The Olympia City Council approved a resolution on Tuesday to consider suspending the city's Parking and Business Improvement Area (PBIA) assessment rate and comprehensively evaluate the program's structure.
The PBIA was established in 2005 to fund various programs to improve downtown Olympia.
The PBIA's original mandate included providing resources for enhancing downtown parking, implementing a clean and safe program to make the area cleaner and more welcoming, and improving the public's perception of safety. Funds were also allocated towards streetscape beautification, clean-up efforts, public art programs, and wayfinding signage.
It was also tasked with supporting the administration and staffing needed to operate these initiatives. The program included a business recruitment and retention component and a commercial marketing program to promote the downtown area.
The resolution, presented by Economic Development Director Mike Reid, will temporarily set the PBIA assessment rate to $0 for the upcoming year. This would allow for a dedicated program evaluation year.
The businesses within the PBIA boundaries will not be charged within that year. Instead, $60,000 from the PBIA'S $85,000 fund balance will be allocated to related to the program evaluation.
This will include consultant assistance, meeting facilitation, and exploring potential downtown placemaking and beautification projects. The PBIA will also retain a $25,000 fund balance as reserves.
Reid said the PBIA was originally required to return to the city council for renewal every five years. However, that sunset clause was removed in 2010, leaving the program without a regular review process.
"Their desire was, in next year, to have this re-examination of the program be the focus of the program, allow the ratepayers to participate in that without receiving invoices for payment in the mail, and also reserve the staff capacity that supports PBIA to go exclusively towards this effort of engaging the stakeholders in a larger process," Reid said.
The proposed 2025 evaluation is expected to include collaboration between the city and the PBIA advisory board to conduct a series of stakeholder engagements and listening sessions. This process will explore key questions and issues, such as:
During the presentation, Reid mentioned that the PBIA advisory board had unanimously voted not to include the downtown flower baskets in the 2025 budget. Typically, the flower baskets are a $7,000 expenditure for the actual baskets, plus an additional $40,000 to maintain and water them for the six-month season.
The advisory board felt it best to focus resources on the stakeholder engagement process in the program evaluation year rather than continuing the flower basket program.
However, Reid noted that the city's Finance Committee had provided some direction to explore options for funding the flower baskets. Interest was expressed in preserving this popular downtown amenity, even as the PBIA undergoes its reevaluation.
The city council is set to hold a public hearing on the proposed rate change on Dec. 10.
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DHanig
I'm sorry to hear that the city will be eliminating the flower baskets. They really enhance the appearance of downtown during the warmer months.
Thursday, November 21 Report this
johnvaneenwyk
Why have the flower baskets been so popular? Could it be that they offset the ugliness of the industrial port that is immediately adjacent to downtown? Perhaps the endless belching of soot/particulate matter saturated exhaust from visiting freighters, log moving equipment, logging trucks does not provide an attractive environment for downtown businesses. Maybe the denuding of the Port peninsula isn't very appealing. Did the flower baskets give some relief? Did they provide hope that maybe someday we'll all realize how detrimental the port is to commerce in Olympia's downtown?
Maybe. Any attempts at bringing natural beauty to downtown helps to offset the ugliness of the marine terminal. Hopefully, one day in the future the peninsula will be a beautiful and inviting natural setting--like Stanley park in Vancouver--that will attract people to downtown Olympia. Come to think of it, are there any vibrant downtowns that are immediately adjacent to an industrial port?
So far, the Port commissioners seem loathe to explore this possibility. Until they do, we'll have to be satisfied with flower baskets. Oops. They're not going to be there anymore. Too expensive. Especially when so much tax money goes to the marine terminal. It's an endless spiral downward.
Friday, November 22 Report this
Acadian04
On the other hand, ...
Friday, November 22 Report this
peterpumpkinhead
Not sure I’ve noticed billowing smoke/particulates emanating from the port, and certainly the presence of the port does not diminish my enjoyment of downtown Oly. Turning the port property into a park (essentially gentrification) might attract more visitors, but it would be at the expense of losing good paying jobs and replacing them with low wage service positions. A city needs a healthy mix of industry and amenities ie: shops, restaurants, parks.
My enjoyment of downtown is not marred by the presence of the port, but rather by the run down appearance of the buildings, streets, and sidewalks. The unbelievable number of homeless people adds to the impression of squalor. Obviously the homeless situation cannot be addressed solely by the city, but the other issues can.
I don’t know how much money the port brings in, but on the surface, doing away with it seems like a bad idea.
Friday, November 22 Report this
Snevets
I think there are other ways to beautify our downtown area. Let the money go to artists that want to paint murals or use their art to enhance the empty buildings (ie: 4th & Capitol)
Friday, November 22 Report this
MrCommonSense
The City of Olympia has a vested interest in improving downtown, solving the homeless problem, managing parking requirements, making street improvements, providing attractive banners and flower baskets, etc. to make downtown attractive both local residents and tourists. These improvements will bring more visitors, more residents, less street crime, more sales tax revenue and more property tax revenue as the buildings downtown become more valuable with higher rents and developers build more condos and apartments.... The City of Olympia simply needs to do what the City knows needs to be done. Oh my, and yet another study. Like all the parking studies done before and ignored; like the paid parking system that has been changed multiple times. Like the big debate over the purchase of police cars...... this is not rocket surgery or brain science :)
Friday, November 22 Report this