Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Business Improvement District (BID) Established for Wood Green
In the February this year, local businesses in Wood Green were asked to vote on whether they supported the establishment of a Business Improvement District for Wood Green. 84% of businesses voted in favour of the BID. It was duly established in July.
The UK Government website offers the following definition of a BID:
A Business Improvement District is a defined area in which a levy is charged on all business rate payers in addition to the business rates bill. This levy is used to develop projects which will benefit businesses in the local area.
There is no limit on what projects or services can be provided through a Business Improvement District. The only requirement is that it should be something that is in addition to services provided by local authorities. Improvements may include, but are not limited to, extra safety/security, cleansing and environmental measures.
The Wood Green BID joins 47 other London BIDs. The area it covers is show below.
So it does include some of what has the borderland area of Ducketts Common - which has long had one foot in Harringay and one in Wood Green. It excludes most of Turnpike Lane, however.
There are pros and cons of BIDS. Some have been very successful and are credited with the health of town centres. Others have gone down in flames amidst acrimony and controversy.
While a successful Wood Green BID should be good for the wider area, Harringay Traders need to look to their laurels and ensure that Harringay remains a vibrant area in the face of a strengthening northern neighbour.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by DTW on
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Hi Hugh,
this isn’t meant to be a cynical question but do you believe that this will be anything other than a talking shop that achieves little other than a few tokeistic changes that fail to swim against the tide of continual decline:
i would LOVE Wood Green to improve as a shopping destination. There is so much good about our area but the high street is not one.
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Permalink Reply by Hugh on
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Like I said above, some BIDs do well, others don't.
It's worth bearing in mind that every BID relies on businesses to finance them via a membership levy. If businesses feel that their BID isn't doing a good job they'll soon start squeaking and if there's no improvement the BID will likely fail. Businesses don't like to pay owt for nowt.
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Permalink Reply by John McMullan on
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That strip needs a "Shoppers Improvement District".
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Does a BID attarct any government funding? And has there been a BID in Wood Green before? Coud use te money t appoint a Town Centre Manager and look at best practice in other BIDS.
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No direct government funding as far as I'm aware. But a well run BID may put towns in a better position to bid for any funding that come up.
No previous BID in Wood Green as far as I'm aware.
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Permalink Reply by Christina Davis on
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This is a piece I wrote for Retail Insider comparing shopping experiences in crouch end and wood green during which I talked to the BID team. They really do have very high hopes and Haringey Council are right behind it too so I wish them well. The street rangers have just started patrolling. They have a Twitter handle @bidwoodgreen
http://www.retailinsider.com/2018/09/what-next-for-the-uks-busiest-...
On a related note, I'm also just about to write a piece comparing the virtues of West Green Road and Muswell Hill Broadway after the whole 'unhealthiest streets in Britain' thing.
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