JEROME-GUN HILL BID CONTRACT RENEWED FOR 5 YEARS By ANNAMARIA ANDRIOTIS
The city had last given the Jerome-Gun Hill BID a
three-year contract that expired in June. "The five-year contract
that we have received is unprecedented," said Roberto Garcia, the BID's
executive director for the past two years. The BID is funded through assessments to property
owners on Jerome Avenue, Gun Hill Road and parts of East 208th Street and
Mosholu Parkway North. Property owners and merchants comprise its board of
directors. Mosholu Preservation Corporation, the nonprofit group that
publishes the Norwood News, is employed by the Board to manage the
BID. The city's 45 BIDs are given either a one-, three-
or five-year contract. "The time periods are awarded based on the
BID's performance," said a spokesman for the Department of Business
Services. "If the BID does well, it increases its chances for a
longer contract. The Jerome-Gun Hill BID has shown a lot of
improvements." And those improvements have come particularly in
the area of sanitation. Two years ago, according to Garcia, the BID
received below 50 percent on city sanitation scorecard ratings. "The BID has made a comprehensive and
cooperative effort with contractors, property owners, merchants, and the
city to work with the DOS to start enforcement and to educate the
community," Garcia said. Complementing its three-man cleanup crew, which
sweeps the sidewalks seven days a week, the BID has distributed fliers,
reminding residents and merchants of refuse pickup dates, and offered
seminars on sanitation issues such as proper dumpster location. That focus
has shown significant results. The area received 100 percent on last
year's sanitation scorecard ratings. The BID's efforts have not gone unnoticed by local
merchants. "I see a difference in the stores around here," said
Hwasook Kim, owner of Eden Flower Shop on Gun Hill Road. "The workers
come by cleaning the area and more flowers have been planted. It looks
good here." "There is a significant difference in the
area," said Hector Malpica, assistant manager at Payless Shoe Source
on Jerome Avenue. "In the past year that IÕve been here, the
graffiti has been cleaned, and the sweepers come by every day. The
responsibility of cleaning the street is no longer on us." But there is still room for improvement, BID
leaders say. Dennis O'Brien, secretary of the BID's Board, pointed out
that more enforcement is needed and local residents need to take some
responsibility for the area's condition. "There is more awareness of the strip, and
that creates more visibility for the Norwood businesses," O'Brien
said. "But the two most common reasons that I hear for people and
businesses leaving the neighborhood are the dog feces and the individual
garbage that are left in the streets." Security is the other critical issue the BID seeks
to address. In his first two years at the BID, Garcia oversaw the
implementation of a 24-hour computerized surveillance system that monitors
streets in the BID. Garcia said that loitering on Mosholu Parkway and
208th Street has stopped since police began monitoring the area with the
cameras. "About six months ago, after viewing the
camera footage, the police tracked the offenders and assigned officers to
patrol the area," said Garcia. "This police presence served as a
deterrent to criminal activity and put an end to the loitering
there." The computerized security system is tracked by
both the BID and the 52nd Precinct. The servers hold a week and a half of
memory. Despite the high-tech innovation, one merchant
said he'd like to see a greater police presence. "The police need to
enforce this area better," said Ed Greenspan, owner of Mosholu
Optical on Jerome Avenue. "All day long, there is a group of people
who roam around the stores, sometimes looking for trouble, and they keep
customers away." Garcia also plans to stress the appearance of the
area. In the coming months, the BID will be adding hanging plants,
information kiosks and maps, and decorative banners to the streets. In
addition, the BID will work with the Department of Transportation and the
MTA to install islands at the heavily used bus stops. "Aesthetically, people want to come to an
area that looks good, smells good, and is clean," said Garcia.
"We want people to think of BID as a good place to come shop and not
a thrift area." Garcia said the quality of stores in the district
has also improved "We're seeing less of the 99-cent stores and more
quality businesses that come here for growth," said Garcia. Merchants say Garcia is in no small part
responsible for recent BID accomplishments. "He's been
fantastic," said Tony Brea, owner of Most Wanted Wireless, which is
now opening its second store on Jerome Avenue. "You see the
improvements in the area. You can feel the BID." Ed. note: For more information on the
BID, call (718) 324-4946.
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After
eight years of reviving a major Norwood commercial area, the Jerome-Gun
Hill Business Improvement District (BID) has been granted a five-year
contract by the city to continue its work. 