Closed lockdown businesses owe £141,000 to Yorkshire Coast BID
An 86-year-old Bridlington shop owner who used life savings to pay annual fees to a tourism promotion organisation is among hundreds facing uncertainty ahead of a moratorium ending next month.
An 86-year-old Bridlington shop owner who used life savings to pay annual fees to a tourism promotion organisation is among hundreds facing uncertainty ahead of a moratorium ending next month.
A total of £141,000 is owed by 227 accounts to Yorkshire Coast Business Improvement District (BID) in outstanding membership fees for the 2020 to 2021 financial year.
East Riding Council’s Coastal Regeneration and Tourism portfolio holder Shaun Horton told councillors on Wednesday, January 13 a halt to levy collections remained in place.
The council collects the levies which are 1.5 per cent of pubs, hotels, restaurants and other leisure companies rateable values above £12,000, £180 a year minimum.
Hero Sumner, of the Yorkshire Coast Levy Payers Association which represents BID members, said a typical cafe would have to sell 100 extra cups of tea a day to cover payments.
She added expecting businesses to pay levies after the moratorium, due to end in February, was “madness” given they had been closed for most of the last 10 months due to coronavirus.
A spokesperson for Yorkshire Coast BID said levy collection was not currently their priority, adding they had previously asked local authorities to delay it for six months.
The spokesperson said they would continue to monitor the situation and lobby government to ensure businesses receive financial support.
But Dean Bullen, one of Yorkshire Coast BID’s directors, said he was pushing to allow closed member businesses to apply for their fee to be waived for 2020.
He added expecting affected businesses to pay was “unacceptable” and that he would table a resolution at an upcoming board meeting to get them waived.
Ms Sumner said even businesses that briefly reopened in summer when lockdown restrictions were eased were struggling to pay levies after having to cut capacity.
She said:
“The average cafe owner for example has to pay about £380 a year to the BID.
“To make the money to pay the levy they’d have to sell an extra 100 cups of tea a day.
“But they’re not going to be able to because they don’t have the capacity.
“There’s a strong movement against having to pay these fees here and in BID areas across the country.
“An 86-year-old fine linen shop owner in Bridlington had to pay her fees out of her life savings, people are having to make those kind of choices.”
Cllr Andy Walker, East Riding ward member for Bridlington South who raised the issue at Wednesday’s meeting, said the charges were an “unnecessary burden” on businesses after closures.
The councillor said:
“You can imagine how hotels and other businesses must feel about this, they’re boxed into a corner.
“If the council starts pursuing them for money that would be the worst of all worlds.”
Cllr Horton said at Wednesday’s meeting:
“We have confirmed to all levy payers that the six month moratorium remains in place.
“The council is continuing to support businesses with coronavirus grants, test and trace funding and rate relief.”
The Yorkshire Coast BID spokesperson said:
“The BID previously requested local authorities to defer all existing payments for six months as a way of helping and supporting businesses following the devastating impact that the coronavirus enforced closures has had on their businesses.
“The matter of BID levies are kept front of mind, should restrictions continue throughout the remainder of the year.
“Now, more than ever, the BID’s role is vital in ensuring that the area and its business community are armed with the resources they need to rebuild when restrictions are lifted and our activities have been adapted to reflect new timescales.”