LOCK HAVEN, Pa.

By WENDY STIVER - wstiver@lockhaven.com

Published in the Express Monday, April 5, 2010

LOCK HAVEN - The downtown has been offered a free study about a new program, and property owners are invited to learn about it at 8 p.m. Thursday, April 8, in the Best Western's second-floor conference room, 101 E. Walnut St.

Downtown Lock Haven Inc.'s board of directors has set up the discussion on potentially forming a Business Improvement District (BID) and how it could work locally. Real estate owners in the district are encouraged to attend.

Bill Fontana, executive director of the Pennsylvania Downtown Center, will report on how BIDs have been used in other communities in the state.

The Downtown board wants to hear from the people involved because they drive and manage the process, according to Main Street Manager Maria Boileau.

The Business Improvement District is a tool Pennsylvania communities can use to improve their commercial areas. Properties in a BID are assessed a monetary amount and the revenue is plowed back into the district in the form of services. These services could range from security, maintenance and parking to marketing, economic development and special events, Boileau reported.

BIDs have been created and are running across the United States and in Canada. They essentially are organizations that supplement public services and improve a shared neighborhood.

Lancaster County defines its BIDs as "assessment-based neighborhood improvement districts."

In such a district, "a compulsory self-taxing mechanism generates multi-year revenue," according to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Any potential assessment would be on properties, not on businesses, Boileau explained.

"The Downtown Board isn't taking a position that's either positive or negative," she said. "At this time, the board is looking for everything that could help the business district.

"It's possible the property owners will come to the meeting and say, 'No, this is not going to work for us,' or it could be they will say, 'This is exactly what we need at this time,'" she said.

The feasibility study, should the Downtown Board decide to request it, would look at the size of the business district, the number of properties in it, whether property owners support the idea, and whether City Council would approve it, among other factors, Boileau said.

Fontana would facilitate the study, she said.

"A feasibility study like this can be expensive," she said, "But it's free to our community because we are still a Main Street Community.

The local Main Street Program is concluding, and Downtown Lock Haven Inc. is having to stand on its own for funding. The Pennsylvania Downtown Center has suggested a BID as a way to establish a revenue flow.

"It's about what we want to accomplish, about getting from here to there," Boileau said.

"A study might uncover issues property owners have," she said. "It should spark some very good discussions."

If the study is done and if it shows there could be positive results from a Business Improvement District, the next step for the Downtown board would be to come up with a proposed BID plan, she said.

For more information, call Downtown Lock Haven Inc. at 570-748-1576.