Poughkeepsie's proposed Business Improvement District: The plan, location, costs

During her first State of the City Address in March , City of Poughkeepsie Mayor Yvonne Flowers highlighted upcoming plans to revitalize the city. Among them was a proposed Business Improvement District, or BID, to address the downtown business landscape.

A BID is a geographic area — in this case including parts of Main Street and neighboring streets — where property owners are charged a special assessment to enhance the area. Local property owners, business tenants, and residents directly oversee key parts of the maintenance, improvement and promotion of the commercial district.

There are over 100 BIDs across New York, and Flowers pointed to their success in improving the business climate and quality of life in their geographic areas.

“BIDs have been successful in other parts of the state, and we unquestionably have to keep trying new ideas and strategies to improve the downtown area,” Flowers said in a statement.

Here's what to know about the City of Poughkeepsie BID area, what the initiative would specifically concentrate its efforts on, the projected budget and assessment.

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What are the goals of the BID?

The Downtown Poughkeepsie BID Steering Committee, which consists of community stakeholders, commercial and residential property owners, along with business tenants, has worked over the past year to identify their four main areas of focus: beautifying and keeping the city streets clean, fostering a safe downtown, creating a district identity through marketing and events, and promoting a business climate to attract new development and commercial tenants, starting by helping small businesses.

In a news release, the City of Poughkeepsie outlined some of the steps that would involve, including on-street garbage pickup, the addition of trash bins, focus on upkeep and the addition of greenery such as trees, tree pits, hanging flower baskets and blooming planters, plus power washing and graffiti removal services.

To secure the downtown area, the committee has proposed purchasing and installing more street cameras and lights, forming a downtown ambassador corps and advocating for additional city police walking patrols.

To improve the business climate, they've suggested implementing ordinance enforcement, creating parking solutions, filling vacant storefronts, attracting commercial real estate tenants, creating community volunteer days, improving the Civic Center Plaza parking deck, establishing a trolley service downtown, and working with stakeholders to provide additional support for unhoused people.

To create a BID identity, the committee proposes organizing signature events, implementing BID branding and commissioning more public art and murals.

For these goals to become a reality, the Common Council would need to approve of the BID following a period of public comment.

The steering committee will hold a public informational meeting Monday, July 22 at The Chance Theater, at 6 Crannell St. in Poughkeepsie.

Where is the proposed business improvement district in Poughkeepsie?

The parameters for the BID are centered around Main Street in Poughkeepsie.

The southern boundary is a clean line following Church Street, with the BID area moving north from there.

The northern boundary, which is not as uniform, includes a large square area on the western boundary. The square includes where Market Street meets Mansion Street, then where Mansion Street hits Garden Street, and back down from Garden Street to Mill Street. The northern boundary then continues from Mill Street to Hamilton Street, including businesses bordering the northern side of Mill Street.

The eastern boundary follows Hamilton Street, including everything between Mill Street on the northern end, and Church Street on the southern end.

Lastly, the western boundary includes the area of Mill Street that curves behind the Civic Center and the county office buildings — the stretch, also known at U.S. Route 44/55 West, extends to the Mid-Hudson Bridge or connects back to the U.S. Route 44/55 East on Church Street.

The proposed BID budget and assessment

The proposed assessment will fund the BID through each taxable parcel within the district, which equates to a $250 base fee, plus an additional $125 for every $1,000 of annual city tax liability, excluding school, county and library tax. The total district tax base would be approximately $9,000 every year, and no property would contribute more than 0.005% of that.

Within the BID, there are 225 parcels and 173 are on the tax rolls. This is comprised of 19 vacant lots, 16 apartment buildings, 10 homesteads and four parking lots. The total tax base on the BID area is $1,900,437, with BID assessment and fee revenue equating to $273,159.

In terms of what this looks like on a monthly basis, the average assessment comes out to be $130, and the median assessment comes out to be $74 per month. For those located within the BID, these monthly assessments are mandatory.

The BID assessment and the money raised through it, by law, must be overseen by a board of directors including property owners, commercial tenants and residents from the district. As well, every dollar raised will be directly put back into the BID.

Regarding the budget, the BID is estimated to annually bring in $273,159 from the assessment and fees, plus approximately $50,000 from sponsorships, events and donations, equaling $320,328 in one year.

Beyond the administrative funding of the BID, the Board of Directors will determine how to allocate the remaining funds to the four main areas of focus. As well, the BID budget would not have mandates, nor would the budget be bound to the agendas of any elected officials.

City officials say there will be no reductions in municipal services within the district from the creation of the BID.

If the BID is successful, what might the City of Poughkeepsie expect?

If the City of Poughkeepsie Downtown BID is successful, its supporters believe property values could increase, vacancy rates could lower, and foot traffic and walkability of the area may increase.

Additionally, the community-run BID would be able to accept donations, apply for grants and raise money through sponsorships.

To learn more about the City of Poughkeepsie BID, visit dtpk.org or email dtpkbid@gmail.com to contact the steering committee.

This article originally appeared on Poughkeepsie Journal: Poughkeepsie's proposed Business Improvement District: The plan, location, costs