Outgoing Bloomington public works board member on summer fun: “Pay attention, be safe, be patient.”

On Tuesday evening, Beth Hollingsworth concluded a decade and a half of service as a member of Bloomington’s board of public works.

She led off her final meeting with a message to everyone in Bloomington. “Now begins the fun of summer—with festivals, markets, outdoor dining, and much, much more,” she began.

She continued with a perspective on this season’s public works activity: “You’re going to encounter road closures, lane restrictions, detours.”

Hollingsworth wrapped up: “Pay attention, be safe, be patient, and enjoy the many activities available this summer.”

For Hollingsworth the meeting marked the end of her second span of service on the board. During his staff report, public works director Adam Wason described Hollingsworth’s time on the board as starting in 1998 going through 2008 and resuming again in 2017.

About Hollingsworth’s approach to her board service, Wason said, “If there was ever any concern that there wasn’t going to be a document reviewed with a fine-tooth comb…, I always knew that Beth would come to us with good questions and the community’s best interest in mind.”

“The community is better off for all your years of service,” Wason told her.

Hollingsworth’s two colleagues on the board also wished her well.

Elizabeth Karon, whose service on the board of public works started at the beginning of this year, told Hollingsworth, “You’ve been an incredible colleague and thank you.”

Kyla Cox Deckard, who was appointed to the board at the start of 2016, told Hollingsworth, “I just want to say thanks to Beth for all of her service to the board of public works. I really appreciate having you as a colleague and look forward to continuing to have you as a friend.”

Cox Deckard filled the board seat previously held by Charlotte Zietlow.

Service on the board of public works is one connection that Zietlow and Hollingsworth share. Another is Goods for Cooks, the retail store on the west side of the courthouse square. Zietlow co-founded the business. Hollingsworth owned it for a period in the mid-2000s.

The board of public works controls the operations of the public works department of the city. One of the functions of the board is to hear appeals of fines that are issued under various ordinances.

Those appeals can range from a $26,000 fine issued to a developer for failure to control erosion on a construction site, to a $50 fine for a noise ordinance violation.

The $26,000 fine was issued in 2002. Hollingsworth, along with board members James McNamara and Frank Hrisomalos, voted unanimously to deny the appeal.

On Tuesday night, the appeal of a $50 noise violation, issued on the weekend of Little 500, was also denied by the board of public works on a unanimous vote.

All three seats on the board of public works are appointed by the mayor. Residents can apply for an appointment using a form on the city’s website.