveness.”

But the BID work is only half the story of the City Centre Partnership, which has already led the way in promoting Newcastle across the region with the “NE1 for Newcastle” poster campaign in which the city’s unique selling points are reintroduced to would-be shoppers.

The campaign is based around posters which list attractions such as the number of different types of bars and champagne available in the city centre.

As well as working with other organisations to promote Newcastle, the Partnership also works quietly behind the scenes to ease out any problems that pop up from time to time.

Earlier this year The Journal revealed how businesses in the Partnership were working with the council to look at ways of reducing plastic bag use.

The joint work came after councillors said they could not force a ban on to shop owners and instead looked for ways of starting a voluntary reduction.