Positive: cmyk RENEWING THE BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT IN NEWPORT CITY CENTRE Make a difference in the BID ballot: Vote YES for Newport Now With this new 5-year Business Plan, we are asking the businesses of Newport city centre We are enjoying an unprecedented property boom to build on the steady progress of the first term of the Newport Now Business and creating good new housing. BACKING THE Improvement District. Cultural changes are one of the greatest By 2025 we hope to be looking back with pride at how our city conquered the challenges challenges for an emerging city such as ours and facing all traditional 'high streets'. often take the longest to overcome. BID FOR FIVE We are fortunate to be able to boast a modern compact focal point in Friars Walk – but this needs to increase footfall to other parts of the city centre. We cannot ignore the plight of the homeless – a The majority of our city centre retailers are challenged by the increase in out of town and social problem that no-one seems to be able to MORE YEARS IN online shopping. solve – but we have to balance their needs with the But Newport city centre can offer so much more than out of town or online retailers could desire of shoppers, visitors and employees to go NEWPORT ever hope to provide. about their daily business. We have amazing city centre architecture, sporting venues, a university campus, superb In developing our business plan we have consulted transport links (apart from the M4!). more than 400 of our Levy payers. This Business Plan details the ways in which you have told us you want to spend the £265,000 per year that you entrust to us. We have decided to expand our definition of the city centre to incorporate the council’s new masterplan boundaries. This will see parts of Clarence Place, Clytha Park Road, riverfront businesses and Rodney Parade joining the BID. The aim of the BID’s volunteer Board of Directors, all of whom either own or run city centre businesses, is to spend your Levy in the ways in Zep Bellavia Chair of Newport Now which you instruct us. There is only so much we can do with a limited budget but we trust you'll all vote for another 5 years for us to deliver this Business Plan and ensure your voice continues to be heard as our city centre develops. Our postal ballot runs from October 31 to November 28. Please vote YES to keep the BID in Newport. Zep Bellavia Chair, Newport Now 2 3 Newport Now BID was first established in 2015 after a successful BID ballot in 2014 and has since been SO WHAT IS overseeing the marketing and management of the city centre, representing more than 500 businesses in its first THE BID? term. The work and success of BIDs has been shown to be cumulative, with each 5-year term setting a foundation for the next. Newport Now BID has implemented many innovative projects and initiatives, punching well above its weight. The BID team have worked hard to improve the overall trading environment for BID businesses, and the city centre's residents, employees and visitors. A brief explanation of BIDs and why you're All those businesses that would have to pay, vote being asked to vote on this Business Plan.. upon a BID. If the majority vote in favour of renewing Newport A BID is a formal arrangement where the Now BID for a further 5 years, all businesses on businesses in an area come together to fund, the streets listed on page 24 will pay an annual manage and implement an agreed programme of Levy, which will be used to deliver the Business actions designed to improve the trading Plan. environment of the area to the benefit of all the businesses within it. For a successful YES vote: The actions are set out in a Business Plan that is voted on by all businesses in the area and are in • More than 50% of businesses that vote, addition to those services already provided by the must vote in favour of renewing Newport local council. Now BID. In the UK, there are now more than 300 BIDs in operation and each has a maximum life span of 5 • Of the businesses that vote, their years before businesses vote on another Business combined rateable value must be greater Plan. than 50% Paul Hawkins, of Diverse Vinyl on Charles Street, has been a valued supporter of the BID during our first 5 years. For the last two years, Diverse Vinyl has been funded by the BID to curate and deliver a free music festival across several city centre venues to celebrate Record Store Day. Diverse Vinyl has also benefited from one of our Shopfront Improvement Grants. 4 5 OUR DELIVERY THEMES #1 FUTURE To date, Newport Now BID has City Centre Strategy delivered... NEWPORT & Business Support Lobbying Work with Sports Teams With the planned developments and growing investment in the area the future for Newport looks The BID has lobbied both privately and in public on We have worked with the Dragons, Newport brighter. This theme aims to make sure that you, as a committed and passionate business behalf of its members on a range of issues, not County AFC, Newport Live, Run 4 Wales, least the introduction of a new city centre Public British Transplant Games and others to community, have a significant role in the future of our city. With a positive vision for the future Space Protection Order and the new masterplan encourage use of the city centre by visitors to we will strive towards shared success. for the area. We lobbied the police and the council, key sporting events. We arranged for the via an open letter, on issues such as anti-social Champions League trophy to be on show in behaviour, drug-dealing and aggressive begging. the city centre ahead of the Cardiff final in In partnership with other Welsh BIDs, we 2017. successfully lobbied the Welsh Government to ensure business rate rebates promised for England applied to Wales as well. The BID is represented Digital High Street on a number of city centre-related groups, We fund the city centre element of the including the Market Arcade steering group, the Newport Explorer digital project and we are an Newport Economic Network and PubWatch. active member of the Newport Economic Network. We have supported, where Commercial Balance appropriate, both the National Software We facilitated the opening of two pop-up shops in Academy and the Cyber Security Academy – empty units and ran an art competition for empty university projects based in the city centre shopfronts. We have also developed a shopfront improvement grant for both new and existing businesses. To date, grants have been issued Newport Now BID 2 will: totaling more than £10,000. We have a vision of a ‘high street’ with a mix of retail, A1 office space, • Act as a collective voice for our members residential and hotel accommodation. and provide presentation and input into future plans for our city centre Business Support • Work with landlords and public agencies to We run the Savings Advisory Service in try to achieve the right commercial balance partnership with Meercat. To date this service has for the city centre identified business savings of £48,500 for BID • Support new businesses to move into the members. We have sponsored the Pop-Up city centre and encourage temporary use Business School, attracting almost 300 attendees. of vacant units • Support businesses through collective Training and Skills purchasing, facilitating access to grants We have provided or sponsored training on anti- and providing training opportunities terrorism, GDPR and TownNet radio among • Link businesses with local skills providers others. We continue to seek ways to provide BID to create a better skilled local workforce members with free or discounted training. The BID • Work with Newport’s sporting facilities and has partnered with the South Wales Argus on its teams to enhance the city centre City of Service campaign. Making Newport experience for their visitors a fun place to Food and Beverage Offer visit for all the The BID sponsors the Food and Drink Festival and 6 family is a vital has introduced a street food market as part of the 7 part of the BID's Festival of Classics Car Rally. strategy OUR DELIVERY THEMES #2 SAFE & SECURE NEWPORT Creating a more welcoming city centre experience The city centre still suffers with issues of anti- social behaviour which can in some cases create an intimidating environment. The aim of To date, Newport Now has delivered: this theme is to address this and work with the police to make the city centre experience more Ambassadors pleasant for visitors and staff during the day and Our Ambassadors are on duty seven days a night. week. Part of their role is to liaise with businesses and log any issues they may be Newport BID 2 will: facing. They aim to visit 140 Levy payers every month. In addition to this, they will also attend to • Provide uniformed street ambassadors to incidents in the city centre reported by welcome visitors, confront anti-social businesses. Typically, the number of incidents behaviour and help prevent crime against they attend each month number more than 100 property and relate to the following issues: • Work with Pubwatch to achieve a better • Anti-Social Behaviour evening and night-time experience for • Shoplifting (dealing with or assisting) visitors • General public enquiries • Support the Newport Business Against • General crime Crime Partnership and work closely with • Parking/traffic them to increase take up of the TownNet • Medical emergency radio service and enhance the sharing of intelligence related to crime in the area PubWatch • Work closely with the local police force to The BID attends all meetings of PubWatch, and further develop the working partnership with works with licensed premises, the council and them and the business community the police to increase participation in the scheme.