THE team behind the Okehampton Business Improvement District has revealed its draft proposals to try and improve prospects in the town.

The draft business plan was presented at an open meeting last week. It aims to increase the prospects for town centre businesses by running a number of initiatives. They include:-

l free afternoon car parking

l a new marketing campaign for the town

lsubsidised advertising rates for BID businesses

lsupporting Okehampton and District Chamber of Trade's town promotions manager initiative.

The specific outline of the BID area was also unveiled at the meeting. As well as covering the town centre, the area around Okehampton Station and businesses operating on the North Road Industrial Estate under a retail planning consent have been included.

A key part of the BID plan is to ensure that the successful town promotions manager position, filled by Lisa Wadling, will continue for five more years.

BID steering group member Alan Simons called the town manager's initiative 'excellent' and thought it 'something that is clearly working very well indeed'.

Since her appointment in January, Lisa has organised advice workshops for business owners, pancake races in the town centre, an Easter egg hunt, and the reinstallation of the St George's Day Challenge, in which town pubs compete in a series of games before the culmination of the event at a family fun day last weekend (see report and pictures, page 6).

Her ongoing role will help market Okehampton as a place to visit and create more events to draw people into the town centre.

The role is currently being funded by the chamber of trade, but chamber member Allenton Fisher revealed they could only fund the initiative for 'an absolute maximum of two more years'.

Keeping the role going is part of a wider initiative to market Okehampton as a place to visit and shop.

Mr Simons said: 'One prime thing is that Okehampton needs to sell and market itself more openly and aggressively. We need to show people why to come here and spend their money.

'We need to offer them genuine reasons to come here. In the old days, retailers would throw their doors open and draw people in. We need to be more proactive now.'

Another key part of the strategy is to subsidise afternoon car parking at the Mill Road car park, providing two hours of free parking to those spending £10 or more in a BID business. Half the ticket price will be redeemed for those spending between £5 and £10.

Kay Bickley, chair of the BID steering group, said: 'Parking has been a dominant issue among businesses that we have spoken to. We are not going to be able to solve everything that Devon County Council is responsible for, but we will represent 150 businesses in the town, and we will have a loud and powerful voice.

'We want to encourage use of the Mill Road car park.

'We want a multi-pronged approach. Events alone won't do it. Traffic, parking, business training, all these things alone won't do it — together, though, they can make a real difference.'

A BID is a partnership between a local authority and the local business community to develop projects and services that will benefit the trading environment within a set area.

It is funded by a levy on the businesses within the BID boundary — currently being set at 1.75% of a business' rateable value. Set at this rate, the BID would raise around £200,000 during its five year lifespan.

To ensure the interests of both large and small businesses are considered the ballot must be won by claiming at least 50% of the vote and by the rateable value majority of those voting for the BID.

Before any ballot takes place, the final BID business proposal will be circulated to every business within the BID zone, as well as to local authorities.

The levy money would be collected by the borough council and paid into a ring-fenced BID account.

For more information visit the website http://www.okehamptonbid.co.uk">www.okehamptonbid.co.uk