The Columbus/Amsterdam Business Improvement District is a not-for-profit organization that works to improve conditions in the neighborhood of Columbus and Amsterdam from 96^th to 110^th Street. We provide supplemental services for sanitation, security, beautification and capital improvements.

Begun in 1987 by Valley Restoration Local Development Corporation, we are funded by an assessment paid to the city by property owners on the avenues. We have five open board meetings each year, and we welcome community participation.

This listing explains some of the initiatives of the BID.  Most of our programs happen in partnership with other groups.  We cover a sizable area but have the lowest budget of any BID in Manhattan. Therefore, to expand our impact we cooperate with other organizations, including property owners, merchants, block associations, community gardens, schools, religious congregations, local social services, and city agencies.  These partnerships support the efforts of others, while building our constituency.  If you'd like to find out more about our programs, please give us a call at 212-666-9774 or make an appointment to visit us our office at 991 Amsterdam Avenue.

For nine months of the year we do weekly removal of posters and graffiti from public street furniture, and on a regular basis remove hanging debris from trees, light poles and wires. Litter is picked from the tree pits on a regular basis.

The crew has grown to five regular part-time members and one worker who assists on weekends. They are always in gold/yellow and black uniforms bearing our logo, and push our yellow barrels with logos, increasing the visibility of the BID in the neighborhood. They are often asked what they do and what the BID is about, and they direct people to our office or offer our phone number. They are encouraged to be observant and often report problems that they encounter.

Trees and Tree Guards: We now have more than 150 tree guards on Columbus and Amsterdam. Their design has garnered praise from those in the community as well as Parks Department staff and other community organizations. Ours is the first tree guard design to be approved by Parks.

The most recent tree guard installations were overseen by Parks and funded with a grant from Borough President C. Virginia Fields.

Well-cared for trees lining the avenues and streets are a source of community pride and attract pedestrians and shoppers. With property owner permission, we hope to fill in gaps in our tree cover over the next three years by planting an additional 25-35 trees.

Plant-a-thon: We have co-sponsored the annual DEBNA (Duke Ellington Boulevard Neighborhood Association) Plant-a-thon since May 2000, when three block associations and more than 140 people planted over five thousand marigolds, johnny jump-ups, and impatiens. Twenty cubic yards of compost were blended into badly-compacted soil and covered with ten cubic yards of mulch (materials acquired from the Department of Sanitation and the Parks Department). The Plant-a-thon is a great opportunity for people of all ages and backgrounds to work together and we are proud to be a part of this effort. For two years we have worked to establish perennials (plants that come back year after year) in the large avenue tree pits. After evaluating and experimenting with various plants we have focused on planting an evergreen ground cover with two Summer/Fall flowers, black-eyed Susans and golden yarrow. Students from Booker T. Washington Middle School and Grosvenor Neighborhood Settlement House have assisted in the planting and care of these perennials. In addition to providing color to the sidewalks the bright flowers pick up on the vibrant yellow of our logo.

In Willa Cather’s My Antonia sunflowers mark the road to the main character’s home. We hope to engender the same identification with home for neighborhood residents new and old.

Plantings in Tree Pits: We began planting bulbs in tree pits in the Fall of 2000 — with more than 500 daffodils, 600 tulips, and 300 crocus and muscari. We spread 10 cubic yards of compost acquired from the Department of Sanitation, as well as bags of bark chips and, after the holidays, evergreen branches.

For the Fall of 2001, we ordered several thousand high quality flowering bulbs from Holland. After the attack on the World Trade Towers, these bulbs took on new meaning as we planted yellow rings of daffodils around our trees to remember heroes and honor our uniformed service workers.

This year we have planted more than 5,000 bulbs in the newly enclosed tree pits on Amsterdam Ave.

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Security Lighting: Our storefront lighting program, begun in 1999, is designed to offer merchants attractive and efficient exterior lighting fixtures at a bargain price. The fixtures are glossy dark green with a goose-neck arm, and the bulbs are energy efficient high-intensity metal hallide.

This project has installed 52 lights to date, which have been appreciated by both residents and the police. It has encouraged many storekeepers in the neighborhood to install additional lighting which increases the ambient light on our sidewalks.

Graffiti: Our graffiti-removal program got underway in May 2000 with an agreement to paint 215 gates with a distinctive coppery-green patina and dark green trim. Over 250 gates have now been painted. The pale color reflects light and lessens dark spots while softening the industrial look of metal gates. A uniform color is used in order to facilitate maintenance, which has occurred on a regular basis during warm weather. The project was expanded to include some masonry walls, where permission was granted.

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Snowflakes: In 2001, we installed our first holiday lighting display. Snowflakes installed on light poles in November stay lit until the end of February. We encourage merchants and residents to add their own festive lighting to storefronts, windows and fire escapes.

Events Calendar: The monthly calendar lists local events and activities ranging from poetry readings to concerts, bake sales to garden projects. Listings are contributed by merchants, schools, the library, youth groups, religious congregations, and the parks.

We print and distribute 10,000 calendars per month to merchants, various institutions, the area hostels, and doorman buildings in the neighborhood, as well as the Cathedral, Columbia University and Barnard. It has also been published in local papers. The Events Calendar has become a major program and a signature piece of the BID. Many people have commented that it makes them feel connected to the neighborhood. People anticipate it each month, and our mailing list continues to grow.

Holiday Wish List: We have now printed three annual Holiday Wish Lists. This multi-page booklet offers a description of over 20 non-profit service organizations working in the area and provides contact information for the public as well as a chance for the agencies to request items that they need to do their work better. We have had to suspend the publication for 2002 due to pressure from other projects, but we hope to revive it in coming years.

Historical Tours & Neighborhood History Group: The Manhattan Valley Historical Tour, sponsored by the BID and presented by Gil Tauber, has been very well received. Twelve 2-hour tours were given between 2000 and the Fall of 2001. Gil has since moved out of the country, so we are exploring other tour ideas.

The Park West Village Neighborhood History Group has begun an oral history project, with workshops for the community. We are working with them on an archives project at the Bloomingdale Library aimed at documenting and preserving the history of our neighborhood.

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Commercial Vacancy Listings: There is increasing interest in commercial space in the neighborhood. We have frequent inquiries, and maintain a formal listing of available stores (with size, price, and contact information). We are interested in attracting businesses to the district, and feel that being able to provide an accurate listing to brokers or interested parties is helpful. In particular, we are seeking restaurants, antique stores, resale shops and craft stores. We encourage businesses to offer classes. This draws people into the area, supporting other merchants.

Merchant-to-Merchant Exchange: The Manhattan Valley Economic Development Committee, coordinated by the West Side Crime Prevention Program, grew out of a community meeting in 2001. Their input has helped us prioritize projects and resulted in recent Merchant-to-Merchant meetings. These meetings have brought storeowners together to look at problems and opportunities cooperatively. This September, five restaurants joined in a neighborhood celebration of Mexican Independence Day -- an event we hope to continue promoting.

For the next year we have made a commitment with Community Board 7 and the Department of Health to bring together merchants and property owners to address rat abatement. Promotional plans for the coming year include a website with links to businesses in our district.

Facade Improvement: We want to promote the use of basketweave-style gates and old-style roll-down awnings. The BID can pay 10% of the cost of new equipment. In addition, we have negotiated a 10% discount with an awning vendor. Traditional canvas awnings add an attractive element consistent with the historical style of the district. Much of the current signage in our neighborhood is excessive and not to code, which invites city summonses. The open weave gates have a friendlier appearance and can lend more lighting to the sidewalk at night. When combined with clean attractive window presentations, open-weave gates create an advertisement for a business even while they are closed.

Street Fairs & Sidewalk Sales: We are exploring sidewalk sales as means of helping shops and restaurants to reach out to new customers. We hope to create a street fair model that highlights local merchants and brings shoppers into the neighborhood.

Facilitating communication between city agencies and our various constituencies is an ongoing activity. Some of the agencies we are regularly in contact with include the following:

• Department of Sanitation, to act on garbage or recycling pick-up problems, unusual garbage, or special concerns such as dog excrement or automotive oil waste.
• Department of Parks and Recreation, regarding park activities and to request new trees.
• Department of Information Technology &Telecommunications, to reduce the excessive number of phones on some blocks.
• Department of Transportation, regarding upkeep of the streets and street lighting program.

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