The purpose of this chapter is to implement the Downtown Sunnyvale
Business Improvement District ("District").
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1)
In order to distinguish between District businesses and for
the purpose of calculating and applying the amount of assessments
owed, the following definitions shall apply:
"Retail businesses" include all businesses not covered by
other definitions set out in this section, at least fifty percent
of whose gross income is derived from "retail sales" as that term
is defined under the California Sales and Use Tax Law. The fact that
a substantial part of its business consists of sales other than retail
sales does not exclude said business from this classification so long
as such other business component does not account for more than fifty
percent of said business gross income.
"Restaurant" businesses include cafés, eating establishments,
sandwich shops, dinner houses, restaurants, stand-alone bars, fast
food services and other similar businesses.
"Sales and service" businesses include businesses that combine
retail and product services. Examples are appliance stores, most automotive-oriented
businesses, repair shops, repairing and servicing businesses and service
stations. Other businesses of a general service-type nature such as
personal care salons, general office, news and advertising media,
printers, renting and leasing businesses, utilities, vending machine
businesses, household finance companies, entertainment businesses
and other similar businesses not otherwise included in subsections
a, b, d, e, or f are included in this section.
"Professional" includes attorneys, architects, accountants,
engineers, surveyors, physicians, dentists, optometrists, chiropractors,
acupuncturists and others in a medical/health service field, consultants,
real estate brokers, financial advisors, laboratories (including dental
and optical), hearing aid services, artists, photographers and designers.
"Lodging" includes renting rooms by the day or week to community
visitors.
"Financial" includes banks, savings and loans, credit unions,
etc.
"Calendar year" means January 1 to and including December
31 of the same year.
"Billing period" shall refer to the fiscal year period of
July 1st to June 30th.
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1)
A Business Improvement District is hereby established pursuant
to the Parking and Business Improvement Area Law of 1989, Streets
and Highway Code Section 36500 et seq. The boundaries of the District
and the benefit zones within the District shall be as set forth on
the Boundary Map, including any modifications, of the Downtown Sunnyvale
Business Improvement District on file in the office of the city clerk.
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1; Ord. 2999-13 § 2)
There shall be a board of directors ("Board") of the District
to administer the affairs of the District. Said board shall be constituted
of businesses within the District. Within the board there shall be
a president, vice-president, secretary and treasurer elected by the
membership, and such other officers as deemed necessary by the board.
Such other officers shall be appointed by the board of directors at
their discretion. All voting within the District regarding election
of board members and any actions regarding the normal and routine
conducting of District business shall be based on the one vote per
assessed dollar, and said business must be current in payment of their
District assessment(s) to participate in such votes.
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1)
All businesses, trades and professionals located within the
District shall, commencing July 1, 2007, pay an annual benefit assessment
to the District in the following amounts:
|
Zones of Benefit
|
Zone A
|
Zone B
|
Zone C
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
Retailers, Restaurants, Stand-Alone Bars
|
$ 500
|
$ 300
|
$ 150
|
|
Service Businesses
|
$ 300
|
$ 200
|
$ 100
|
|
Professional Services Businesses
|
$ 100
|
$ 100
|
$ 100
|
|
Lodging
|
$10/room
|
$10/room
|
$10/room
|
|
Financial Institutions
|
$ 500
|
$ 500
|
$ 500
|
(a)
The
average benefit assessment is two hundred five dollars per year or
approximately four dollars per week.
(b)
Zones
of benefit are determined as follows: "Zone A" will be all businesses
within the Historic Area with a front or rear entrance on S. Murphy
Street. "Zone B" will be businesses in the Historic Area without direct
access to the S. Murphy Avenue including all breezeway businesses,
businesses located on Washington Ave. (from Frances to Sunnyvale),
businesses on the west side of Frances and adjacent to Plaza del Sol
on Taaffe Street and businesses in the Town Center Murphy Avenue extension
including future businesses within Redwood Square. "Zone C" will be
all other businesses located in downtown area, as described above,
which are not included in either "Zone A" or "Zone B."
(c)
Business
type definitions are as follows:
(i)
Retail and Restaurant. Businesses that buy and resell goods. Examples
are clothing stores, shoe stores, office supplies, stand-alone bars
as well as businesses that sell prepared foods;
(ii)
Service Businesses. Businesses that sell services. Examples are beauty
and barber shops, repair shops, most automotive-oriented businesses,
entertainment businesses such as theaters, etc.;
(iii)
Professional Businesses. Includes architects, engineers, attorneys,
dentists, doctors, accountants, optometrists, chiropractors, acupuncturists,
realtors, insurance officers, mortgage brokers and most other businesses
that require advanced and/or specialized licenses and/or advanced
academic degrees;
(iv)
Lodging. Includes renting rooms by the day or week to community visitors;
and
(v)
Financial Institutions. Includes banking and savings and loan institutions,
as well as credit unions, etc.
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1; Ord. 3118-17 § 2)
The types of improvements and activities proposed to be funded
by the levy of assessments on businesses in the District are as follows:
(a)
The
acquisition, construction, installation, or maintenance of any tangible
property with an estimated useful life of five years or more including,
but not limited to, the following improvements: benches, trash receptacles,
decorations, façade improvements, and permanent landscaping.
(b)
Activities
including, but not limited to, the following:
(i)
Promotion of public events which benefit businesses in the area and
which take place on or in public places within the area;
(ii)
Furnishing of music in any public place in the area; and
(iii)
Any other activities which benefit businesses located and operating
in the area, including, but not limited to, commercial marketing,
advertising and promotional programs.
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1)
No person or business within the District shall be required
to pay an assessment based on: (a) a residential or governmental use
of the property within the District; or (b) a non-profit organization
as defined by Section 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue
Code.
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1)
Any new business established within the District shall not be
required to pay an assessment for the billing period during which
said business is initiated. The business will have been considered
initiated on the date of issuance of the business license. This waiver
shall not apply to an existing business that has changed ownership
or location within the District. The city agrees to supply the District
with timely information regarding new businesses initiated within
the District.
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1)
The benefit assessment established by this chapter for Sunnyvale
businesses shall be billed and collected each fiscal year on July
1st. The city will bill and collect the assessments and forward all
funds collected to the District within thirty days of said collections.
Late payment penalties shall be applied to businesses that do not
provide their respective assessment payments on the dates provided
for herein at a rate of ten percent per month. At such time as late
payment penalties equate to fifty percent of the total annual assessment,
action shall be taken based on established city policies to recover
said delinquent assessments. Costs of this recovery shall be borne
by the business owing the assessment and late penalties.
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1)
Contributions to the District shall be permitted on a voluntary
basis. The boundary of the District shall not be modified as a result
of the contribution, nor shall said contributing business be considered
a member of the District for voting or other purposes. However, said
business making a voluntary contribution may be entitled to participate
in the programs of the District upon a finding by the board of directors
that the District derives a benefit from said business participation
in the program.
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1)
Pursuant to the Act, it shall be necessary for the District
board of directors to present an annual budget for city council review
and approval prior to the beginning of each fiscal year. The purpose
of this process is to comply with the Act provisions regarding public
notice and hearing prior to establishing the benefit assessments for
the following fiscal year. The city shall not adopt, modify or otherwise
amend any fiscal year budget of the District that is inconsistent
in any way with said fiscal year's budget as agreed to and presented
by the District board of directors, except in the case of a written
majority protest (regarding elimination or modification of any specific
budget item) from business owners which will pay fifty percent or
more of the assessments proposed to be levied as to any specific budget
item pursuant to Streets and Highways Code Section 36525(b). In such
case the written protest regarding any specific budget item shall
be grounds to eliminate or modify said expenditure from the District's
proposed budget pursuant to the written protest.
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1)
Decisions of the District board of directors regarding expenditure
of all funds generated under this program shall be final.
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1)
The city specifically finds and declares that the funds derived
from the District shall not be used to offset or diminish current
maintenance, capital improvement programs, including but not limited
to, public property and sidewalk cleaning, street cleaning and maintenance,
tree maintenance, restroom cleaning and maintenance. The city declares
its intent to provide at least the same level and standard of maintenance
and repair of public property within the District providing city funds
are available from year to year.
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1)
Proceeding to disestablish the District shall be initiated by
the city council following the presentation of a petition to the city
council signed by business owners paying fifty percent or more of
the assessments levied in the District. Proceedings to disestablish
the District shall follow the procedures set forth in Streets and
Highways Code Section 36550. The city council shall disestablish the
District if, following the public hearing prescribed in Streets and
Highways Code Section 36550(b), written protests are not withdrawn
as to reduce the protests below the fifty percent level. In the event
of disestablishment of the District, remaining revenues of the District
shall be refunded to paying business owners in a pro-rata manner calculated
in the same manner as was used to establish the most recent assessments
applied in the District.
(Ord. 2830-07 § 1)
