Money for urban development may be tight due to the financial crisis and economic recession, but there are ways for cities to secure funding for much-needed improvements, according to Dame Judith Mayhew Jonas, chairman of London-based New West End Company. Mayhew Jonas will moderate a session entitled 'City Development: Where Will the Money From?' at the ULI Europe conference which takes place in Paris today.
As public funding is whittled down across Europe in the face of government austerity measures, cities are increasingly looking to tap private resources or harness the two. 'I don't want to paint too rosy a picture, but there are new and imaginative ways of securing funding,' says Mayhew Jonas, whose company is a leading partner in a £2.2bn (EUR 2.6 bn) regeneration programme for London's West End district.
'The public and private sectors need to work together more imaginatively. Cooperation is essential,’ she says. Her company is an example of such an innovative partnership form: structured as a Business Improvement District or BID, New West End Company brings together retailers, property owners and local authorities in improving and promoting London's West End district as the world’s top retail destination.
Created in 2005 with a £17 mln budget until 2013, it is supported and run by major retailers and property owners such as Land Securities, Derwent London Plc and The Crown Estate.
The full article appears in the February edition of PropertyEU Magazine. Click on the link below to subscribe | 
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