‘Creating a Vibrant Taunton - events & activities’ (business plan response)
BUSINESS PLAN SECTION: ‘CREATE A VIBRANT TAUNTON - EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES”. (page 13. £120,000/yr).
Here’s what Taunton BID are proposing, their headline ideas, and underneath collectively bullet pointed are some suggestions of what you may want to consider when analysing the ideas presented. You are of course entitled to provide your own feedback to and ask questions of any member of the Taunton BID steering group, and we encourage that.
In our consultation you told us very clearly what Taunton needs more than anything else is more activity and relevant events to increase footfall and raise the profile of the whole town, and to give it a vibrant and lively atmosphere to encourage residents and visitors to come to Taunton.
Event management.
Joined up events programme.
Parking.
High profile events.
Big screens.
Spreading the benefit.
Great Christmas experience.
Welcome team.
Better street management.
considerations
Spending 60% of the front line projects fund (budget after BID operating costs) on just events, effectively makes this an Events BID. Is this what you expected, and have you analysed how it will affect your business? We do wonder if the majority of businesses been consulted on this massive budget allocation towards events and really fully behind it.
Making sure that businesses are consulted and informed about any events taking place in the town centre so that they are organised to benefit business, not detract from it is a good idea. Very important and something the Council can do now anyway through good communication with businesses, to be encouraged and it’s a zero cost item.
They’ve been been working on the proposal for the past year and want to be going “live” early this summer if they win BID mandate at the ballot, ask them what events they’re proposing with approx costs aswell. From what we’ve seen from Steering Group minutes, seems they’ve had a problem coming up with event ideas that would be different to or compliment what Taunton already puts on.
Events are in some ways controversial, because although they can bring people into a town, it’s questionable if big events will increase retail spending in a town. We’ve seen it in Taunton already, with for example road closures for the Cricket World Cup event and Minehead has seen it with road closures for the cycling event Minehead BID was keen on, when from what we’ve heard those events were generally detrimental to retail sales on those days. The only assured winners of events tend to be some of the food & drink / hospitality industry, but considering the massive events budget and wanting 2 big landmark events (such as a pre-Glastonbury festival), what are the benefits and return on investment for all business sectors. Are big events going to bring people into town in their droves to have their pictures framed, buy toiletries, clothes and shoes, get their hair done, or use an architect’s services etc etc? Good for making Taunton an events destination, but could have the downside of Taunton not being known for shopping which we thought was one of BID’s main aims, and big events can also attract crime.
Let’s remember that SWT Council already fund some and lead on co-ordinating and encouraging some great events in the town centre already, including; the annual Christmas lights switch on event, paying for the EAT festivals to be held (Minehead BID have to pay for their EAT festivals, they aren’t free or paid for by SWT like Taunton!), High Street farmers market, the new independents market at Castle Green starting this Easter 2020, Christmas Ice Rink, the Armed Forces event, Vivary Park summer concerts and all the other brilliant Taunton Arts & Cultural community events that happen across Taunton etc. Voting in a BID suddenly allows the Council the opportunity to start handing off responsibility for town centre events onto BID, that is a very clear risk as we saw with the failed Taunton BID 2007-12, and even at the Business Plan launch the BID Chairman admitted that the Council had already asked if the BID might consider taking on the Chrtistmas Ice Rink. Do we really want to risk absolving the Council of it’s responsibility for all the great events they currently support? We look forward to seeing the baseline agreements BID should have already drawn up with the Council now for all Council funded or run events & activities discretionary services at the moment, in order to ensure what we currently have is all protected if BID is voted in. So please do ask BID to see the Council baseline agreements for events & activities before you vote.
Installing big screens using the latest digital technology to relay big national, regional and BID events is interesting. But this sort of thing can be quite expensive, ask BID how much has been costed for this option, at least how much it would cost for assembling, dismantling and running each day, surely they will have researched such estimated costs.
The BID will work with the Local Authority to have more control over Street Trading and markets to set the standard for presentation, quality management, fees and service to ensure that any Street Trading enhances the retail offer and does not conflict with the permanent offer. But this really is the Council’s job, they have certain standards and is it right that BID levy payers need to be policing the Council? Are BID implying SWT is currently doing a bad job, or at least do better in this respect? With the farmers markets and other street traders (such as those just before Christmas on Fore Street etc) the public seem to have been very happy with them, expanding Taunton’s shopping offer.
Street markets can be an emotive subject for Council’s and BID’s, because BID’s get a lot of control of street trading and activities in their areas, but that presents risks as well. You can see it already in the statement above “does not conflict with the permanent offer”). It’s only right that a BID looks after the interests of levy paying businesses, but sometimes clearly those self-interests aren’t necessarily in the interests of shopping public, where several competing shopping or eating alternatives might be attractive. Only this February it was reported that a Council over ruled a BID decision to simply try and stop a street stall setting up in it’s patch, see full article at Cheltenham’s German sausage stall holder wins right to serve hot food this Christmas.
Parking. It’s a bit unusual parking has been “lumped” under events and activities, most other BIDs pay particular attention to parking initiatives, rather then slide under a heading like events. Parking costs in the town centre are a put off for shoppers, pushing shoppers to use out of town retail parks to some degree where no parking costs. Taunton BID’s Feasibility Study dated February 2019 says the following about parking: “Many cited Town centre parking as being too expensive. Respondents suggested that free or discounted parking should be offered, particularly at the quiet times of trading (late afternoon early weekdays etc.)” This demonstrates that parking cost worries is high on the list of BID business, so great that BID are including it. Although we are surprised that unlike their own feasibility study told them, they are not proposing parking concessions at quiet times of trading, instead they seem to have only latched onto the idea it will instead be at key events and times of year. Hence why they’ve probably included parking concessions under events.
Lets remember that a recent article showed SWT Council has the highest profit margins for any Somerset Local Authority, the Council is looking at increasing town centre parking charges soon, and Taunton was the only of their major towns NOT to be allowed free Saturday parking for the month leading upto Christmas 2019. So besides Taunton car parks being a cash cow for the Council, the Council as part of their climate change commitments are currently actively encouraging cars to not come into town (this is the public reason for increasing car parking charges). The Park & Ride just doe snot sit well with and is not suitable for all town centre shoppers.
Some people may not be aware of this, but BID’s normally have to pay their Council for parking concessions, i’s not simply a matter of “working with” the Council, makes it sound free doesn’t it? For example, Minehead BID had to pay SWT in order for there to be additional parking concessions just before Christmas 2019. So from all this, ask BID what negotiations they’ve had with SWT Council and what sort of parking concessions they might get, and what the approx costs might be.
Finally, increasing events in a town is a ‘double edged sword’ because one of the recognised knock on effects is an increase in crime. As other towns have found, big events can even bring in organised crime elements, and unfortunately we doubt BID have even considered this fact. Given BID ahave a very poor ‘Safer & Secure’ proposal we are worried about teh they don’t exactly have
Budget considerations. £120,000
This is one stonking big events budget, 42% of the total budget, and after BID operating/administration costs a massive 59% of all the front line project initiative funds. This effectively makes Taunton BID an events BID. As for all other budget sections, question BID about their project ideas under this headline budget. As good BID business plans have, they will have tangible projects already with deliverables and measures in terms of what they want to achieve, all of should be costed as best as it can in order to soem up with teh total budget amount.
Taunton is already blessed with a great events calendar! So why on earth Taunton BID want to tax businesses and spend 60% of the project budget on loads more seems a crazy waste of money when high street costs are high enough. Interestingly the Council has already asked BID if it would consider taking on the Ice Rink if voted in, and this and other Council backed town centre events do not appear in the Baseline Agreements. So if BID is voted in there’s a very real risk the BID ends up absolving responsibility for these events from the Council!
Even this council thinks funding events it's BID once held would not a good investment! Councillor: “From previous years experience the soapbox derby and some of the other events organised by the BID had no particular value to any of our shops."
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