Google Maps / David Kawai, Centretown News
Map shows the current borders of the Rideau BIA outlined in black and the proposed expansion which will include the National Arts Centre.The expansion of the Downtown Rideau BIA is in negotiations this month, but the cultural institutions in Centretown that the BIA hopes to scoop up are already on board with the change.
“It’s a win-win solution,” says Robin Etherington, the executive director of the Bytown Museum. “Our working relationship with the Downtown Rideau BIA is already so good that any enhancement would be the cherry on top of the sundae.”
The Downtown Rideau BIA promotes itself as the city’s arts and culture district and has proposed to expand its boundaries to include more of the downtown core.
The current area runs along Rideau Street between Sussex Drive and King Edward Avenue – but the expansion would encompass all of Rideau as well as the National Arts Centre on Elgin Street and the Bytown Museum along the canal.
“It makes sense,” says Rosemary Thompson, the director of communications at the NAC. “They’re representing the fashion, arts and theatre district, so they feel that we could be the anchor at one end of the street. We don’t see any downside to it.”
The Sparks Street and Byward Market BIAs are opposed to the idea. They argue that BIAs should not be allowed to selectively pick what businesses and organizations they represent.
“A BIA is traditionally about protecting and improving main streets. It’s about helping businesses in a specific area to thrive and survive,” says Kevin McHale of the Sparks Street BIA. “If the NAC and Bytown are looking for the services of a BIA, they should be reaching across the street to Sparks Street and working with us.”
But the NAC and Bytown are interested in partnering with the Downtown Rideau BIA to develop and engage in arts-related activities.
“What we want to do with the Downtown Rideau BIA is the cross-promotional thing. We’ll promote their stuff, they’ll promote ours, and we’ll lift each other up,” says Thompson. “We don’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings, but the bottom line is that for us, it just makes sense.”
The Bytown already partners with the Downtown Rideau BIA to promote Winterlude activities, including an ice sculpture demonstration sponsored by the BIA every year. Etherington hopes to increase these opportunities if the expansion is approved.
McHale says that instead of officially joining Downtown Rideau, the BIA should create a new organization dedicated to the promotion of the arts in the downtown core.
“If the Downtown Rideau BIA is looking to create a bit more of an arts and culture district, our opinion has been that they should create a separate organization that promotes the area for which they can all equally contribute,” he says. “From my standpoint, that would be much more effective than just joining the BIA.”
The Sparks Street and Byward Market BIAs are also opposed to the expansion for financial reasons.
The Downtown Rideau BIA currently receives approximately $750,000 per year in fees from its property owners and businesses, while the Sparks Street and Byward Market BIAs receive $410,000 and $300,000, respectively.
Many of the properties included in the expansion area do not currently belong to a BIA, but are located in the Sparks Street and Byward Market vicinities. If the expansion is approved, the Downtown Rideau BIA’s annual fees could jump to almost $810,000.
The NAC and Bytown would not pay fees to the BIA because they are a federal institution and a heritage resource – but the other businesses in the expansion would.
Coun. Catherine McKenney and Mathieu Fleury’s wards border Rideau Street. They will meet with the three BIAs to discuss concerns and options going forward.
A decision will be made at the city’s finance meeting on March 23.
Although the NAC and Bytown will not contribute to the final decision, they continue to support the potential for change.
“We’ll be happy no matter what comes out of it,” says Thompson. “It’s such an exciting time downtown, and anything we can do to help each other is going to be great.”