Are Business Improvement Districts (BID) on the way out? It certainly seems so in New Jersey.
Of course, this isn’t the case nationwide. BIDs have done wonderful work in many cities, and continue to do so.
A Business Improvement District, commonly referred to as a BID, collects funds from businesses within a designated area to improve and promote the district.
But New Jersey business owners say BIDs do not always accomplish what they promise, and several municipalities have disbanded them.
Rutherford and Tenafly property owners signed a petition last year asking the borough to dissolve their BIDs. The Business Improvement Districts in Palmyra, Atlantic City, Highlands and Roselle Park (new jersey) have already been dissolved in the past few years.
“We did away with it last year because the merchants said they weren’t getting the bang for the buck,” Roselle Park Mayor Carl Hokanson said of his borough’s 8-year-old BID. “We’re happy it’s gone.”