Tag: affordable housing

Lease to housing nonprofit for apartments, daycare on former water tower site OK’d by Bloomington

2014 flyover image from Monroe County online property lookup system.
2022 flyover image from Monroe County online property lookup system.

Just east of the Crestmont neighborhood, on Bloomington’s north side, a new two-story building with three income-restricted apartments on the upper floor, and a licensed daycare facility on the ground floor, could soon start construction.

It’s the location of the old water tower at the corner of 14th and Monroe streets.

Clearing the way for that project was the approval on Tuesday night by Bloomington’s board of public works of a 99-year zero-cost lease. The board of public works is the owner of the property. Summit Hill Development Corporation is the future tenant that will have the project built. Continue reading “Lease to housing nonprofit for apartments, daycare on former water tower site OK’d by Bloomington” →

8-story student apartment building on North Walnut OK’d by Bloomington plan commission

Locator map.
Shown are recent student-oriented housing developments approved since 2019.
View of Walnut Street looking south.
Site on North Walnut
Sidewalk gap looking north on Walnut Street between 17th and 19th streets.

At its Monday meeting, Bloomington’s nine-member plan commission gave unanimous approval to an 8-story apartment building to be built at the site of the former Great Wall restaurant on North Walnut street.

The 172 apartments will include a total of 463 bedrooms, with the following breakdown: 19 studios, 5 one-bedroom units, 87 two-bedroom units, 14 three-bedroom units, 12 four-bedroom units, and 35 five-bedroom units.

Other details of the project include 264 parking spaces incorporated inside the building.

Nathan Casteel, an architect with DLR Group, and Olivia Prais, with project owner Core SVA attended the plan commission’s meeting—with Prais joining via the Zoom video conferencing platform. Continue reading “8-story student apartment building on North Walnut OK’d by Bloomington plan commission” →

Planning notebook: Former Great Wall restaurant site could be home to 426 college students

Locator map.
Shown are recent student-oriented housing developments approved since 2019.

The property where The Great Wall restaurant formerly stood on North Walnut Street, across from the northern tip of Miller-Showers Park, is now the site of a proposed 8-story student-oriented apartment building.

The building would include a mix of 3-bedroom, 4-bedroom and 5-bedroom apartments, for a total of 426 bedrooms.

That’s based on a preview of an April 10 Bloomington plan commission item given at a Tuesday morning work session by senior zoning planner Eric Greulich. Continue reading “Planning notebook: Former Great Wall restaurant site could be home to 426 college students” →

Monroe County commissioners deny rezone for 125 single-family houses: “No matter what we do, people are going to be angry with us.”

A rezone petition for a 44-acre piece of land south of Bloomington’s current boundaries was denied on a unanimous vote of the three Monroe County commissioners at their regular Wednesday meeting.

The rezoning, from estate residential (RE1) to medium density residential (MR), would have allowed around 125 single-family houses to be built there, about three times as many as the roughly 40 that would be possible under the current zoning.

Part of the pitch from developers Donnie Adkins and Kevin Schmidt was that the denser development would allow for the houses to be priced around $300,000 to $400,000. That’s lower than the $700,000 or more that houses built under current zoning would likely cost, they said. The site is currently largely open, the site of the former Robertson farm. Continue reading “Monroe County commissioners deny rezone for 125 single-family houses: “No matter what we do, people are going to be angry with us.”” →

64-unit housing site plan near park OK’d by Bloomington plan commission

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A 64-unit affordable housing project to built as a 5-story building on South Walnut Street got its site plan approved by Bloomington’s plan commission on Monday night.

Called Retreat at Switchyard, the project will include 116 total bedrooms.

The 1.5-acre site is at the east entrance of the city’s new 64-acre Switchyard Park, home of the former Night Moves building, which will be demolished.

The project does not need an additional approval by the city council, because it meets the requirements of the city’s unified development ordinance (UDO) and does not require a change to the existing mixed-use corridor zoning.

The building is allowed to exceed the standard four-story limit for the mixed-use corridor zoning district, because it meets the “Tier 2” affordable housing incentives in the UDO.

Continue reading “64-unit housing site plan near park OK’d by Bloomington plan commission” →

Bloomington releases results of American Rescue Plan survey: 147 respondents weigh in on $22.3M

At its July 21 meeting, Bloomington’s city council could be asked by the city’s administration to take a first look at an initial appropriation ordinance for a portion of the $22.3 million that Bloomington has been awarded in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds.

The ARPA is a $1.9 trillion stimulus bill signed into law by President Joe Biden on March 11, to help counter the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bloomington’s initial ARPA appropriation ordinance is expected in broad strokes to fall into three kinds of housing supports: response to and prevention of homelessness; affordable housing rental supports; and affordable home ownership support.

That’s based on remarks made by Bloomington mayor John Hamilton at a press conference held in the first part of June.

In the run-up to the July 21 city council meeting, Bloomington mayor John Hamilton’s administration has now released the results  of a survey of self-selected respondents promoted on Facebook and Twitter starting on June 18. Continue reading “Bloomington releases results of American Rescue Plan survey: 147 respondents weigh in on $22.3M” →

Dirt gets moved for 69-house Habitat for Humanity neighborhood in southwest Bloomington: “Hope” is the thing…

Locator map for Habitat for Humanity’s Osage Place.
Inset for Habitat for Humanity’s Osage Place.
Layout of houses on extensions of street stubs.
Monroe County commissioners with Habitat for Humanity president and CEO Wendi Goodlett. From left: Penny Githens, Goodlett, Lee Jones, and Julie Thomas.
Habitat for Humanity president and CEO Wendi Goodlett and Bloomington deputy mayor Don Griffin.
Habitat for Humanity board chair Meredith Rogers.
Habitat for Humanity president and CEO Wendi Goodlett.
Habitat for Humanity president and CEO Wendi Goodlett and board chair Meredith Rogers.
From left: Former Monroe County commissioner Charlotte Zietlow, Bloomington HAND department director John Zody, and Monroe County commissioners Penny Githens.
From left: Bloomington economic and sustainability development director Alex Crawley, planning and transportation director Scott Robinson, and zoning compliance officer Elizabeth Carter.
Groundbreaking for Habitat for Humanity’s Osage Place at the end of Guy Avenue, June 14, 2021

On Monday afternoon, Habitat for Humanity of Monroe County’s board chair Meredith Rogers addressed a gathering of about 50 people for a ceremonial groundbreaking at Osage Place.

It’s a 69-house project just east of RCA Community Park, which is getting built in two phases.

At Monday’s event, held at the western stub of Guy Avenue where the pavement ends, it was evident from the mounds of dirt and the deep gravel, that the first phase of construction is already underway. The infrastructure is being put in place for the extensions of some east-west street stubs.

Rogers framed her remarks by talking about hope. “Creating the hope of a better future for our partner families is what Habitat for Humanity is all about,” Rogers said.

Habitat houses are built with volunteer labor and tax-deductible donations of money and materials. The houses are then sold to low-income families who make between 25 and 80 percent of the area median income (AMI).

Rogers continued, “Habitat provides that feeling of expectation or desire of a decent affordable place to call home.”

For Rogers, Monday’s groundbreaking was not the time to stop, but to continue hoping.

Rogers said, “There is still so much work to be done. The need for affordable housing is greater than ever.” Rogers added, “Habitat needs your help to continue creating the hope of a better future for our partner families.”

She wrapped up with four lines from Emily Dickenson: “Hope” is the thing with feathers – / That perches in the soul – / And sings the tune without the words – / And never stops – at all.

Continue reading “Dirt gets moved for 69-house Habitat for Humanity neighborhood in southwest Bloomington: “Hope” is the thing…” →

Future housing in Bloomington to get boost with 28 emergency vouchers, $2.25M in federal funds, “multi-million dollar” request to city council by mayor

HAND director, John Zody.
Executive director of United Way of Monroe County, Efrat Feferman.
Executive director of the Community Foundation of Bloomington and Monroe County, Tina Peterson.
Bloomington mayor, John Hamilton.
Executive director of the Bloomington Housing Authority, Amber Skoby.

At a Tuesday press conference held on the back porch of the Bloomington Housing Authority’s community center on Summit Street, some new information was announced about support from the federal government for local housing programs.

Bloomington’s mayor, John Hamilton, also announced that in July he’d be making a request of the city council to support housing initiatives, through an extra appropriation for the 2021 budget year.

The mayor’s request will be for a “multi-million dollar” investment of Bloomington’s allocation of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. Bloomington’s total amount of basic ARPA funds is around $22 million.

In other news announced on Tuesday, Bloomington Housing Authority executive director Amber Skoby said BHA is one of 700 housing authorities across the country that is receiving 28 new emergency vouchers. The vouchers are for individuals and families who are experiencing homelessness, at risk of homelessness, fleeing, or attempting to flee domestic violence or who were recently homeless.

The emergency vouchers will be available starting July 1.

The city’s housing and neighborhood development (HAND) director, John Zody, prefaced his remarks by noting that last year Bloomington had received $250,000 in additional CDBG funds, to help respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Zody announced that another $650,000 in pandemic-related CDBG funds will be made available for applications starting next week.

An additional fresh set of housing funds was announced by Zody. Bloomington will get  $1.6 million more through the American Rescue Plan.

The money can be used specifically for the preservation or production of affordable housing, tenant-based rental assistance, supportive services including homeless prevention services, and housing counseling, Zody said. No final guidance from the feds on the use of the extra $1.6 million has been provided, Zody said.

Also at Tuesday’s press conference, Tina Peterson (Community Foundation of Bloomington and Monroe County) and Efrat Feferman (United Way of Monroe County) gave an update on their work to build a coalition to establish needed collaboration and coordination for the countywide area, to create a sustainable strategy to reduce housing insecurity and prevent homelessness.

Continue reading “Future housing in Bloomington to get boost with 28 emergency vouchers, $2.25M in federal funds, “multi-million dollar” request to city council by mayor” →

Tax abatement for affordable housing project next to new park to be weighed by Bloomington city council

By December 2022, Bloomington is expecting to see completed construction of Retreat at the Switchyard, a new housing project with 48 apartments designated as affordable.

The project is a 64-unit, 5-story building with first-floor retail space at the 1.5- acre site of the former Night Moves building on South Walnut Street, next to the new Switchyard Park.

To help the project along, Bloomington’s city council will be considering a resolution at its regular meeting on Wednesday that will take the required steps to give the project a tax abatement.

The resolution would set up the relevant parcels as an economic revitalization area and would approve a 10-year abatement schedule that would waive a total of $154,370 in taxes.

The first year’s abatement would be 100 percent of the taxes owed. That percent would ratchet down over a decade, so that $175,690 in taxes will have been paid by the end of the abatement period.

Next steps, after Wednesday’s expected council action to adopt the resolution, include a public hearing that’s set for June 16. The June 16 hearing will be followed by a city council vote to confirm, amend, or rescind the resolution adopted on June 2.

Another step, before construction can start in August on Retreat at the Switchyard, is a site plan review by the city plan commission.

Also at Wednesday’s city council meeting, a report will be heard on compliance for eight other tax abatements previously granted by the city council. Continue reading “Tax abatement for affordable housing project next to new park to be weighed by Bloomington city council” →

Bloomington plan commission meets on Kmart redevelopment: “Yes, it’s better. But is it good?”

Locator map for Latimer Square project.
Locator map for Latimer Square project.
Inset map for Latimer Square project.
Inset map for Latimer Square project.
latimer layout Screen Shot 2021-05-03 at 3.49.49 PM

At its regular monthly meeting on Monday, Bloomington’s plan commission voted to continue the proposed redevelopment of the Kmart property on East Third Street to its second hearing. That is now set for June 14.

The outcome of Monday’s vote was not exactly hanging in the balance, because the 900-bedroom housing project does not include a rezone request.

That means its approval by the plan commission is “by right”—if it meets the standard conditions required in the MC (mixed-use corridor) zoning district. It also means that the project does not need approval from the city council. Continue reading “Bloomington plan commission meets on Kmart redevelopment: “Yes, it’s better. But is it good?”” →