{"id":11021,"date":"2025-04-24T11:08:04","date_gmt":"2025-04-24T09:08:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.stadtmanufaktur.com\/?p=11021"},"modified":"2026-02-23T15:58:59","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T14:58:59","slug":"business-improvement-districts-ppp-models","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stadtmanufaktur.com\/en\/magazine\/business-improvement-districts-ppp-models\/","title":{"rendered":"Business Improvement Districts (BIDs): Hamburg shows the potential of PPP models"},"content":{"rendered":"

How does urban development work when the budget is empty?<\/h2><\/div>

Are collaborations such as BIDs a solution for the city of the future <\/b>– especially with empty budgets and expiring funding programs? <\/b><\/span>As a neighborhood manager, I am confronted with this question every day. My answer: <\/span><\/p>\n

Yes – if you are prepared to rethink. <\/b>When the city is no longer seen as the responsibility of the administration alone, but as a joint project. Because g <\/span>n times of empty public coffers, it is all the more important to break new ground. <\/span><\/p>\n

With its now 14 Business Improvement Districts (BIDs)<\/a>, Hamburg shows that public-private partnerships (PPPs) can be a very effective lever for advancing urban development. <\/b>Not as a substitute for state responsibility – but as a partnership between the public sector, the real estate industry, tradespeople and neighborhood stakeholders.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>

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Abstract:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Julia Staron is an expert in strategy development and neighborhood manager in Hamburg. She sheds light on the PPP model of Business Improvement Districts (BIDs)<\/b> using the example of the BID Neuer Wall and the BID Reeperbahn+ in Hamburg. With an insider’s view and experience, Julia Staron shows why BIDs as PPP models are a key to resilient and attractive neighborhoods.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

I personally work as a neighborhood manager in the <\/span>BID Reeperbahn+<\/a> in the St. Pauli district, probably one of the most unusual, challenging – and inspiring! – districts of the city. But before I talk about that, let’s take a quick look at the basic principle of a BID: <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>

What is a Business Improvement District (BID)?<\/h2><\/div>

A Business Improvement District (BID) is a clearly defined business quarter in which owners and, as a rule, tradespeople join forces to actively shape their surroundings. The city makes this merger legally possible and provides organizational support. <\/b>The measures of a BID are financed by the property owners – over a limited levy period of five years.<\/p>\n

The aim of a BID is to sustainably improve the attractiveness, quality of life and competitiveness of the district –<\/b> for example through measures relating to cleanliness, safety, marketing, infrastructure or events. The following applies: everything that is not part of the sovereign tasks can be the subject of BID measures.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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Best practice from Hamburg: BID Neuer Wall and BID Reeperbahn+<\/h2><\/div>

BID Neuer Wall <\/b>– elegance, consistency and marketing strategy<\/h3><\/div>

Neuer Wall is considered the “queen of Hamburg’s shopping streets” – and is known far beyond the city limits. Here you can see what a BID can achieve when ambition, design and economic power come together. In addition to a high-quality appearance – paving, street furniture, lighting concept, greenery – the Neuer Wall BID<\/a> focuses on stringent branding: events such as the H\u00fcttenzauber Neuer Wall, the summer gardens or seasonal art installations create recognition. <\/p>\n

At the same time, a lot is being done behind the scenes: A strong location community (made up of tradespeople, property owners and working groups) meets regularly to avoid vacancies, coordinate tenant strategies, exchange ideas with the administration and develop new services for customers. A lot is invested – not only financially, but also emotionally and strategically.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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“The Neuer Wall BID in Hamburg’s city center is a real BID success model.”<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/span><\/blockquote>

Julia Staron, expert for city and strategy<\/strong><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

BID Reeperbahn+ – Diversity, conflicts and identity<\/h3><\/div>

The clocks tick differently in St. Pauli. Here in the Reeperbahn+ BID<\/a>, we work with a much broader range of topics – and with an enormous diversity of stakeholders.<\/b> Red light and rock music, tourism and theater, residents and retail – worlds collide on the Reeperbahn. This makes it all the more important to have<\/b> reliable neighbourhood management that mediates, moderates, organizes and makes things possible <\/b>that would otherwise often fail due to responsibilities or prejudices.<\/p>\n<\/div>

\"Julia<\/span><\/div>

Julia Staron (center) from the Reeperbahn+ BID promotes the “Lieb sein!”<\/strong> campaign in Hamburg’s St. Pauli district. At her side: neighborhood manager Lars Sch\u00fctze (left) and Philip Peem\u00fcller, project manager at BID contractor Otto Wulff Placemaking (right)<\/p>\n<\/div>

Specifically, we have, among other things …<\/strong><\/p>\n