The results in many instances have been dramatically improved economic revitalization of once struggling areas. Hopes are that it will help to rejuvenate what visitor industry officials have long complained is a tired destination losing marketshare. Still, while the district will cost some Waikiki property owners hundreds of thousands of dollars per year, it's still a popular measure. Fewer than 10 percent of landowners objected when the Waikiki Improvement Association, a trade group representing area hotels and retailers, proposed the idea in the late 1990s, said Rick Egged, the association's president. The City Council approved the BID last year.
Most people are in favor of the basic concept.
They realize this is not a silver bullet, not the revitalization of Waikiki in and of itself, but it is an important tool. A BID lets us actually get out and do some of the basic things that need to be done. Urban planning Such improvement districts have become a wildly popular form of urban planning on the Mainland. More than 1,200 have been formed as cities nationwide attempt to emulate the success of veteran BIDs, including those in Portland, Times Square, Denver and New Orleans. The districts have proven versatile and effective, say administrators of several urban BIDs.