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Dave Askins

Dave Askins

Bloomington, Indiana

Dave Askins is editor and publisher of The B Square Bulletin. A Hoosier native with a background in math and linguistics, he previously co-founded the Ann Arbor Chronicle with his wife, Mary Morgan.

Bloomington’s mayor pitches half percent countywide income tax increase to generate $8M annually for climate action

Bloomington’s mayor pitches half percent countywide income tax increase to generate $8M annually for climate action

A proposal to increase the local income tax (LIT) that’s collected in Monroe County by a half percent came from Bloomington’s mayor, John Hamilton, after swearing-in ceremonies for the city’s 11 elected official were complete on New Year’s Day. The half percent increase would bring

2020 Bloomington city council: Out with the old, in with the new

2020 Bloomington city council: Out with the old, in with the new

At the last city council meeting of the year, on Dec. 18, 2019, Bloomington’s mayor, John Hamilton, delivered proclamations to the four outgoing councilmembers. On Jan. 1, 2020, four new councilmembers were sworn in to start four-year terms, along with the five returning councilmembers, the mayor, John Hamilton,

Analysis | What 2 years worth of roll call votes confirm: 9 Democrats on Bloomington’s city council mostly agreed, but not always

Analysis | What 2 years worth of roll call votes confirm: 9 Democrats on Bloomington’s city council mostly agreed, but not always

Analyzing the raw statistics of roll call votes for Bloomington’s city council show that most of the time, the nine elected members of the local legislative branch are in agreement. It’s not a surprising result, given that they are all affiliated with the same party. They’re all

2019 gave Bloomington its warmest Christmas Day in more than a century

2019 gave Bloomington its warmest Christmas Day in more than a century

Based on the data now logged in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Applied Climate Information System (ACIS), 2019 delivered the warmest Christmas Day on record in Bloomington, Indiana. The temperature hit 65 Fahrenheit degrees this year, which was one degree higher than the previous Christmas Day mark, set

Analysis: After lower court ruling against Bloomington, when does 4th Street parking garage get rebuilt?

Analysis: After lower court ruling against Bloomington, when does 4th Street parking garage get rebuilt?

Christmas morning dawned bright over the now empty lot at 4th and Walnut streets where a parking garage once stood. It offered 352 spaces for people to park their cars, then go to work, shop, or take care of errands in the downtown area. The demolition started in earnest in

Column: Christmas colors, political parties at the convention center

Column: Christmas colors, political parties at the convention center

Unlikely to be resolved, even after a thousand years of diplomacy, is the ongoing bitter dispute over the best Christmas color. It’s green, some will say. But some stubborn souls will always insist that it’s red. An occasional centrist will advocate for white, ignoring the fact that it’

Bloomington Transit wants more feedback on new routes, with eye towards adjustments to proposed new plan at Jan. 21 board meeting

Bloomington Transit wants more feedback on new routes, with eye towards adjustments to proposed new plan at Jan. 21 board meeting

A revised version of a proposed new route configuration for public buses in the city will be presented to the transit board at its next meeting on Jan. 21, Bloomington Transit announced last Thursday. That comes after BT’s staff presented the route optimization proposal in a series of public