Successful local councils, incorporated associations and companies limited by guarantee within NSW will trial the viability of diverse governance models that strengthen local place economy.
Key information
- Status: Closed
- Grant amount: From $150,000 to $400,000
- Application opened: 16 October 2023
- Application closed: 28 November 2023, 4:00 pm
Program objective
The Community Improvement District (CID) Pilot Program will support eligible entities to deliver trials that test the viability of diverse governance models that strengthen local place economy – informing a consistent state-wide approach to CID policy.
The CID Pilot Program aims to meet these objectives:
- Drive collaboration and partnerships between local government, property owners, and businesses to support and strengthen place economy.
- Stimulate day and night activity in local centres, and increase visitation and dwell time through place activation, place marketing and branding activities.
- Advance the recognition, operation and regulation of CID entities in NSW.
- Trial innovative and creative placemaking interventions and encourage well-managed and maintained public spaces supported by strategic CID planning and community engagement.
- Support CID policy development for NSW through the evaluation of CID project insights and data.
This program is administered by Cities and Active Transport.
Eligibility
Who can apply
- To be eligible to apply for CID Pilot Program funding, applicants must identify as one of the following:
- Local council within NSW who can provide evidence of place-based collaboration and partnership with local business/property owners.
- Incorporated association within NSW with core functions in place management, economic development, town improvement, tourism, or similar (e.g. chamber of commerce, high street/main street association or business association).
- Company limited by guarantee within NSW with core functions in place management, economic development, town improvement, tourism, or similar (e.g. chamber of commerce, high street/main street association or business association).
- Hold an Australian Business Number (ABN), Australian Company Number (ACN), or be registered with NSW Fair Trading under the Associations Incorporation Act 2009 or another Act or supply a completed ATO Statement by a Supplier Form with their application.
- Be financially viable and have at least $10 million public liability insurance or be willing to secure the insurance before entering into a Funding Agreement if the application is successful.
Types of projects funded under this grant
Projects must include both non-physical and physical elements in their proposal. Each project proposal may contain multiple workstreams.
Eligible projects must:
- Have a mix of non-physical and physical interventions to trial.
- Commit approximately 50% of funding to non-physical interventions.
- Commit approximately 50% of funding to physical interventions.
- Commence non-physical interventions from May 2024.
- Commence physical interventions between September 2024 and 1 April 2025.
- Provide all documentation developed throughout CID pilot to the department who may make it available for public release to support the establishment of CIDs within NSW.
- Demonstrate support from at least five (5) businesses and/or property owners within proposed CID location.
- Be located within one district location which can span more than one Local Government Area (LGA) within NSW.
Physical interventions must:
- Be located on publicly owned land or on private land where there is a clear public benefit. If the applicant is not the owner of the land where the project will be located, landowner’s consent and access agreements will be required as part of the application.
Who can’t apply
Applicants are not eligible for funding where:
- They are an unincorporated organisation.
- They have received funding for the purpose of a CID or a Business Improvement District in the past five years. This includes businesses that have multiple ABNs and have already used one of their ABNs to claim a grant.
- Note: The Uptown Program led by the Office of the 24-Hour Economy Commissioner and Create NSW is not considered to be a CID or a Business Improvement District program, therefore recipients are still eligible under this program.
Types of projects not funded under this grant
Ineligible project types and costs include:
- Projects outside of NSW.
- Purchase or lease of land or property.
- Costs that would be considered business-as-usual activities.
- Core government activities or business operations and administrative running costs.
- Engaging or paying permanent employees.
- Activities, equipment or supplies that are already being supported through other sources.
- Financing costs, including interest and debt financing.
- Capital expenditure for the purchase of everyday business activities such as office furniture and equipment, motor vehicles, computers, printers and photocopiers, with the exception of equipment specifically related to the project and essential to its success.
- Costs involved in the purchase or hire of software (including user licenses) and ICT equipment, with the exception of equipment and software specifically related to the project and essential to its success.
- Costs such as rent and utilities unless specifically related to the project.
- Staff training and development costs not specifically related to the project.
- Insurance costs (applicants must hold and maintain adequate insurance coverage for any liability arising as a result of their participation in funded activities).
- Costs related to internal human resources used on the project, including job advertising, recruiting, contract negotiations, and salaries.
- Depreciation of plant and equipment beyond the life of the project.
- Opportunity costs relating to allocating resources to the agreed grant project.
- Projects that require ongoing funding from the NSW or Australian government.
- Buying or upgrading equipment that does not specifically relate to the program objectives and is not essential for the project’s success.
- Retrospective funding to cover any project component that is already complete/underway before funding offer is made.
Additional eligibility requirements
The department will assess an application against the eligibility criteria outlined in the CID Pilot Program Guidelines, this includes:
- whether the applicant meets the eligibility criteria to apply for funding.
- whether the application meets the detail required with sufficient evidence to support the project proposal.
- whether the project meets the eligibility criteria for funding.
Most recent recipients
What your application needs to include
Prepare your application with this checklist
The application process will involve a preliminary application stage followed by an invitation to shortlisted applicants to submit a final application to apply for funding. The two-stage process has been designed in recognition of the significant resourcing required to prepare an application.
1) Preliminary Application - The preliminary application is designed to confirm eligibility and will ask applicants to articulate their proposal early in its development, to identify the proposed non-physical and physical interventions to be undertaken, experience of applicant, commitment to deliver, expected timeframes, and long-term strategic vision to understand how the proposal meets the program objectives.
Applicants will be advised if they have been shortlisted and only shortlisted applicants will be able to apply for funding.
Documentation required for submission at the preliminary application stage:
- Aerial map showing extent of CID non-physical and physical intervention boundaries and location of key elements.
- Analysis of selected district.
- Evidence of experience delivering projects of similar size and scope, or demonstrated capability to deliver the project.
2) Final Application - Shortlisted applicants will be invited to develop their project applications and provide all information required to address the assessment criteria.
Documentation required for submission at the final application stage:
- Evidence of at least $10 million in public liability insurance, or evidence that the applicant is willing to secure at least $10 million in public liability insurance if successful.
- High quality images of project location for physical interventions.
- Risk assessment.
- Project budget breakdown.
- Project plan that outlines the scope of non-physical and physical interventions to be trialled and the expected delivery timeline.
- Evidence of the readiness of the project, including the understanding of approvals, costings, landowner’s consent where required.
- Evidence of support for the project proposal such as:
- Memorandum of understanding (or similar) with partnering entities.
- Letters of support or letter of no objection from at least five (5) participating entities.
- Letter of support or no objection from relevant General Manager/s, CEO/s or equivalent and where relevant public authority/s for the project.
- Evidence of consultation (e.g. detailed plans or processes that demonstrate how community support for projects has been captured, recent consultation carried out as part of a planning process, community consultation committees or surveys).
Address the eligibility criteria
Each applicant, as part of an application response, must confirm that they meet the eligibility criteria.
Applicants that do not address the eligibility criteria in full may be excluded from the application process at the department's discretion.
Address the assessment criteria
Applications will be assessed against alignment with Program Objectives and Assessment Criteria outlined in the CID Pilot Program Guidelines.
Trial merit:
- Project trials a CID governance model that drives collaboration between local government, property owners, and business to strengthen place economy.
- Project has a strategic plan and clear district vision to seed long-term place-based outcomes.
- Project delivers creative place-making interventions to stimulate day and night activity and boost economic vitality in local centres.
Trial deliverability:
- Risk mitigation, timeframes, and approvals.
- Experience of applicant and commitment to deliver.
- Financial viability.
Value for money:
- Return on investment for the advancement of CIDs in NSW.
- Project contributes to the economic vitality of the CID district and surrounding area.
- Project demonstrates a sustainable CID model.
The assessment process is competitive and applications with insufficient detail will be disadvantaged during the assessment process. Applicants should ensure they provide as much relevant information as possible with their application.
After the application is submitted
Successful applications will be decided by: The Minister for Roads
Assessment:
- Departmental staff will complete an eligibility check of all preliminary applications that are received. Departmental staff will prepare a summary of preliminary applications for assessment by an expert panel of NSW government representatives against the program objectives and deliverability in relation to timeframes and capacity, experience of applicant and commitment to deliver. Applicants will be advised if they have been shortlisted and only shortlisted applicants will be able to apply for funding.
- Final applications will be assessed against the assessment criteria to determine the suitability of each project for funding. Applications will be assessed by an expert assessment panel of NSW Government representatives that may include:
- Transport for NSW
- Department of Planning and Environment
- Treasury NSW
- Office of Local Government
- The assessment panel may recommend part-funding for projects if there is insufficient funding available for the whole project or where only a component of the project is considered suitable/eligible.
Broader factors that may be considered during the assessment process include the following:
- Total amount of funding available.
- Importance of a project to the local economy and community.
- Diversity of governance models.
- Geographical distribution of projects across NSW.
- Suitability of a project for other government funding opportunities.
- Alignment with existing NSW Government policies and strategies.
During the assessment process, the department may ask applicants to provide additional information to assist in the assessment process. Advice may be sought from other NSW Government agencies or other sources to assist in the assessment of projects. Confidentiality will be maintained throughout the process.
The department, at its sole discretion, can take other factors into account that may make an application ineligible for funding, such as any person, business or organisation that could cause reputational or other risk to the NSW Government.
All projects may be referred to other NSW or Australian government funding programs for consideration.
Notification:
1) Preliminary application
- Applicants will be notified of their Preliminary Application outcome via e-mail in January 2024.
- Shortlisted applicants will be invited in January 2024 to submit a Final Application.
2) Final application
- Final Applications to be submitted by 4pm, Tuesday 27 February 2024.
- Applicants will be notified of their Final Application outcome via e-mail in April 2024.
Support and contact
To help applicants prepare their application, additional information and resources are available on the Community Improvement District Pilot Program webpage, including FAQs.