Council to Hold Three Public Hearings

The Burlingame City Council will hold three public hearings during its regular meeting Monday night. Any residents wishing to speak on the Burlingame Downtown Business Improvement District (DBID) 2011-2012 assessment, amendments to the zoning code allowing for the Housing Element and Downtown Specific Plan or the size of the Beautification Commission should attend the meeting.

The DBID was passed last September after months of contention between business owners for and against the assessment district. The BID requires each business to pay an annual fee for joint projects, such as marketing, maintenance and events.

Assessments are based on the size of the business and location within a building and the downtown area.

Zone 1 consists of businesses located on the ground floor of Burlingame Avenue. They pay $125 per year plus $100 if the business is 500 square feet and $50 more for each additional 500 square feet.

Zone 2 includes businesses on the ground floor of district streets not including Burlingame Avenue. These businesses pay $100 each year, $80 if they are 500 square feet and $40 more for additional increments of 500 square feet.

Zone 3 consists of all businesses above or below ground level. They all pay a basic annual fee of $100. El Camino Real, Chapin Avenue, California Drive and Howard Avenue border the district.

Businesses under the BID assessment are permitted to file protests, which are weighted based on each business's square footage and location. If the protests reached a majority of the total assessment, the assessment can not be approved.

So far, the City has received one protest.

For a full agenda of Monday’s meeting, click here.

City Council meets at 7 p.m. in City Hall, 501 Primrose Rd.