Bloomington board of public works to consider $424K contract for Hopewell South infrastructure design

Bloomington’s board of public works will consider awarding a $424,200 consulting contract to CrossRoad Engineers, P.C. at its Tuesday (Jan. 26) meeting, which starts at 5:30 p.m.

The contract covers preliminary engineering services for the Hopewell South project, which is a  part of the city’s Hopewell redevelopment area on land owned by the city’s redevelopment commission (RDC) south of West 1st Street.

The planned new Hopewell neighborhood includes some area in and around the former IU Health Bloomington Hospital site at 2nd and Rogers streets.

Under the proposed agreement, CrossRoads would handle survey and subdivision work and provide design services for the street and infrastructure network needed for the project.  The wording of the contract states that CrossRoad will provide full design for South Fairview Street, South Jackson Street, interior local streets, and alleys within the project area—work meant to establish roadway geometry that will serve as the backbone for future development. 

The city engineering staff note says that while the project would include grading and preparation of residential home sites, it would not include the construction or design of buildings. 

The staff report also says the Hopewell South buildout—if the related rezoning is approved—would include an extension of South Jackson Street between 1st Street and West Wylie Street, along with improvements to adjoining streets including South Rogers Street, West Wylie Street, South Fairview Street, and West 1st Street. 

The city of Bloomington is looking to Hopewell South as a way to create affordable, owner-occupied single-family housing. To achieve that outcome, Bloomington mayor Kerry Thomson’s administration is looking at a rezone of the Hopewell South area using a planned unit development (PUD), a well as an amendment to the city’s Unified Development Ordinance (UDO). 

The proposal to use PUD zoning for Hopewell South has drawn some criticism, because it includes property that has been discussed as a potential future Bloomington Police Department headquarters at 714 S. Rogers—apparently only in order to satisfy the minimum-area requirements for PUDs in Bloomington’s UDO, which is 5 acres.

The approval of the TIF (tax increment financing) money to pay for the CrossRoads contract is supposed to appear on the Feb. 2, meeting agenda for Bloomington’s redevelopment commission (RDC). 

The materials provided as a part of the board of public works meeting information packet indicate that a construction inspection contract and a construction construct could be coming in front of the board of public works in summer 2026. 

The CrossRoads contract does not expire until the end of 2027. The contract describes recurring regular progress meetings, monthly stakeholder meetings, one public involvement meeting, through June 2027.