West End Business Improvement Association executive director Teri Smith.

THE WEST END BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT ASSOCIATION
A Voice For A Vital Community Sector

The COVID pandemic, and the ensuing loss of several West End businesses, have made West Enders more conscious than ever of the vital role that local stores, restaurants, and services play in creating and sustaining community. Front and center in encouraging us to shop and dine in the West End and support those businesses have been the West End Business Improvement Association (WEBIA).

Many West Enders may not make the connection between the society that gives a collective voice to local businesses and the many signature events and initiatives it launches and supports. The winter Lumière celebration now in progress with illuminated art installations, the creation and renewal of local outdoor murals, Car Free Days, the Pride celebrations and parade, and the entertainment and events in Jim Deva Plaza are all supported by, and sometimes initiated and managed by, the WEBIA.

Business Improvement Associations (BIAs) are specially funded business districts managed by non-profit groups of property owners and business tenants whose goal is to promote and improve their business district. Vancouver has 22 BIAs, including three that represent businesses in the West End - The West End Business Improvement Association, the Robson Street Business Association, and the Downtown Business Improvement Association which oversees a portion of Coal Harbour and the northeast section of the West End.

Funding for BIAs comes from a special property tax. Each commercial property within the boundary is taxed in proportion to its total taxable value. This means that if a property owner owns one percent of the total taxable value, their share will be one percent of the BIA budget. In most lease agreements, property owners pass this cost on to the business tenants. BIA funds are used to hire staff and run BIA activities.

The City of Vancouver helps local business groups to form BIAs. Once a BIA is formed, it is managed by a volunteer board elected by property owners and tenants within its boundary. The city is involved with the annual funding process, monitor BIA budgets, and act as a liaison between the BIA and city departments.

This fall has seen some big changes at all three BIAs serving the West End. The Downtown BIA’s longtime executive director Charles Gauthier retired, the Robson BIA has a new executive director (see announcement here) and Teri Smith, who served as the Robson BIA’s executive director for more than eight years, has moved over to Davie Street to take on that role at the WEBIA, replacing Stephen Regan who served there for nine years.

Smith’s years with the Robson BIA has given her a deep knowledge of the West End, the community, the people, the businesses, and the issues. This is her fifth BIA position, having started, fresh out of university, with the Hastings North association 18 years ago. She is also the current president of the BIABC, the provincial association of BIAs.

Smith’s experience with BIAs around the city, her enthusiasm for the West End and the diversity of its residents and businesses, ensure a smooth transition to new management and ongoing support for the many businesses that make the West End … well, our kind of place.