This feature story is part of the City of Ottawa Service Reviews: an initiative aimed at ensuring our services are meeting your needs. Visit ottawa.ca/YourIdeas today.
A mural here. A bench there. Maybe some decorative planters everywhere. It’s that time of year when Ottawa’s Business Improvement Areas (BIA) are making their lists, checking them twice, waiting to find out which projects the City can support in 2025.
This is the time of year when BIAs apply for the Mural and Architectural Design Feature Funding Program. It’s one of four funding programs the City provides to its 18 BIAs and it’s the one that’s most likely to make visitors to any district stand up and say “encore.”
BIAs are made up of businesses and commercial property owners and tenants from particular geographic areas. They join together with the City to organize, finance, and carry out physical improvements and promote economic development in their district.
BIAs have four roles:
- Improve, beautify, and maintain public lands and buildings within the area beyond the services already provided by the City
- Promote the area as a business and shopping district.
- Identify and implement actions to support economic development and business growth
- Attract new businesses to the area.
The focus of the Mural and Architectural Design Feature Funding Program is primarily area beautification and visitor attraction. BIAs are challenged to collaborate with artists and other creators to develop “WOW” moments to be experienced and enjoyed by tourists, residents, and customers.
The City pays up to 50 per cent of a project’s costs, to a maximum of $15,000, if funds are matched by the BIA.
Examples of projects funded for 2024 include:
- Downtown Rideau BIA’s 115 Rideau Street Mural Project
- Barrhaven BIA vinyl wraps for traffic control boxes
- Heart of Orléans BIA banners to reflect the BIA’s expansion
The City runs three additional funding programs for BIAs:
The Research Funding Program supports BIAs in executing research projects, such as traffic and shopping patterns within the district, to help BIAs better understand their relationship with customers.
The Anti-Graffiti Funding Program helps BIAs and member businesses in removing graffiti from properties within their districts.
The Formation and Expansion Funding Program provides grants to business groups that have expressed a formal interest to create a new BIA or expand an existing one.
For all of the programs the application period is October 25 to December 31 for projects and work that will be completed in 2025.
Your city, your ideas!
Supporting Business Improvement Areas in their promotion of Ottawa’s diverse communitiesis just one example of how we’re working with our partners to attract residents and visitors and create prosperity for our economy. Do you have ideas related to this or other City services? Share your ideas at engage.ottawa.ca.
For more information on City programs and services, visit ottawa.ca or call 3-1-1 (TTY: 613-580-2401). or 613-580-2400 to contact the City using Canada Video Relay Service. You can also connect with us through Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.