A City Improvement District (CID) is a non-profit company registered under the relevant by-law enacted by the City of Cape Town and established by the ratepayers of a clearly demarcated commercial precinct. 

Its objectives are to provide “top up” services provided by the relevant local authority, for example, a clean and safe environment, whereby additional security patrolling and cleansing is undertaken.  Management of the public space by means of negotiation and appropriate programmes are undertaken together with a variety of initiatives on behalf of all the stakeholders of the precinct, or in other words, the Improvement District.

Formation of the Claremont Improvement District Company

The Claremont Improvement District Company (CIDC) arose from the Claremont Business Forum established as an informal body to address serious urban degradation which was becoming evident in the early 1990’s.  This was followed by the Claremont Crime and Grime initiative supported by major institutional property owners in Claremont to address the rapidly deteriorating urban degradation which was setting in in the early 1990’s. 

Then in 1999, the City Improvement District by-law was promulgated by the Council of the City of Cape Town which enabled the CIDC to be established after a legal process of voting and application to the City.  On 1st December 2000, under a Board of Directors led by Chris Drummond, a major Claremont property owner, as Chairman with Anthony Davies as Executive Manager, the CIDC began operations on the streets of Claremont.