The NoMa BID is Badass, I Want One

When I was walking around 1st St, NE (where the new Harris Teeter is going in) I noticed a couple of BID (Business Improvement District) workers sporting some sweet sweatshirts cleaning some streets and I was like man, this a badass BID. Then a block away I saw the truck pictured above and I was like this is a seriously badass BID. Their Web site says:

“Located just north of Capitol Hill and Union Station, the NoMa Business Improvement District (BID) was created by the District of Columbia City Council and approved by the Mayor in March 2007. The BID supports the emergence of NoMa as one of the District’s most exciting mixed-use neighborhoods. Through a special assessment collected from property owners in a 35-block area, the BID is helping to make NoMa safe, clean, and attractive for businesses, residents, and visitors. Its main tasks include:

• Providing cleaning and safety services
• Promoting NoMa through marketing and community events
• Coordinating public and private investments and services
• Enhancing the community by promoting employment and community projects with NoMa neighbors.

The BID is governed by a Board of Directors comprised of nine property and business owners. The BID’s FY2008 budget is approximately $1.3 million and is funded by an assessment that applies to commercial property (including land and parking lots), residences of ten or more units, and hotels.”

Holy cow a $1.3 million budget. No wonder they are so badass. Who else has BIDs? Adams Morgan, Capitol Hill, Downtown. Does U Street have one? And the real question that has popped into my head is – why doesn’t Georgia Avenue have a BID?