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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.

Question of burden adds some flavor to oral arguments in Bloomington’s annexation lawsuit

Question of burden adds some flavor to oral arguments in Bloomington’s annexation lawsuit

At a Tuesday afternoon hearing lasting around an hour, the two sides in an ongoing annexation lawsuit between the City of Bloomington and Gov. Eric Holcomb presented oral arguments. Judge Frank Nardi did not issue a ruling from the bench. The March 26 hearing was held at the Charlotte Zietlow

Holcomb admits allegation that he was elected governor of Indiana, and other insights from court filings in Bloomington annexation lawsuit

Holcomb admits allegation that he was elected governor of Indiana, and other insights from court filings in Bloomington annexation lawsuit

In mid-January, Judge Frank Nardi requested an extra courtroom at the Monroe County Circuit Court for a half-day hearing on the afternoon of March 26, for a case filed by the City of Bloomington against the governor of Indiana. Even though Judge Nardi is not expected to issue

Monroe County Public Library a source of map collections showing Bloomington’s past annexations

Monroe County Public Library a source of map collections showing Bloomington’s past annexations

In 2017, Bloomington began the process of annexing area into the city that would have increased the land area of the city by about 60 percent. Later that year, the state’s General Assembly built into the budget bill a change to annexation law that effectively singled out Bloomington and

Acute political angle on Bloomington annexation lawsuit

Acute political angle on Bloomington annexation lawsuit

In 2017, the city of Bloomington filed a lawsuit against Gov. Eric Holcomb in connection with the city’s planned annexations. The lawsuit was precipitated by the General Assembly’s action in 2017 to build into the budget bill a change to annexation law—which effectively singled out Bloomington of

Bloomington city council districts don’t guarantee geographic diversity (Or: Steve Volan is the center of the political Bloomiverse)

Bloomington city council districts don’t guarantee geographic diversity (Or: Steve Volan is the center of the political Bloomiverse)

City Councilmember Steve Volan lives almost exactly in the middle of Bloomington. The center of Bloomington’s area—the centroid calculated by a piece of geographic information software called QGIS—lies a few feet west of Indiana University’s Henderson Parking Garage on Atwater Avenue. And of the nine people

Could the blue bubble of Bloomington have a reddish tinge in City Council District 2?

Could the blue bubble of Bloomington have a reddish tinge in City Council District 2?

When maps of election results in recent Indiana statewide races are color-shaded—with reds or blues where Republicans or Democrats won more votes—the Hoosier state is a sea of red with some blue islands. The few patches of blue for Indiana are consistent with a robust national pattern:

92 shades of green for Indiana on St. Patrick’s Day

92 shades of green for Indiana on St. Patrick’s Day

Two teams from Michigan are playing today in the finals of the Big 10 tournament for men’s college basketball. The championship game falls on St. Patrick’s Day this year, which might give an edge to Michigan State, whose school colors are green and white. The Cream and Crimson