Proposed Park Slope 5th Ave BID

Steering Committee

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BID Info

YOU Control the BID

Property owners have the majority vote in all BID decisions. But the business community and tenants have representation in all decisions. Nothing can be done in the "dark". All meetings must have recorded minutes that can be readily reviewed by interested parties.

Who is Working on Your Behalf to Create the BID?

The Steering Committe has appointed Tony Giordano as the Project Manager to coordinate activities as we move through Stage Two - the final approval process. Mr. Giordano was the project manager of the successful Sunset Park BID. He is a former member of Community Board 7, former president of both the 72nd and 68th Police Precinct Council and was project manager of the award winning Sunset Park Waterfront Study (funded by the NYS Senate). His study of community policing can be found in the NYC Municipal Archives and Harvard University's JFK School of Government. He is the recipient of the City Club's award for Good Land-Use and the Citizens Committee's New Yorkers for New York Award.

Contact Info

He can be reached at 917 582-7020 or ParkSlopeBID@aol.com. By mail he can be reached at the Park Slope BID Steering Committee, c/o Sunset Park BID; 476 51st Street 2nd fl, Brooklyn NY 11220.

Welcome...

Welcome to our new web "presence". We are adding to our extensive mailings, sequence of public meetings, leaflets, booklets and news articles with this further attempt to reach everyone possible with accurate and concise information on the proposed Park Slope 5th Avenue BID. We hope this material will help you to better understand the BID development process.

Be sure to visit our BLOG (journal) of our progress. Entries are made on an almost daily basis and you can post your comment and suggestions there (although its more efficient to contact Tony Giordano directly). The BLOG can be found at parkslopebid.bravejournal.com

What is a BID?

A BID, or Business Improvement District, is a not-for-profit corporation created under the laws of the State of New York. It can only be created by following very specific regulations that include open meetings, certified voting of local property owners, approval of the local Community Board, a review by NYC agencies, a vote of the New York City Council and the signature of the Mayor of New York.

What is the Purpose of a BID?

A BID provides supplemental services to a specific district. These supplemental service do not replace services already paid for by your tax dollars, they are additional services. These services help maintain the success of a business district and provides a source of revitalition and growth. Typical services include sanitation, security, business promotion, advocacy and coordinated leadership/representation.

Benefits of a BID

For over 90% of the property owners, the membership fee will amount to little more than a newspaper a day - about $10 a week (collected once a year). And you will immediately recoup more than that in the saved expense of annual holiday decorations/lighting and street banners. Imagine, the festive nature of your 5th Avenue during the holidays, the key shopping season, from Dean Street to 18th Street.

Your BID will also help protect you from the harassment of unfair sanitation tickets and provide you most importantly with a full-time advocate who will seek to resolve problems on your behalf with city agencies. Your BID will be your first line of defense - representing you directly in getting answers from bureaucratic institutions.

The Sunset Park BID (from 38th to 64th Street) has not increased membership fees since its creation over a decade ago. Increasing fees cannot be done with a mere vote or signing of a form. It is a lengthy process froth with regulations to protect you. But on the other hand, if the day comes that you feel your BID is no longer needed, a simple vote of your Board of Directors, calling for a zero dollar budget effectively ends the BID and its assessments.

In the last five years, the Sunset Park BID, has raised over two million dollars from grants and outside sources to be spent exclusively in their business district. We expect a return of $500 for every dollar of your contribution also. Money that will be spent on 5th Avenue in Park Slope.

The Sunset Park BID has a rebate program that provides cash grants to members who do facade or building improvements. This seed money, in many cases, is a full return of that year's membership fee! It helps to inspire property owners to make needed improvements.

But best of all, having a BID means that none of your neighbors can be a freeloader. There will be no "the check is in the mail" or "see me next week". Every property will pay its fair share each year. When everyone contributes in this manner it makes avenue improvement a simple and inexpensive process.

The day is fast approaching when every viable business strip in New York City will be represented by a BID (there are 52 in existence now and a dozen more in the planning stage). We cannot afford to be left behind.

Your Opinion?

Do you have enough information to now make a decision concerning the creation of a Park Slope 5th Avenue BID? If you would like to show your support, please contact us and let us know - be certain to include your name and tell us the address of your property (and if you own more than one property, please let us know). If you are a business owner or a tenant we also wish to hear your opinion. And if you are merely an interested party from nearby share your opinion with us. If you disagree with the formation of the BID we wish to not only hear that, but you would help us so much by sharing the reason for your negative vote. We may be able to correct an aspect of the BID that would then make its formation acceptable to you.

If you don't have enough information to make a decision it is extremely important that you contact us so that we can provide you with more information. We will respond to your request in whichever manner you find most convenient - by email, by phone, by mail or personal visit at a time of your convenience.

Contact Us

Call 917 582-7020 or email us at ParkSlopeBID@aol.com. By mail at the Park Slope BID Steering Committee, c/o Sunset Park BID; 476 51st Street 2nd fl, Brooklyn NY 11220.

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