Only 37 traders out of 116 votes were in favour to keep the Felixstowe Business Improvement District (BID).
Among the events the BID organises is the Love Felixstowe festival of arts and music in Septeber.
The event attracts up to 30,000 visitors to the town to enjoy outdoor cinema, chef demos and live bands.
But Jon Trotter, the BID’s chair, said the festival would not be able to continue unless other sources of funding could be found, with the festivities costing approximately £20,000 to stage, although approximately £8,000 was recouped through ticket sales.
He said the festival was not the only activity supported by the BID, which provided social media and marketing to promote Felixstowe, as well as organising Halloween and Easter events.
Helen Bott, who runs Treasure Chest Books in Felixstowe, said the BID had spent too much money on the seafront (Image: Submitted)
The BID also provided a voice for the business community at local council meetings, raising concerns about the impact of proposals, such as the pedestrianisation of Sea Road.
“All these things will not be happening in the town unless we can find additional funding to do something.
“That is what the BID was there for, to support the town and and its various needs and that is gone,” Mr Trotter said.
However, business owners had raised concerns that too much money was being spent on events on the seafront, which were not bringing people into the town centre.
The compulsory levy to fund the BID had also caused consternation, being an additional cost to traders on top of increasing business rates.
In March, Helen Bott, who runs Treasure Chest Books in Cobbold Road, Felixstowe, said: “There is a lot of dissatisfaction within the town.
“They have had over £600,000 over the last five years to spend on the town and a lot of people have said, ‘what have we had for the money?’”
The ballot was held as the BID had reached the end of its five year term, having started during the COVID pandemic.