Ettalong group is the model, says council

Gosford Council has used the Ettalong Beach Business Group as the model it wishes to encourage under its business improvement district (BID) policy.

A report prepared by council staff stated that a "grass-roots driven" approach to revitalisation of an area was a successful strategy.

"BIDs will only be recognised by council and be eligible for seed funding if commercial property owners and business people within a commercial district establish a formal incorporated member-based non-profit association, similar to ... the Ettalong Beach Business Group Inc," the report stated.

"All commercial property owners and business operators in the commercial district must be eligible to join the association as full members.

"Council would encourage each association to have an associate member category to enable interested community members and residents to join and help in the revitalisation process.

"Experience at Ettalong Beach, for instance, is that there has been support for 'working bees' cleaning up the town, and that private individuals have participated in them.

"Council would expect that a non-profit association had been in existence for at least one year before it would be eligible for seed funding.

"This would demonstrate stability and commitment of businesses in the commercial centre.

"It will be required of BID proponents that they demonstrate they have meaningfully consulted the local business community and have a broad spread of support within the commercial district."

The report follows criticism of the policy by Peninsula Chamber of Commerce president, Mr Matthew Wales, who said the chamber had not been consulted in the formulation of the policy.

However, business group president Mr Richard Berntsen said the chamber was not consulted about the policy because chambers of commerce were not eligible for funding.

"The reason the chambers of commerce were not consulted about the BID is because they are not eligible for the funding," Mr Berntsen said.

"The local rugby league club is not asked to comment on money that might be given to an arts program.

"So why would an entity that is ineligible, by the fact that they only represent businesses and not the residential population as well, be consulted?"

Mr Berntsen said the village of Ettalong Beach would receive seed funding for three years if the Citywide BID policy is adopted by council.

"Each year they will receive $25,000, of which they will be able to implement those projects that the community deems to be appropriate, such as flags for main streets, planter boxes, festivals, web pages for the town," Mr Berntsen said.

"At the end of three years if the business community chooses not to support the continuation of the funding, then the town receives an injection of cash of $75,000 over three years and that is the end of it.

"If the commercial land owners like what they saw over the three years, then they can choose to continue funding the program through a levy, or possibly a large fete each year, or a series of fundraisers, to get the dollars that are deemed appropriate for Ettalong."

He said that, after the initial three years, funding can be sourced by many means "and certainly not necessarily by a levy and particularly not by a rate levy".

Mr Berntsen said it was up to the Ettalong community to decide how to go ahead.

Email, 8 Jun 2010 Richard Berntsen, Ettalong Beach Business Group Council agenda ENV.20, 27 Apr 2010