As of August 2024, petitions representing 33.45% of assessments to be paid have been signed and returned. This is short of the 50.1% needed to establish district. The steering committee is continuing to outreach and collect signed petitions in hope that a BID can be established and services to begin in January of 2026. If the 50.1% threshold is not reached no BID will be established.

A Property-based Business Improvement District (PBID) is a unique funding tool which allows property owners in a specific boundary to pool their financial resources by assessing themselves to pay for certain district-wide activities and improvements that are above and beyond what the city pays for. These improvements are decided on and managed by the business and property owners within the district.

BID’s allow a wide range of service options, including, but not limited to, security, maintenance, marketing, economic development, special events, parking improvements, access improvements, etc. in addition to what the city offers, not instead of what the city offers.

BID’s are designed and created by those who will pay the assessment, the property and business owners.

BID’s are governed and implemented by those who pay...through a non-profit, private sector, management organization that manages the day-to-day operations.

BID’s provide for a set term of existence, up to 5 years for establishment and 10 years on renewal, and requires a new petition process, by those who pay, to renew a district.

BID’s provide a collective voice for property owners.

BID’s leverage private funding with city funding to

No. The city’s role is to initially approve establishment of the BID and collect the funds that they then pass on to the non-profit organization that manages the BID. The funds will be used to pay for the programs and activities authorized by the approved Management Plan and decided on by the board of directors made up of a majority of property owners that pay the assessment.

No, this assessment is not a tax. A tax is when the government takes your money and they decide what they want to do with it. An assessment is when the people that pay, collectively decide what to do with their money.

All properties within the boundaries of the BID will be assessed unless specifically exempted by law. Assessments will vary based on the projected proportionate special benefit to be conferred on each property.

An equitable formula is developed by property and business owners whereby assessments are computed based on a combination of the property square footage, building square footage, and/or building frontage in proportion to the expected level of benefit to be derived from the programs, improvements and activities being funded.

No, all services performed by the BID are above and beyond city services. If the City of Torrance is not doing their job, the BID can advocate to the City of Torrance for them to do it.

The assessment will be managed by a non-profit elected Board of Directors. The majority of board members will be property owners who pay the assessment. All decisions are made by the board members, not by the City of Torrance. Each seat on the Board of Directors will have one vote. Regardless of how much a property owner is assessed, the board is all equal.

A Business Improvement District (BID) is NOT a Home Owners Association (HOA). A BID does not tell you what to do with your property and cannot stop you from changing anything. A BID is a funding mechanism that helps support neighborhood programs that the Board of Directors determines will best benefit the community.

Once established the BID has a five year term which allows for programs to be implemented and established. After five years, if the property owners decide that they no longer want a BID, it will sunset with no further action needed. If the property owners decide to continue with the BID, they will repeat the process that we are going through now, and go back to the community for a vote.

The MDP allows for a maximum assessment increase of up to 3% per year. This is intended to account for variables such as inflation and increases in wages. However, this increased assessment is not automatic. The Board of Directors, made up of majority property owners that pay the assessment, must find a need, and vote to increase the assessment.

Pass through assessments to tenants depends on individual leases, and a property owners’ interest in doing so. If a property owner does pass this assessment through to their tenants, the assessment will be diluted in buildings with more tenants. As an example, the average yearly assessment for a property is $1500. That amounts to $125/month. If divided amongst four tenants, they would potentially see an increase in monthly rent of $31.25. The more tenants in a building, the lower the monthly cost.