Downtown effort proposed to improve safety, cleanliness

Special improvement district proposed for downtown

Bishops: New birth control rule ‘a first step’
2/11/12
Police headlines for Feb. 11
2/11/12
Local Focus: Clark County for Feb. 11
2/11/12
Local Focus: Champaign County for Feb. 11
2/11/12
Cold, wind to keep roads slick today
2/11/12
> More headlines

By Samantha Sommer, Staff Writer Updated 8:58 AM Monday, March 15, 2010

SPRINGFIELD — Some of the recurring concerns the Center City Association has heard about downtown focus on its perceived safety and cleanliness.

The association’s members believe they may have a solution to those and other issues facing the community as it seeks to revitalize downtown. The solution: a special improvement district.

A SID is formed by a group of property owners getting together and agreeing to tax themselves in order to generate money for extra services, such as private security and cleaning crews.

In addition to improving the look and feel of the city core, it could give property owners a communal voice in downtown’s future, said Maureen Fagans, Center City Association executive director.

Fagans will discuss the proposed special improvement district at the city commission meeting at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 16, in the City Hall Forum, 76 E. High St.

“We looked at all the kinds of things that business owners or property owners in our downtown have told us are issues for them ... A special improvement district can very much help us create the right product,” she said.

Public good

A special improvement district is a an area of contiguous properties whose owners agree to assess themselves to receive enhanced services.

Those could include facade improvements, streetscape upgrades, landscaping, graffiti and trash removal, marketing and security.

“It has to be services that are for the public good,” Fagans said.

To set up a district, at least 60 percent of the front-footage or 75 percent of all property owners must sign petitions and then city commissioners must approve it. More than 80 property owners are in the area under consideration, but the boundaries are not set yet.

Government buildings and churches are exempt. Federally owned properties cannot participate, but city and county governments and churches could chose to pay.

The district would be a nonprofit corporation with a board selected by the city and property owners, which would then oversee it and select the services to be offered.

A district must be renewed after a set period of time, using the same petition process. It could be dissolved before then, also through a petition process.

The assessment is similar to how malls charge fees to tenants for maintenance and other services, Fagans said.

“This functions the same way,” she said.

Several cities have created special improvement districts, including Toledo, Dayton, Akron, Cleveland, Hamilton, Bowling Green and Canton.

“They are all over,” Fagans said.

Downtown Springfield

The boundaries of a district for downtown Springfield haven’t been determined, but could extend from Buck Creek on the north to either the railroad tracks or Mulberry Street on the south. The eastern edge could be Spring Street and the western end either Wittenberg Avenue or Center Street.

“Everything is still fluctuating,” she said.

Finding the right size is important, Fagans said, to avoid diluting the impact and to anchor development around the Fountain Avenue spine.

“You don’t want an area so large that you can’t be effective,” she said.

Center City is proposing assessments start January, 2011, with a four-year term.

How properties would be assessed also isn’t finalized. It could be based on a mix of property values and front footage.

“We’ve been trying to come up with the most equitable formula for all property owners,” she said.

How much it could cost an owner varies for each building.

A small property with little frontage might pay about $150 to $250 annually.

A high-rise building without a lot of front footage might pay $2,500 to $6,000 annually.

A building with a lot of footage, including a large parking lot, and a high value could pay $7,500 to $11,000.

The initial proposed annual budget is $430,000, which could end up higher or lower depending on the size of the district. Of that, it’s suggested $200,000 go to clean and safe services, $110,000 to economic development, $50,000 to public amenities and $70,000 to promotions and marketing.

The cleanliness services could include picking up trash, litter and cigarette butts, as well as power-washing sidewalks and removing graffiti.

The safety services could aid police, and reduce panhandling and other intimidating behavior. They also could serve as “ambassadors,” such as escorting people to cars, and providing directions or information about local events or businesses.

The amenities could include expanding the core block streetscape, such as the hanging flower baskets and banners.

“None of this is reinventing the wheel,” she said. “This is what other communities are doing, this is what we are finding out has been effective and appreciated by downtown property owners.”

Value

Center City is still in the initial phases of exploring a special improvement district and talking to property owners about it. It will likely start passing petitions in April.

So far the feedback from property owners has been positive, Fagans said, including from those hurting in the economic downturn.

“They recognize the value of having something like this, the empowerment of it,” she said.

1 | 2 next page »

»What do you think? Share your thoughts SpringfieldNewsSun.com

Share this article