Delivery 2020 - 2025
In 2020, a 96% majority of property owners voted in favour of renewing the Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus Business Improvement District (BID) for a fourth five-year term. Their vote secured £5.5 million in levy income; HOLBA negotiated a further £545,000 in sponsorships and partnerships; providing a combined total of £6 million of ring-fenced investment for the district that would not otherwise have been achieved.
This enabled HOLBA to deliver many projects for the HOL Area. Some highlights include:
Developed a master plan of street improvements for the district, attracting £6.6 million investment, including conceptualisation of a new Arts Quarter, establishment of a strategic working group for Piccadilly Circus, development of area improvements for Green Park, St Martin's Lane and construction of landscape improvements on Sackville Street and Vigo Street.
Developed a net zero carbon programme, with specific support and inward investment for property owners to retrofit buildings.
Provided My Local Bobby 24/7 security, resulting in crime falling by 4%, compared to a rise of 17% in the Core West End area.
Created and delivered first-of-their-kind visual art initiatives - Art of London which brought to life our Cultural Heart of London strategy. This included the three major art institutions, 20 independent galleries and 16 businesses participating in Art After Dark.
Created and delivered an interactive trail of statues in the heart of Leicester Square. Including 12 statues of best-loved characters and iconic film scenes.
Enhanced street cleaning, including pavement washing and stains, chewing gum and graffiti removal.
Launched a ground-breaking series of area and real estate performance reports. The reports use local data, intelligence and media monitoring to analyse consumer, sector and industry performance.
Reduced 11,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions via our waste disposal scheme and saved participating members £250,000.
During the pandemic, helped to secure the £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund (by commissioning new economic data and analysis), a VAT reduction from 20% to 12.5% for hospitality and tourism businesses, business rates relief for eligible businesses and implementation of alfresco dining on key streets.
More than 2,000 people sleeping on the streets received one-to-one support via our outreach programme.