Untitled - Waterfront BIA

TABIA MILESTONES AND ACHIEVEMENTS
TABIA works with all levels of government to actively advance the interests of Business Improvement
Areas and create an environment in which their members can thrive. Be it Parking Issues, Garbage,
Safety, Taxes, or BIA legislation, TABIA strives to look after the best interests of all its members.
The following are just some of the many advances made by TABIA:
• TABIA/City of Toronto Interdepartmental meetings bring City Staff from various departments and
BIAs together so that BIA issues or departmental initiatives can be discussed and resolved before
they are implemented or become problems.
• As part of a City of Toronto Economic Development Department initiative BIAs are able to retain
additional staffing until September, 2007. This initiative also allows BIAs to participate in the
development of a Commercial Safety Audit process (see page 24).
• A simplified annual budget process and shorter wait times for receiving BIA operating funds, which
are now available through direct deposit to BIA accounts.
• TABIA in partnership with Toronto Hydro was instrumental in introducing the LED holiday lighting
exchange. In 2006 some 8500 strands of old incandescent lights were traded in for the new energy
efficient LEDs resulting in a savings of one megawatt being removed from the electrical grid.
• A TABIA representative sat on the Customer Service Standards Development Committee which is
developing guidelines for the newly introduced Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005.
• As a leader in the BIA movement TABIA has had the pleasure of hosting delegations from countries
around the world including Germany, UK, South America & China.
• TABIA through greenTbiz is developing a comprehensive and conscientious program with a focus on
Energy Conservation and Environmental (EC&E) concerns that will have both significant EC&E
benefits and outcomes, but will also result in bettering the bottom line of BIA Businesses(see page 25).
• BIAs are now exempt from the city set fee structure and application frequencies when dealing with
banners in designated BIA areas. This has resulted in more manageable BIA banner, floral and
seasonal decoration programs and hundreds of dollars of savings for BIAs. The recent sale of city
pole assets to Toronto Hydro required the renegotiation of these achievements. TABIA has successfully
managed to maintain this position for all of Toronto's BIAs.
• BIAs are now covered under the City of Toronto’s policy for Public Liability insurance. The $308 or
so annual deduction from a BIAs levy covers any liability issues related to festivals, special events
and streetscape initiatives and allows BIAs to satisfy the municipality’s insurance requirement for up
to 5 Million dollars coverage around festivals/special events and road closures. Most importantly the
$308 covers the $50,000 deductible the city policy carries. To retain this coverage independently
would not be economical for most BIAs.
• TABIA has been successful in negotiating a number of Discounts & Savings Programs for BIA
Boards and member businesses. BIA Boards save on Financial Audit Fees, Director’s & Officers
Liability Insurance and membership in Toronto Tourism. BIA member businesses have access to
affordable Group Insurance and preferred rates on Merchant Visa & MasterCard. For more details
please refer to TABIA Discounts & Savings Programs (see page 20).
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