North Park vote as it unfolds: High-profile statements underscore stakes of jail decision
This is where the vote on the North Park purchase agreement will be reported live from the Tuesday, May 26, 2026 meeting of the Monroe County council. The one agenda item that will be tracked in these updates is the purchase agreement for the North Park property for use as a jail site.
Left: Map by the B Square. The proposed Bloomington annexation, indicated on the map, is no longer in play after the Indiana Supreme Court let the court of appeals ruling against the city of Bloomington stand. Right: B Square file photo. Monroe County councilors listen to commentary from the public mic. From left to right: Marty Hawk, David Henry, Peter Iversen, Jennifer Crossley, Trent Deckard, Kate Wiltz, and Liz Feitl. (Dave Askins, Dec. 9, 2025)
Set for Tuesday evening (May 26) is a pivotal vote by the Monroe County council on a $11.375-million purchase agreement for North Park as a jail site site. The B Square will provide live updates from the council’s meeting in the timestamped log below.
The vote comes at a critical moment in the county’s years-long effort to address overcrowded conditions at the Monroe County jail and comply with a federal settlement agreement tied to a 2008 ACLU lawsuit.
On Monday, the public focus on the county council’s vote was sharpened with the release of two high-profile public statements that framed clearly different visions for how Monroe County should move forward.
In a column sent to The B Square, former Bloomington mayor John Hamilton argues against building what he described as a “huge new incredibly costly jail” at North Park or anywhere else. Instead, Hamilton advocated a “scattered site” approach that would combine smaller-scale jail and service facilities with increased investment in housing, mental health treatment, addiction services, and diversion programs.
Hamilton’s piece mentions several locations that could play a role in providing a solution to the problems, including the county-owned Curry Building just south of the current jail, the old post office site, current county health building, and Showers West.
Hamilton’s administration purchased the Showers West portion of the city hall building with an eye towards moving the city’s police headquarters there, but Kerry Thomson, who took over as mayor in 2024, did not pursue that plan. The old post office site is the whole block, bounded by Third and Fourth streets on the north and South and Washington and Lincoln streets on the east and west. The real estate is owned by First United Methodist Church.
A second statement, jointly issued by the three Monroe County commissioners, Bloomington mayor Kerry Thomson, Bloomington city council president Isak Asare, and county councilor Peter Iversen, says North Park is now “the only viable option” given legal deadlines, financing timelines, and the refusal of the ACLU to extend the current settlement agreement unless a purchase agreement for North Park is approved.
The joint statement acknowledges significant concerns about the site, but says county officials now face a “hard and necessary decision point” where “delay is not neutral.”
The inclusion of the commissioners (Julie Thomas, Jody Madeira, and Lee Jones) in the statement is not a surprise, because they have uniformly supported North Park as their preferred site for a new jail. Iversen’s inclusion is also not surprising, because his was the sole vote of support two weeks ago when the council voted on the North Park purchase agreement.
The inclusion of Asare as a signatory is notable because it appears to mark a departure from the Bloomington city council’s formal opposition to the North Park location, expressed in a resolution adopted a month ago. At the April 26 meeting of the city council, when the resolution was adopted, Asare laid out reservations about passing a largely symbolic statement that the city might not be able to back up with concrete action. Asare still voted for the resolution, which had unanimous support.
Tuesday’s (May 26) county council meeting begins at 5 p.m. What follows below will be live log of developments related to the North Park vote, filed from the meeting, as county councilors decide whether North Park moves forward as a jail site—or gets voted down again.
[The log will update automatically. There is no need to refresh this page.]
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