> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://bsquarebulletin.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Bloomington reviews housing barriers under new state law, more zoning changes on council agenda - URL: https://bsquarebulletin.com/bloomington-reviews-housing-barriers-under-new-state-law-more-zoning-changes-on-council-agenda/ - Published: 2026-11-02T14:08:20.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-02T14:08:20.000Z - Description: At a zoning hearing required by state law, a Bloomington homeowner described a seven-month wait for utility approval. Other speakers criticized development costs and permitting delays, while neighborhood residents warned about losing modest homes to larger rentals. More zoning changes are pending. - Author: Dave Askins - Tags: Local Government, #no-inline-feature ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/20/6f/206f9007-c0a7-47d4-b87b-686c21961f22/content/images/2026/11/revised-plan--commission-art-PXL_20261028_214936192.MP-1.jpg) ****Left:** Bloomington’s plan commission listens to public comment at a hearing required by state law. ****Right top:** Sue McCracken addresses the plan commission about her travails trying to convert her house to a duplex. ****Right bottom:** Emerson Oronte addresses the plan commission on the topic of costs related to site compliance. (Dave Askins, Oct. 28, 2026) A Bloomington homeowner who waited seven months for permission to install water and sewer service for a duplex told the city’s plan commission last Wednesday (Oct. 28) that rules intended to encourage housing can be too difficult for ordinary property owners to navigate. Sue McCracken, a Bryan Park resident, described herself as a “survivor” of the process to transform her house into a duplex. She was among the speakers at a special public hearing on Bloomington’s unified development ordinance (UDO), the city’s zoning and development code. Other speakers sought easier development rules, while neighborhood residents warned that redevelopment is replacing modest homes with larger, more expensive rentals. The hearing was required by a [new state law](https://iga.in.gov/laws/2026/ic/titles/36#36-7-4.3-3) enacted earlier this year. It requires local governments to review housing-development barriers, including lot sizes, setbacks, parking and permitting, and report to the state by year’s end. The commission didn’t take a vote on any proposal and didn’t deliberate. The hearing itself, followed by a report to the state, were the only requirements of the law. Bloomington has already made changes in many of the areas mandated for consideration by the new law. Bloomington’s development services manager Eric Greulich told commissioners that the city’s UDO already allows accessory dwelling units, duplexes and other small multifamily housing, as well as residential conversions of commercial space. The city does not impose some restrictions singled out by the state, such as minimum garage sizes or floor-area-ratio limits. Greulich also summarized zoning amendments [enacted by the city council in September](https://bsquarebulletin.com/bloomington-council-approves-citywide-zoning-changes-5-3-eliminates-minimums-for-motor-vehicle-parking/) that reduced minimum lot sizes and widths, eased setbacks and removed minimum motor-vehicle parking requirements. At as part of those amendments at the September meeting, the city council restored the bicycle-parking minimums that the plan commission had proposed eliminating. Bicycle parking requirements got a specific mention from the public mic during last Wednesday’s hearing. Emerson Oronte, a former professional cyclist who is looking to open [an outdoor sauna](https://www.sideyardsocial.com/) on 6th Street, described another burden, which was about $20,000 in site-compliance costs. That includes an estimated $6,000 to $7,000 for required bicycle parking. He suggested shared public bicycle parking near the B-Line Trail as a cheaper alternative to making individual businesses install racks. Oronte said, “I’ve been all around the world. I am very sympathetic to cycling infrastructure, but I can hold two thoughts in my head: One, cycling infrastructure is important, and two, the way the city does it is bad.” 0:00 /2:07 1× Another [package of zoning changes](https://bsquarebulletin.com/bloomington-plan-commission-gives-nod-to-housing-code-changes-zoning-for-2-voluntary-annexations/), which was recommended by the plan commission, on Oct. 12, would loosen standards for duplexes and cottage developments and update accessory dwelling unit rules. It now appears on the city council’s [Nov. 4 agenda](https://bloomington.in.gov/onboard/meetingFiles/17709/download). Greulich estimated that about 70% of the state’s identified items for review at the hearing had been addressed through existing rules or recent changes. He also pointed to work on streamlining development reviews, including delegating many approvals to staff rather than requiring plan commission hearings. McCracken’s experience indicates that the streamlining effort has a ways to go. She is adding a residence behind her existing house, attached to it, and plans to live in one unit and rent the other. Permission for sewer and water installation took seven months, she said. “If I wasn’t partly retired, I might have given up,” McCracken said. She said the process favors investors who can afford staff and the time to navigate it, rather than homeowners trying to add the kind of housing the city says it wants. Urban planning consultant Deborah Myerson made a similar point: “The zoning determines what’s allowed. The review process determines what actually gets built.” She called for predictable deadlines, simultaneous departmental reviews done in parallel, and pre-approved house plans. Other speakers emphasized the need for more housing. Habitat for Humanity of Monroe County’s Kari Bennett supported smaller lots and urged further changes that allow fixed land and infrastructure costs to be spread across more homes. The Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce’s Christopher Emge welcomed recent reforms, but called for more predictable approvals. Kristen Weida, CEO of the Indiana Uplands Realtor Association, urged the city to make it easier to reuse vacant commercial buildings. She said regulations can require businesses to remove existing parking spaces, even when customers need them. Weida suggested allowing alternative environmental improvements, such as planting trees or replacing invasive plants. “Our goal should not be preserving vacancy but encouraging investment and revitalization,” she said. John Zody, with CDFI Friendly Bloomington, stressed the importance of financing, not just zoning changes. Neighborhood residents sounded a different warning. Jan Sorby questioned whether restrictive covenants in newer subdivisions leave older neighborhoods bearing a disproportionate share of new density. Anne Kreilkamp, a 23-year resident of Greenacres, lamented the neighborhood’s transformation, as larger rental buildings replace smaller homes. She contrasted that kind of development with a three-house community she helped establish, where neighbors grow food together and share meals. She stressed the greater value of relationships and nature compared to a developer’s profits. Jenny Southern questioned whether replacing older, cheaper homes with new apartments is delivering affordability. --- Changes to the UDO on accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and cottage developments are on the agenda for introduction for the city council’s [Wednesday (Nov. 4) meeting](https://bloomington.in.gov/onboard/meetingFiles/17709/download), which starts at 6:30 p.m. As a zoning ordinance, it could be enacted on Wednesday, at the same meeting when it is introduced, without any extraordinary steps requiring more than a simple majority vote.