supporting downtown columbia for three decades - Discover the District!

supporting downtown columbia for three decades

ur community is growing steadily, and that growth is reflected in a vibrant, changing downtown Columbia. Driven by this dynamic growth, the Columbia Special Business District (SBD) is striving to keep pace. To keep you apprised of these changes, the SBD invites you to learn more about who we are, what we do and how we intend to manage new growth. Created nearly 30 years ago, the original mission of the SBD was to fill vacancies in central city properties as retail businesses relocated to the malls. With the help of dedicated property and business owners, a new type of organization—the SBD—was forged. It was a cooperative effort that extended store hours, recruited unique specialty shops, and increased dining and entertainment options built around the unique history of the city.

Today, “The District” benefits from a comprehensive beautification plan designed to upgrade its appearance with new streetlights, sidewalk amenities, a wayfinding system to guide visitors, and more. Property owners continue to rehabilitate historic buildings and the visual appeal of The District has improved significantly. As a result of these efforts, and The District’s ability to attract exciting retail, dining and entertainment venues, the SBD has seen a corresponding increase in business activity, event attendance and overall economic vitality. Looking forward, the SBD is focusing on increasing density and encouraging more residential development to attract the “creative class”—a new economic force in our community. These young professionals work in technology and the arts, and they prefer to live in a vibrant

urban setting like The District. To attract and accommodate these and all types of visitors, The District offers over 45 live performances every week, some 70 restaurants and bars, approximately 110 unique shops and 5,900 parking spaces. The challenge facing the SBD is to not just keep up with these changes but to guide them as well. As a result, the SBD is dealing with new and complex issues. One important challenge is generating adequate funding to meet the growing needs of the SBD as Columbia makes the transition from a small town to a growing metropolitan area. As you review this summary of the SBD, please know that your input and support are welcome as we move forward to create a stronger, more efficient organization designed to help fulfill the potential of The District.

special business district

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Am I located in the SBD?

What is the SBD? The Columbia Special Business District is an assessment district created and administered by property and business owners. First conceived in 1978, the SBD was created to provide services over and above those the city of Columbia offers. It is dedicated to beautification, business recruitment, economic development, historic preservation and other issues unique to The District.

The goals of the SBD are to: 1. Protect and strengthen the business, cultural and entertainment environment in The District. 2. Provide services to those who shop, play, work and live in The District. 3. Serve as the voice of businesses and property owners in The District with local and state entities. 4. Support and coordinate long-term planning for The District.

The SBD is 43 square blocks bordered by Columbia College to the north, the University of Missouri to the south, Stephens College to the east, and Providence Road to the west. However, not all commercial properties in what is normally considered “downtown” are included. Some properties and business owners in downtown have no official advocate with local or state government and cannot participate in special programs or promotions because they are not members of the SBD.

What is the CCA? The Central Columbia Association is a membership organization that focuses on events, advertising and promotions. It’s best known for the Twilight Festival and the Living Windows Festival. Although it uses the SBD staff and office for all of its projects, the CCA is independent of the SBD, with a separate board and budget. The CCA has approximately 120 members—mainly retail and restaurants—and an annual budget of about $45,000. Members pay annual dues totaling about $17,000. SBD staff raises the balance of the CCA budget through grants and event sponsorships.

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Columbia SBD is funded T he by two main sources:

business owners (through business license fees) and property owners (through a property tax). Missouri state law currently allows the SBD to assess fees of up to 50% of the cost of a business license. This generates approximately $19,000 each year for the SBD.

70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0

$0 $1 –9 9 $1 00 –1 99 $2 00 –2 99 $3 00 –3 99 $4 00 –4 99 $5 00 –5 99 $6 00 –6 99 $7 00 –7 99 $8 00 –8 99 $9 00 –9 99 $1 00 0+ $2 00 0+

Property owners within the SBD are assessed 47.62 cents per $100 of assessed valuation. State law allows assessments of up to 85 cents with the consent of property owners. The average SBD property owner pays $446 per year, generating approximately $135,000 annually for the work of the SBD.

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Number of Businesses

As you can see from the chart below, about 44% of business owners pay less than $20 per year and 15% pay only $7.50 per year in business license fees. To put that into perspective, $7.50 will buy about 18 postage stamps.

SBD Property Tax

Yearly Amount

Yearly Business License Fees 100

80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 $7 .5 0 $1 0– 19 $2 0– 29 $3 0– 39 $4 0– 49 $5 0– 59 $6 0– 69 $7 0– 79 $8 0– 89 $9 0– 99 $1 00 –1 09 $1 10 –1 19 $1 20 –1 29 $1 30 –1 39 $1 40 –1 49 $1 50 –1 59 $1 60 –1 69 $1 70 –1 79 $1 80 –1 89 $1 90 –1 99 $2 00 + $3 00 +

Number of Businesses

90

Over 70 properties in The District—mainly churches, government buildings, schools and other not-forprofit institutions—pay no assessments. However, the city of Columbia, Boone County and the University of Missouri all make contributions in lieu of tax totaling $27,700 per year.

Yearly Fee


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Streetscape Improvements The SBD is in the final phase of the Helping Urban Beautification Project (HUB) and new capital improvements continue throughout The District. Past improvements include new benches, trashcans, newspaper corrals, banners, bike racks and streetlights. Wayfinding signage was installed in spring 2007 throughout The District. This comprehensive wayfinding package includes streetlightmounted directionals, pedestrian maps in key locations, new higher visibility street signs and new kiosks. The goal is to help both tourists and locals find everything in the District, from parking garages to museums. Not only do these signs highlight major attractions, they also visually represent the eclectic nature of The District. District-wide streetlight installations will be complete in early 2008, bringing the SBD portion of the HUB Project to a successful close.

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Canopy Removal Initiated by a number of property owners and merchants interested in taking advantage of Historic Preservation Tax Credits, everyone quickly realized that canopy removal would be more affordable if they were all removed at the same time.


The SBD stepped in to organize the effort, serving as liaison to contractor PCE, working with the city to finance and relocate streetlights and signals, and creating a marketing strategy to make sure customers continued to shop on Broadway during the demolition process. Additional Broadway streetscape improvements will be a key part of the new city hall plan.

Historic Preservation With the removal of the Broadway canopies, The District was eligible for placement on the National Register of Historic Places. One hundred historic properties were included in the application—many of which have rich histories dating back to the Civil War. The listing was approved in late 2006. Placement on the Register is a great marketing tool for attracting visitors, and it is now much easier for individual property owners to receive tax credits for renovating their property. The canopy removal and National Register placement have shown the state’s Department of Economic Development that the SBD is committed to improving The District by reclaiming its past.

Maintenance The SBD has two part-time employees working a total of 48 hours a week on basic maintenance of public areas. Although budget constraints prevent the SBD from providing more than minimal assistance to business and property owners, this is a valuable service that helps preserve the integrity of the entire area. These employees help businesses keep their sidewalks clean, pick up trash in alleys and parking garages, remove graffiti, and provide special clean up after festivals and parades.


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Legislative Successes The SBD acts as the voice of merchants and property owners on both the state and local levels. On the state level, the SBD has crafted language for the Missouri Downtown Economic Stimulus Act (MoDESA) legislation that would make it easier for Columbia to take advantage of this taxincrement financing program. Additionally, we worked to protect and enhance the Historic Preservation Tax Credit and successfully changed the legislation that limited where bars and restaurants could be located. The SBD has also preserved other downtownfriendly tax credits dealing with neighborhood improvements and job creation. On the local level, the SBD has addressed several issues key to the economic vitality of The District. Working in conjunction with the city council and city staff, we helped create new sidewalk cafe legislation, successfully protected funding for festivals and garnered funding for sidewalk reconstruction, new sidewalk amenities and new wayfinding signage. Two

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recent issues also include the passage of a sign and awning ordinance designed to balance advertising aesthetics, as well as a 50% city match for sidewalk reconstruction.

Marketing And Communications Here, the SBD and CCA work together to convey The District brand and promote it as an attractive place to live, work and play. The goal is not just to promote The District, but also to provide helpful, practical information to residents and visitors alike. We achieve this by delivering: 1. Regular event updates via e-mail (3,000 e-mail addresses). 2. Web site (www. discoverthedistrict.com) development and maintenance (2,000 hits, 6,000 page views per week). 3. Web site (www. twilightfestival.com) development and maintenance (3,600 hits, 9,500 page views in June 2007). 4. Web site (www. changeforcolumbia.com) development and maintenance.


5. Top search engine rankings for Web sites. 6. Weekly online entertainment calendar. 7. District maps. 8. District brochures. 9. Festival guide (distributed to travel writers). 10. New business packet, including vacancy lists and marketing data. In addition, the new wayfinding signs throughout The District and the banners along Elm and Cherry streets serve to reinforce the brand as a complete package. There are a number of publications and collateral materials designed to keep members apprised of key events and issues in The District including: 1. Regular SBD updates via e-mail. 2. District newsletters. 3. Monthly event postcards. 4. Regional marketing data. 5. Demographics of District customers. 6. Annual reports. 7. Crime prevention guide. 8. Home pages on the Web site for CCA members. 9. Special members’ section of the Web site.

Development Over the past few years, the SBD board has been promoting both historic renovation and infill development. The objective is to increase density, encourage more residential development, and make it easier for developers to build mixed-use projects. Businesses will be grouped more closely together. Sidewalks will bustle with activity. New buildings will grow “up” rather than “out.” Apartment buildings will be constructed on empty surface parking lots, and walking will be a pleasure as well as a convenience. In short, the SBD believes each of the 43 blocks of The District should be as vital and exciting as Ninth and Broadway. This past year saw some steps in the right direction. Private developers have shown a keen interest in building mixed-use residential, and a number have been working closely with the

SBD office to determine the best type of development for this market. The SBD helped organize the Missouri Downtown Association’s Downtown Housing Conference in St. Louis, where SBD board members, private property owners and city staff met with St. Louis developers and toured loft apartments. In addition, SBD board members have been active in the meetings with consultants Sasaki Associates in which the city, Stephens College and MU are outlining development possibilities that will benefit both the colleges and The District.

Increasing Services The SBD faces some major challenges as developers begin building up, parking lots turn into buildings, and more residential units are built. Increases in the number of businesses, the growth of the bar and restaurant sector, and larger and more frequent events and festivals have expanded demand for key services such as maintenance. As The District grows, the SBD must match that growth. The District will soon demand the proper staff, resources and funding to provide services for business and residents.

Aiding New Development Although most of the development in the past few years has been historic renovation, new plans are being made. Property owners need the SBD to help streamline the development process, and establish new zoning standards appropriate to the area and amenable to the property owners. The SBD will continue as an advocate for public improvements such as parking garages, sidewalks and other necessary infrastructure.


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Both the city’s Sasaki plan and the City Visioning Group advocate the following actions to spur downtown development: • Strengthen partnerships between the private sector, the city, Stephens College and MU. • Create an implementation entity such as MoDESA as well as other development incentives. • Revise zoning to promote mixed use developments and better parking standards. • Create acceptable design guidelines. • Establish a Downtown Capital Improvement Program for public infrastructure.

Community Improvement Districts Sasaki Associates, the City Visioning Group and the SBD board also recommend a stronger downtown organization to better represent property owners and businesses. Many of The District’s current challenges could be easily addressed with increased funding. A larger maintenance crew, a larger office staff and a team of public safety

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ambassadors would go a long way toward tackling some members’ top priorities— cleanliness, safety and marketing. While property taxes could be increased, the SBD must work hard to ensure that one section of our membership does not shoulder the entire financial burden for services that all enjoy. Many cities in Missouri have shifted from a Special Business District to a Community Improvement District (CID), which has the ability to pull in additional assessments like sales tax. This added revenue would allow The District to better meet the needs of its members. Downtown CIDs throughout the state typically use their additional revenues for increased maintenance, safety patrols, marketing and other pressing needs. Since the services offered by a CID are determined by the members, a Columbia CID could address any number of key issues. (For more information on CIDs and other development incentives, go to the Developers section of www. discoverthedistrict.com.)


As The District grows, it’s important that our organization grows along with it. Increased resources, funding and staff will help ensure the success of future developments, be they commercial, residential or cultural. These topics will all be under consideration in the upcoming months and the SBD board hopes that you will be part of these discussions as well. There are exciting things in store for The District—and we look forward to having you as part of the conversation.

columbia special business district www.discoverthedistrict.com 11 S. Tenth Street, top floor Columbia, Missouri 65201 (573) 442-6816 [email protected]