Property owners and tenants who fund Canberra city's $1.8 million marketing and improvements body have welcomed a review into its spending.
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In The City Canberra is a non-profit organisation that manages clean-ups and runs community events in Civic, Braddon and Turner, through a levy paid by private property owners in the areas.
On Friday, the ACT government sent a survey to the levy payers, asking if the organisation's spending met their expectations.
In The City contributed to events such as the Curry Festival, the Winter Festival, The Comedy Festival, Christmas In The City and Art Not Apart. It also manages graffiti, street art and decorative lighting.
An ACT government spokesman said the review would ensure the levy was a valuable investment for payers and business owners, with its future to be decided in coming months.
The levy is charged to commercial property owners at roughly 10 per cent of the average unimproved commercial land value.
Manager at A.J's watch repairs in Baileys Corner, Krysztof Jakubaszek, pays for a portion the levy through his company's rent. He believed In The City was not doing enough to clean up the city and make it attractive to visitors.
"It's not paying the levy that concerns our business but the fact that it's not actually improving much," he said.
"All the events happening are good but we need more of a clean-up, things need to be fixed, there are holes in the paving, there needs to be better lighting."
Braddon developer Nik Bulum believed his precinct did not particularly benefit from In The City, pointing to his repeated call for more public bins.
The government spokesman said the review decision was based on major projects happening in the CBD, including the new courts precinct, the Haig Park master plan, the City to the Lake project and light rail.
"Given these major changes to the CBD, it's important that the government ensures that the levy remains an valuable investment for both levy payers and businesses owners into the precinct," he said.
In 2015-16, levy payers contributed close to $1.8 million to In The City. The organisation's CEO Jane Easthope said the work it paid for, while not always obvious, was important.
"We play a critical role in understanding the day to day operations of the CBD, servicing the increasing need of cleaning, safety and maintenance, events and activations, and being a conduit between government and levy payers," Ms Easthope said.
"It is an exciting time for Canberra and as the city grows and changes, the value of investing in initiatives that keep the CBD maintained, appealing, safe and improved pedestrian facilities becomes even greater."
It is understood the rollout of the City Renewal Authority's responsibilities would also shape the future of In The City. The new authority will control the precinct that runs from Flemington Road in the north, down Northbourne Avenue to the lake.
