Bloomington mayor-elect asks current mayor not to make strategic choices impacting beyond year’s end

With six weeks left before she is sworn into office, Bloomington mayor-elect Kerry Thomson has sent a letter to outgoing mayor John Hamilton asking him to “refrain from making any strategic or discretionary decisions which will impact beyond December 31, 2023.”

The letter was dated Nov. 14, exactly a week after Thomson was elected Bloomington’s next mayor. A Democrat, Thomson’s was one of 10 uncontested races on the ballot for city office—mayor, city clerk, and city council. It was Democrats who were all unopposed in those races. A Democrat prevailed in the 11th race as well.

Hamilton is also a Democrat. But Thomson’s letter could be one indication that the transition between the two Dems is not without some discontent.

Still, responding to an emailed B Square question, about whether there was a precipitating event that prompted her letter, Thomson called her request of Hamilton “a fairly typical request during transitions.”

Thomson confirmed to The B Square that her request of Hamilton includes the Showers West renovation and the sale of the 3rd Street police station.

But Thomson added that her request applies “also to any other significant commitments the city is making for which I and the next city council should have the opportunity to opine as we will be in leadership to carry these out.” Continue reading “Bloomington mayor-elect asks current mayor not to make strategic choices impacting beyond year’s end”

Median in the works for 3rd Street at Overhill, traffic commission gets briefed

Bloomington will be using its $463,000 share of the state’s spring Community Crossings matching grant awards for a repaving project on 3rd Street, from Eagleson Avenue to Overhill Drive.

At its regular Wednesday meeting, the city’s traffic commission got a heads up about that 3rd Street repaving project—in connection with a plan to install a median on 3rd Street at Overhill Drive.

The repaving project and the median project are “an ideal opportunity for coordination,” senior project engineer Neil Kopper told the traffic commission. No matter what, the sidewalk curb ramps have to be brought into ADA compliance at the 3rd Street and Overhill Drive intersection, Kopper said.

The idea behind installing a median is to block left turns from 3rd Street into Overhill Drive, thereby preventing a type of crash pattern that Kopper said was notable at the intersection. Continue reading “Median in the works for 3rd Street at Overhill, traffic commission gets briefed”