During Moose Jaw City Council last night, a motion was passed directing city administration to bring forward a report about creating a downtown Business Improvement District. 

Coun. Heather Eby made the motion “That administration be directed to prepare a full report on the concept and process of creating an official downtown Business Improvement District (BID) in Moose Jaw. The report is to include all related information including options for a potential funding source for a newly-created BID.” 

Eby said there are several ways a BID can be funded, and she hopes the report will clarify the process. 

“I think (it’s) really important to clarify for the downtown group as well as ourselves the funding of a Business Improvement District, who pays what and the process of who does what, because I think there is a little bit of a gray area there that may doesn’t need to be gray,” Eby said. 

During a presentation to city council in 2021, Downtown Moose Jaw Association chair Geoff Anderson said the organization’s goal was to create a BID by 2025. This would allow the organization to charge a business levy and the organization could become self-sufficient. 

It was also noted during that 2021 meeting that Moose Jaw hasn’t had a downtown BID since the late-1980 to early 1990s. 

“There was a previous BID that was very successful. When you look at the downtown core and you look at the old lighting and some of the improvements that were done in the 1980s, that was all part of the BID program and that’s one of the things that a BID does is looks at improving things like that within the downtown core,” said Coun. Crystal Froese. 

Anderson also said at that meeting that Moose Jaw was one of the largest cities in Saskatchewan without a BID. 

According to the Saskatchewan Economic Development Alliance, creating a BID is a nine-step process: 

Step 1: Establish the Need – Business Case 

Step 2: Communicate with all Interested Parties 

Step 3: Establish a Steering Committee 

Step 4: Establish Goals and Objectives 

Step 5: Prepare Preliminary Budget Proposals 

Step 6: Establish Proposed Boundaries 

Step 7: Formalize a Request to the Municipality 

Step 8: Notify of a Proposed BID Designation  

Step 9: Pass a Municipal Bylaw 

“It’s really important that that consultation happens in a really comprehensive way so that there’s complete buy-in by everybody in determining that area is really important,” Froese said of the process. 

Coun. Dawn Luhning asked how long it would take city administration to gather the information. She said she’s isn’t convinced it is the best way to go at this time, potentially charging business owners a levy, but was still in favour of at least seeing a report. 

“I just hope we don’t reinvent the wheel. I don’t want it taking up a whole bunch of administration’s time because there are obviously other BIDs out there. I will say, though, every BID operates a little bit differently,” said Luhning. 

City manager Maryse Carmichael said she had advanced notice that this motion was coming and had already talked to other municipalities about what they are doing. 

“When I met two weeks ago with the Saskatchewan City Managers Forum, we did discuss what is ongoing in different cities," Carmichael said.  

“I know Prince Albert has a new concept and I do have that information already. So, in discussions with them plus administration, especially director (Brian) Acker and acting director (Craig) Hemingway, I don’t think it will be a considerable amount of time to be able to just assemble all the information and present it to council.”