A BIA is a geographic area in a municipality. Each BIA has a Board of Management which is an organization set up to provide business promotion and improvement functions.

BIA allows local business people and property owners to join together and with the support of the municipality, organize, finance and carry out physical improvement and promote economic development in their district. The local municipality is the body responsible for approving the budget of the BIA.

In 1970, the province passed enabling legislation in response to a request by the business community in the Bloor and Jane Street area in the City of Toronto for special authority to establish the Bloor West Village BIA. Provisions for creating and operating a BIA are now contained in Sections 204 to 215 of the Municipal Act, 2001.

In addition to Bloor West Village, there are now more than 230 BIAs in place across the province. They vary in size from less than 60 businesses and property owners to more than 2,000.

The BIA concept has also spread beyond the boundaries of Ontario. The concept has been adopted by more than 1,500 communities across the United States, in most provinces in Canada and has now taken hold in Europe.

The Brantford Downtown BIA was established in 1977.

This year the boundaries of Downtown Brantford BIA have been expanded such that our membership now extends north to the Train Station and south to the Veterans Memorial Highway and from Alfred Street to the east, to West Street on the west. All told there are approximately 220 businesses in the Food and Beverage, Professional Services and Personal Services sectors. Check us out: on Facebook.com/DowntownBrantford or Vintage Downtown Brantford; twitter @downtownbrantfd; www.downtownbrantford.ca; Youtube Downtown Brantford; or email info@downtownbrantford.ca