spend the day in the district with free parking throughout
East Spokane Business Association
The East Spokane Business Association is committed to ensure community and economic revitalization for the benefit, enjoyment and pride of all Spokanites through a belief in hard work, risk taking and a positive vision for our area. Together we can make this happen. join us.
ESBA Mission
At the East Spokane Business Association, our mission is clear: To support the East Spokane Business District by preserving and improving its unique facilities, infrastructure, and commercial interests.
Find Your Assesment
Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) are funding mechanisms for business district revitalization and management. The mechanism is an assessment collected from commercial and multi-family properties within defined boundaries. The funds are used to provide services for the mutual benefit of the properties being assessed.
Property maintenance, security lighting, cleaning and maintenance of sidewalks and planting strips are the responsibility of the property owner, not the City of Spokane. Currently, the City provides a baseline level of service to public property designed to complement the efforts of the private sector to keep the public realm safe and the sidewalks clean. The City of Spokane is committed to maintaining its current levels of service within the Sprague Union District.
CURB APPEAL. Everyone pitching in means that the street-level experience is enhanced and maintained. BID funds will go to provide enhanced lighting, street tree maintenance, and a cleaner district.
ECONOMIES OF SCALE FOR SERVICES. Because everyone pays in and the Sprague Union District provides for a cost-effective solution to receive enhanced services like additional policing and security measures, decorative lighting and district cleaning at a lower cost for services than might otherwise be purchased independently.[1]
INCREASED PROPERTY VALUES & RETURN ON INVESTMENT. A national study showed that most BID members receive greater than a 5:1 return on investment for their annual assessments.[2]
[1] A 2011 California study found that after BID adoption, property sales prices from a sample of 8 BIDs increased, on average, 19% more than the sales prices of non-BID properties.
[2] National University System Institute for Policy Research, the Economic Impact of Business Improvement Districts, 2012.
The boundaries of the BID were drafted with the input of district property owners and tenants and are intended to capture the core of the district surrounding East Sprague Avenue. The three BID service areas were designed to reflect the level of benefit to be received by the different areas.
The BID will have an advisory board comprised of ratepayers who are property owners within the BID boundary. The ratepayer advisory board will be current ratepayers in good standing and will represent the various business classes and geographic diversity of the district. The method of creating a ratepayer advisory board will be at the recommendation of the BID ratepayers and approved by the Spokane City Council.
Funds will be used for district cleanliness and landscaping, district beautification, and district branding efforts. The ratepayer advisory board will guide the specifics of BID program elements and revisit them every year.
No, but the BID will be in place until it is terminated. The process to terminate a district is very similar to the process to create a BID. First, a supporting petition is circulated requesting the Spokane City Council to dissolve the BID. After receiving the petition, a public hearing is held before City Council, who will then decide on the petition.
Properties classified by the Spokane County Tax Assessor’s Office as residential properties with four units or less cannot be assessed.
New development will be incorporated into the BID on an annual basis.
To account for inflation, the rates shall be adjusted annually by an inflationary factor, which will be equal to the change in the annual Consumer Price Index or 3% per year, whichever is less. New data for every property in the district will be pulled every 3 years to capture growth in each property’s Total Assessed Value.
The City of Spokane is currently in the process of planning for the East Sprague Targeted Investment Pilot (TIP). While the BID will focus on similar issues, the TIP and the BID are two distinct processes.
PBIA Advisory Board Meeting
The Board will meet at a minimum on a quarterly basis. The Board currently meets 12:00pm – 1:30pm on the third Wednesday of every month at the Sprague Union Terrace (Community Room) located at 1420 E Sprague Avenue.
SPRAGUE PBIA BOARD MEMBERS
PRESIDENT
Chris Venne, Zone 1, Non-profit/Residential
1st Term (April 2021 – Dec 2023)
VICE PRESIDENT
Amy Vega, Zone 1 Non-profit/Property Owner
1st Term (April 2021 – December 2023)
SECRETARY
Dana Reinke, Zone 1, Business/Property Rep
1st Term (April 2022 – Dec 2023)
TREASURER
Tresa Schmautz, Zone 1, Property Owner
1st Term (Jan 2022 – Dec 2023)
BOARD MEMBERS
Sam Mace, Zone 2, Business/Property Rep
1st Term (Jan 2023- Dec 2024)
PROGRAM MANAGER (ESBA)
Barbara Woodbridge, ESBA President
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR (ESBA/BID)
LaVerne Biel, laverne.esba@gmail.com
Businesses
