Willow Glen Community Benefit Improvement District Home

Dear Willow Glen Community,

Over the past five years, the Willow Glen Business Association (WGBA) has been hard at work identifying the present and future challenges and opportunities we face as a neighborhood business district and at the same time looking for tools available to bolster our efforts to keep the district thriving. Our all volunteer board, comprised of business owners, property owners and community members, has been creative and thoughtful about solutions that will strengthen our business district and have a positive impact on our neighborhoods. We believe that creating a Community Benefit Improvement District (CBID) is critical to the ongoing success of downtown Willow Glen. The Willow Glen CBID will advance the business district and improve the quality of life for residents and customers on an ongoing basis by fostering a cleaner community, enhancing the quality and beauty, and reinforcing the viability of our economic base.

A CBID is a specific geographic area where property owners raise funds through private property assessments to pay for services that enhance, but do not replace, existing City services to the area. In our business district, these funds would be used to keep the sidewalks clean and debris free; provide landscaping including tree trimming and planting flowers; improve parking management; increase the number of trash receptacles and pickup; and enhance the overall image of the business district through events, promotions and branding.

Our planning process has been guided by our corporate purpose:

• the maintenance and beautification of the appearance of downtown Willow Glen
• the promotion of a positive identity for the Willow Glen business community through advertising, public relations, sponsorships, events and festivals
• the improvement of business conditions by being a strong advocacy organization
• the preservation of the historical and architectural character of downtown Willow Glen

Nationwide there are approximately 2,000 of these districts, 400 in California alone and dozens are in place or under consideration throughout the Bay Area. San Jose has one other such district, the Property Business Improvement District launched in Downtown San Jose in 2007. Creating a CBID in our neighborhood will ensure that Willow Glen continues to be an ideal place to live, work, shop, dine and visit..

We hope you will join us in our commitment to the Willow Glen community. For more information, please contact Executive Director, Norma Ruiz, at (408)298-2100 or visit this website for updated information.