City centre clean-up to cost ¬20m extra

Dublin City Council plans to charge businesses an extra €20 million over the next five years, in addition to the annual commercial rates, in order to clean up the city centre.

The council wants to implement additional environmental services, such as daily power-hosing of streets, immediate removal of graffiti, and more frequent litter removal, but is constrained by its budget.

New Department of the Environment legislation, which came into force in April, allows for the establishment of a business improvement district (Bid)scheme, by sourcing extra money from traders who will then benefit from improvements to the local area.

A similar scheme has operated in parts of north America and has been credited with significant improvements to the city centre of Toronto, Canada and the regeneration of Times Square in New York. The council intends to conduct a ballot of businesses within a defined city centre area to determine whether they are willing to take part in the scheme.

If more than 50 per cent support the idea, a Bid company will be established which will collect revenue from all businesses in the district on an annual basis. The company will also organise and run the
additional services.

Labour city councillor Kevin Humphreys said the scheme would cost companies from a few hundred euro each year to several thousand, depending on the size of the business, but would bring increased trade to the city centre.

If approved, the initial Bid scheme will run for five years, after which businesses can decide if they want to renew the scheme.

The council estimates that the scheme will generate an additional €20 million for improvement services, such as graffiti removal, over the five-year period.

The scheme would initially focus on additional cleaning measures, but would be broadened out to include extra CCTV cameras, public art projects, and the employment of "street ambassadors" who would promote the city's services and would report infractions such as littering and graffiti to the council or gardaí.