Members of the Decorating Committee assisted by other volunteers
made wooden butterflies for the summer urns. Pictured from left to right: seated are Fran Lowery, Liz Avery, Jeanne Shields and Shelley Lambe; standing are: Tina Grant, Dave Moore, Sue French, Margie Moore, Nancy Robinson, Susan Rice, Maya De Maria, Sherlene Challice and Sharon Roffey. Thanks for your work beautifying our downtown.
This is the 3rd in our series explaining the role of the six committees that operate under the umbrella of the municipality.
The Millbrook Business Improvement Area (BIA)was formed in 1987 through Municipal By-law. It is a not-for-profit organization that operates under the guidance and direction of a volunteer board of management. There is no paid staff. Their mandate is to improve, beautify and maintain the municipally-owned land, buildings and structures to promote the designated area as a business or shopping destination. They work with local economic development staff to create jobs and strong businesses.
The BIA operates as a separate corporation, funded primarily through a flat rate assessment levied on all commercial property owners within the BIA district. It has separate banking and financial records which are reported in the municipal financial statements. In Millbrook the area runs along King Street from Lisa Court to Bank St. South, jutting out to include Tupper, Union and Hutchison Streets to the north. While funding the BIA is mandatory for these property owners, their participation in the activities of the committee is at their sole discretion.
The Board consists of five to ten members which are appointed by Council and includes one Council members. The others are business owners or nominees of the property owners within the designated area.
Our BIA is best known for the downtown events it hosts, including the Fall Festival and Christmas in the Village .A few of the popular events such as Ladies’ Night and the Car Show have been cancelled recently due to a lack of volunteers to coordinate them. These events require a great deal of work and for those BIA members whose businesses are not retail-oriented, they provide minimal commercial benefit to their businesses.
In order to bolster the attractiveness of the area, the municipality now requires any new businesses setting up shop within the BIA district to offer some retail activity. Incoming business owner Brian Harris of Bremkin Home Improvements will be moving into the space formerly occupied by The Joneses’ where there will be kitchen cabinet displays and construction materials such as tiles to meet this retail criteria.
Even those who do not attend these events will notice another significant service the BIA provides through its energetic volunteer group called the Decorating Committee. This group is responsible for the seasonal displays in the area, which include the decorative pots that line the streets and decorations attached to the street light standards. Kathie Lycett, President of the BIA, advises that the Millbrook BIA is very lucky to have this group of volunteers performing this valuable service which for the vast majority of other BIA’s is provided by a paid contractor.
Our BIA is a member of the Ontario association of BIA’s which includes 310members across Ontario. This association provides education for its members to help them navigate current complicated issues including the best way to incorporate digital tools and technology into their business plans, how to meet accessibility standards and strategies to address the impact of homelessness on local businesses.
The next BIA event is a Sidewalk Sale on August 23rdfrom 10 am to 4pm. Drop into the area to support our local businesses and take a moment to appreciate the work of our BIA volunteers who are working to support a strong business community to serve our community.