Solar panel design work OK’d for The Forge, recertification from state for Bloomington’s technology park

The Forge, which is the technology center currently under construction in the southeast corner of the Trades District,  just south of The Mill coworking space, will have a set of solar panels designed by MPI Solar.

The $1,900 contract for the solar panel design work was approved by Bloomington’s redevelopment commission at its regular Monday meeting.

When it’s completed, the 3-story 22,000-square-foot building that’s going up north of 10th Street, and west of Madison Street is supposed to provide office space for technology companies that are beyond the startup phase.

The Forge will also appear on the agenda for the Tuesday night meeting of Bloomington’s board of public works, for use of the right-of-way in Madison Street and Maker Way next to the building site. The construction crews are already using the street to reach the upper stories with boom lifts.

At its Monday meeting, Bloomington’s RDC also learned that the 65-acre Technology Park, of which the 12-acre Trades District is a part, has been recertified by the state of Indiana.

As a certified technology park (CTP), that means it is now eligible to receive $250,000 a year in sales and income tax revenue that is shared back from the state. Continue reading “Solar panel design work OK’d for The Forge, recertification from state for Bloomington’s technology park”

Bloomington’s urban enterprise zone gets 5-year extension by city council

For at least another five years, residents who live in a roughly 2.5-square-mile area inside Bloomington will enjoy benefits like state income tax deductions and eligibility for post-secondary education scholarships.

That’s based on action by Bloomington’s city council at its Wednesday meeting, when it approved a five-year extension of the Bloomington Urban Enterprise Zone (BUEZ).

In that same 2.5-square-mile area, businesses will continue to benefit from certain tax deductions on real and personal property tax. Businesses inside the BUEZ will also have a chance to apply for matching grants to repair and maintain the facades of their buildings.

Since it was first established in 1992, the geographic boundaries of the zone have been expanded on all sides—to the north, south, east and west.

At its thickest, the zone is roughly a mile-wide, mostly west of Walnut Street. It stretches from Country Club Drive in the south to 17th Street in the north. Continue reading “Bloomington’s urban enterprise zone gets 5-year extension by city council”

Bloomington mayor calls Hopewell groundbreaking a “once-in-a-century opportunity to create a new neighborhood in the heart of our beloved city”

On Friday afternoon, a day with partly cloudy skies and a temperature around 80 degrees, about 60 local leaders gathered at the now empty grassy lot on the south side of 2nd Street, between Rogers Street and The B-Line Trail.

They were assembled to mark the groundbreaking for the Hopewell neighborhood, which will be constructed at the site of the former IU Health hospital, where the health care provider operated its facility until December 2021.

Delivering remarks on Friday were Bloomington mayor John Hamilton, followed by Cindy Kinnarney, who is president of Bloomington’s redevelopment commission, and by Mick Renneisen, who is president of the board for the nonprofit called City of Bloomington Capital Improvements, Inc.

Hamilton led off his remarks by saying, “We are here to break ground on this once-in-a-century opportunity to create a new neighborhood in the heart of our beloved city.” Continue reading “Bloomington mayor calls Hopewell groundbreaking a “once-in-a-century opportunity to create a new neighborhood in the heart of our beloved city””