A £500,000 plan for the Falmouth Business Improvement District has been unveiled.

The group behind the Falmouth BID say it aims to act as a voice for the town’s traders, lobbying on the issues at the heart of the business community.

Among issues the BID hopes to address will be town centre traffic management, the opening up of Falmouth’s waterfront, cleanliness and care of public spaces and improved access and transport links.

The document, Building Business For Falmouth, has been distributed to more than 400 businesses in the proposed BID boundary area.

The document outlines four main projects including marketing and promotion for Falmouth, events and festivals, improvements to signage and providing a voice for local businesses.

The £500,000 needed for the scheme would be raised over five years through businesses agreeing to pay a one per cent levy on their business rates going into a ring-fenced pot.

Chairman of the Falmouth BID steering group,Nigel Carpenter of St Michael’s Hotel and Spa said: “This is an enormous opportunity for the businesses of Falmouth to come together and help build a stronger Falmouth for the future, boosting our business income.

“While it is clearly a challenging time for everyone at the moment, it is even more important that we seize the moment to market and promote Falmouth more wholeheartedly."

A yes or no vote postal ballot will be launched in early February. The ballot closes at 5pm on Thursday, March 12 2009.

The levy set at one per cent means that 79 per cent of all businesses will pay less than £5 per week. The lowest contribution will be £50 per year with only businesses paying more than £5,000 rates being eligible.