By Carolyn Leal
Saratoga's Business Development Council has scheduled a Town Hall meeting Thursday, April 18 at the Senior Day Care Center, 19655 Allendale Ave., to explore merchant enthusiasm for forming a Business Improvement District in Saratoga.
The district, if formed, would assess merchants mandatory fees for promotional efforts to entice shoppers to Saratoga.
There could be one BID for downtown and one for shopping centers, or they could be combined into one district, said consultant Dave Kilbourne. Such a district could bring more shoppers to local businesses and increased sales tax dollars to the city, Kilbourne said.
The Chico consultant was hired last November by the city to help attract shoppers to Saratoga.
Kilbourne has met with merchants in local shopping centers to include them in the BID. One idea that has come out of those meetings is the creation of a "gateway" sign across Saratoga-Sunnyvale Road to let motorists know when they have arrived in Saratoga, Kilbourne said.
Meanwhile, the Business Development Council is coming up with ideas of its own.
In the works are "Saratoga Market Days" on Saturdays, tying in the farmer's market with sidewalk sales by local merchants.
The business council is seeking $1,324 a month from the city over six months to launch an advertising campaign promoting the market days.
"We want to promote Saratoga as a whole, not just the downtown," said Bill Casper, a member of the council and a local businessman.
The public is invited to the 6-8 p.m. meeting.
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, April 3, 1996.
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