LA JOLLA — Within the 30-block area of the La Jolla Business Improvement District (BID), there exist roughly 1,250 businesses. At a meeting on Monday, Jan. 10, to discuss the possible direction of a new not-for-profit that would determine how BID taxes are spent, roughly 30 members of the business community attended — a turnout, as one attendee pointed out, of about 2 percent. Though low participation has plagued the community and La Jolla Businesses Unite, an organization charged with helping to form the new “business betterment corporation,” those in attendance Monday evening resolutely set about presenting their ideas for what will likely be christened the La Jolla Village Merchants Association. The participants, who had been split up into three working groups, presented ideas for the identity, bylaws and budget of the new corporation that will determine how about $170,000 per year in city-collected business assessments will be spent. A complicated task was that of the bylaws group, which had to draft a set of rules for the new entity. “To say that this was an involved process is to put it mildly,” said Michelle Lerach, owner of Cups bakery and presenter for the bylaws working group. Of the rules proposed by the group, the three most important items were: each member will receive one vote, associate members can vote but can not serve on the board of directors and board members will have 3-year term limits, with a maximum of two terms. The document drafted by the group will have to be ratified by the board of directors once they are elected in February. The group assigned to distribute the budget took suggestions from the community by circulating a survey asking business owners what they thought was the most appropriate way to spend BID funds. The survey, however, prompted a response from only 4 percent of the community. In the end, the group proposed that 35 percent of the funds should initially go to hiring personnel and paying for a fully-staffed office. They suggested allocating 25 percent each for beautification and outreach/promotions, while the remaining 15 percent, they said, could be used for special events. However the new corporation decides to operate, the general consensus at Monday’s meeting was that it should engender participation by more members of the community and that accountability is key. “Openness and transparency is the most important,” said Egon Kafka, who runs the La Jolla Village Lodge. “We want a system that will work so that we can all work and play together.” Click here to download BID board of directors self-nomination form.