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9.B. - Page 2 <br /> and the RDA teamed up to create a "Downtown WOW!" Program consisting of 127 <br /> events, taking place from May to November. <br /> • The "WOW' in Redwood City's Downtown points to the wide array of community events <br /> located in the "Community's Living Room" — its Courthouse Square (public plaza). With <br /> the Downtown renovation, the existing shops and restaurants were hopeful for an <br /> economic resurgence — but at about the same time the recession hit the economy, and <br /> soon, businesses came to depend on the crowds of potential customers brought by the <br /> City's events - nearly 70,000 people in 2008, 106,000 people in 2009 and 125,000 <br /> people in 2010 visited due to the Downtown WOW! Program. <br /> • Currently, over 150,000 people visit Downtown annually for the plethora of events, over <br /> 1 million for the Century Theatres, and thousands more for other events and the ever <br /> growing Redwood City restaurant scene. The increase in visitors and soon to be <br /> residents has increased the services needed just to maintain the look and feel that the <br /> community desires. In addition to the initial capital investment above, the City still <br /> dedicates a variety of resources to maintain and enhance its Downtown core. <br /> However, the loss of redevelopment funding has impacted the City's ability to continue <br /> to provide support. Currently, the City provides over $2.5 million annually in support for <br /> street system maintenance, parking facility operations, police services, and other <br /> personnel to fulfill general service obligations. The City has and will continue to provide <br /> this service at the baseline level, but understands that the community desires enhanced <br /> services to meet the growing needs of the community and to make Downtown Redwood <br /> City the best that it can be. <br /> As Downtown Redwood City continues to grow and thrive, drawing people throughout <br /> the peninsula, the City wants to ensure its continued success. Overall, it's downtown is <br /> visually appealing, clean, and safe and it serves the businesses, communities, and <br /> City's interests. The opportunity is now present to take the downtown to the next level <br /> and position it as the #1 downtown destination on the peninsula. Downtown Redwood <br /> City is already revered for its entertainment and restaurant options, however, <br /> development of a comprehensive management plan by working in concert with the <br /> Downtown property owners, merchants, and the City can take this district to new <br /> heights and beyond. With this in mind, the Downtown property owners are exploring <br /> ways to provide enhanced services to complement what the City already does and <br /> firmly entrench it's downtown as the best downtown on the peninsula. <br /> One of the tools that many communities have utilized before and since the loss of <br /> redevelopment funding has been a Community Benefit Improvement District (CBID). A <br /> CBID is a proven method whereby property owners vote and consider the creation of a <br /> new stakeholder controlled assessment district to fund special benefit services — or <br /> those services over and above what the City of Redwood City is currently providing <br /> downtown. The City and the Downtown property owners have spent the last ten months <br /> Page 2 of 9 <br />