Jeagshemash! Let's celebrate

 Boston Business Improvement District has its begging bowl out again in the latest issue of the Business Target.

“Traders in a market town are being asked to think of ways to make it more vibrant and commercially successful,” says the introduction to the story.

Aside from the fact that this is supposed to be the BID’s job, the piece goes on to promise – in the now familiar Boston style – jam tomorrow, rather than jam today.
There is mention of a “bumpy ride” after businesses that were forced to pay a levy merely because they had premises in the BID catchment area – demanded that the costly quango be disbanded.
But without any sense of irony BID manager Niall Armstrong reminds us “of course, it had been democratically voted in…”
Yes, it had, after a fashion. The vote in favour was small – just enough to establish it under the rules. But the bottom line is that of all the businesses now forced into membership only a minority was actually in favour.
So how’s it all going, then?
Looking at the BID’s website, we note that so few people bothered to attend board meetings in October and December that they were abandoned.
During the middle month, the board considered two projects, both of which seem hell-bent on throwing money down the drain.
In November board member Iwona Lebiedowicz proposed an event to “celebrate Central and Eastern European culture” in Central Park on June 24th and 25th
Also at that meeting, the much vaunted map project resulted in an initial order of 10,000 maps at a cost of £17,000 – a staggering £1.70 per map.
This is despite a report from September’s meeting which talked of a £9,000 charge for producing the maps and £7,500 for an initial purchase of 25,000 copies.
Trust the BID to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory by purchasing 10,000 maps for £17,000, when they could have bought a further 15,000 copies for the £500 less, and paid 66p a copy rather than £1.70.
The idea of a festival celebrating Central and Eastern European culture just about squeaks in as one of the BID aims and objectives – but the first question most people will ask is WHY?
So far the BID has done nothing to celebrate our own locality – so why doesn’t it start with an event that focuses closer to home?
The next thing is the cost.
A “festival” as it has been described, sounds like a major event.
The Party in the Party – RIP – could rightly have been called such an event … and that cost £25,000 some years ago – by now the figure would be nearer £30,000 with inflation. And where is the money coming from?
The BID levy brings in £130,000 a year – most of which is swallowed up by the cost of the Town Rangers, the BID manager and administration. Hopefully, Boston Borough Council won’t be lured into parting with any money towards this event, and to be frank, we can’t see it ever getting off the ground.
It would also be unthinkable to stage such something like this without alcohol, which we think would a) be risky, and b) compromise the council’s booze ban in the park.
To be honest, we hoped that the BID could have come up with something better by now.
Without irony, the headline on the Business Target feature exhorts: “Join the BID to bring more business into market town.”
The fact is that the BID joins you if you are unlucky enough to operate within its boundaries and that most members would rather not be.
Membership is compulsory – and failure to pay means a summons from Boston Borough Council and the risk of criminal conviction.
One final point….
Might it be possible to use Central Park for something other than making political statements?
If the European Festival goes ahead, it will be followed in September by the annual do-gooders convention known as the Boston Community Showcase – which this year will be focussing on hate crime, and encouraging us to report it at any cost.
Forty years ago, the park saw 500 people gather in the middle of the week to cheer on a pancake race to mark Shrove Tuesday.
Now it seems the only things that happen in the park more closely resemble former highlights of the communist calendar such as the Fifth Peasant Deputies Convention, or a Let’s All Cheer for the Five Year Plan Party.
For pity’s sake, can’t the park be used for some fun for a change?

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