Tag: convention center expansion

CIB budget cued up for Bloomington council, no big course change in sight on convention center project

From left: Monroe County councilor Trent Deckard and Bloomington city councilmember Andy Ruff. (April 5, 2024)
Bloomington city council work session. (April 5, 2024)
At the table from left: Bloomington city councilmember Kate Rosenbarger, Monroe County councilor Geoff McKim, and Bloomington city councilmember Isabel Piedmont-Smith. (April 5, 2024)

The topic of the Monroe Convention Center renovation and expansion project has recently been prominent on the work plan for Bloomington’s city council.

This coming Wednesday’s (April 10) council meeting will make two out of the last three regular meetings that the council has had an item on its agenda involving the convention center project.

At its March 27 meeting, the council voted to ask the food and beverage tax advisory commission (FABTAC) to review a $250,000 expenditure from the revenue generated by the tax, to support the 2024 budget for Monroe County’s capital improvement board (CIB). That’s the group of seven people who are providing the governance for the convention center expansion project.

This coming Wednesday, the council will be asked to approve the CIB’s budget, based on the $250,000 appropriation, which was already a part of the 2024 adopted budget for the city of Bloomington.

This past Friday, the council held a work session on the topic, at the urging of councilmember Kate Rosenbarger, who is looking to spend food and beverage tax money on projects other than the convention center.

Based on Friday’s work session discussion, besides Rosenbarger and Matt Flaherty, there’s little appetite among city councilmembers, or other elected or appointed officials, for altering course from the current plan in any significant way.

That plan is for the city to use the vast majority of its food and beverage tax revenue to pay for the convention center expansion project. Continue reading “CIB budget cued up for Bloomington council, no big course change in sight on convention center project” →

Monroe Convention Center expansion: Bloomington city council work session set for April 5

Bloomington’s city council has set a work session for this Friday (April 5) at noon, to discuss a project that has been in the works for a few years—the renovation and expansion of the Monroe Convention Center.

The current convention center stands on the southwest corner of 3rd Street and College Avenue.

The work session will likely be closely watched by other elected and appointed officials, because the city council is not necessarily unanimous in its support of every aspect of the planned expansion.

At the end of February, councilmember Kate Rosenbarger voted against the interlocal agreement that lays out the working relationship between city government, county government, and the Monroe County capital improvement board (CIB). Continue reading “Monroe Convention Center expansion: Bloomington city council work session set for April 5” →

Convention center capital board picks JS Held as owner’s rep, issues RFQ for hotel

John Whikehart (March 20, 2024)
From left: Eric Spoonmore, John Whikehart (March 20, 2024)
JS Held interview team (March 5, 2024)
From near to far: Joyce Poling, Adam Thies, Jim Silberstein, and Jay Baer (March 20, 2024)

JS Held will be the owner’s representative for the Monroe Convention Center expansion project.

At its regular monthly meeting on Wednesday, the seven-member Monroe County capital improvement board approved a motion for selection of JS Held as owner’s rep, after a three-member board committee interviewed the firm and a second company, The Veridus Group, in the first week of March.

The motion approved by the board authorized CIB president John Whikehart to hammer out the details of the arrangement between the CIB and JS Held.

JS Held will be a familiar name locally as the project manager for the Hopewell redevelopment project and the consultant on the Showers West renovation project, among others.

In order to pay JS Held for its work, the CIB will need approval of a budget from the city council, which last year appropriated $250,000 of food and beverage tax revenue for the 2024 fiscal year.

For the CIB to have access to the money, a request will need to be run through a statutorily-required approval process that includes a request by the city council for consideration by the food and beverage tax advisory commission (FABTAC). Continue reading “Convention center capital board picks JS Held as owner’s rep, issues RFQ for hotel” →

Monroe Convention Center planning maintains pace, CIB to consider OK for construction manager RFQ, politicos still mulling interlocal agreement

Capital improvement board members, from left: Adam Thies and Doug Bruce. (Jan. 5, 2024)
From left: CIB legal counsel Jim Whitlatch and capital improvement board member Mick Renneisen (Jan. 5, 2024)
Conceptual rendering by Schmidt Associates from 2019 looking south along College Avenue.

The issuance of an RFQ (request for qualifications) for a “construction manager as contractor” for the convention center expansion project will be one of the first actions considered in the new year by Monroe County’s capital improvement board of managers (CIB).

The issuance of such an RFQ, with a three-week turnaround allowed for responses, is the recommendation of a three-member committee of the CIB, which met on Friday morning.

Meeting at the offices of the Bunger & Robertson law firm, which is kitty corner across from the existing Monroe Convention Center at 3rd Street and College Avenue, were: Adam Thies, Mick Renneisen and Doug Bruce. They were joined by Jim Whitlatch, a Bunger & Robertson attorney, who has been brought on as legal counsel for the CIB.

The consideration of the committee’s recommendation, about issuing an RFQ, is intended for the CIB’s Jan. 17 meeting.

Members of the CIB are leaving to elected officials a question that is still for the politicos to decide—the ratification of a four-way interlocal agreement that provides the framework for project contributions by the city and county governments.

The interlocal agreement includes the Bloomington city council and the mayor, which have already signed off on it.

But the county’s side is taking a minute to review the interlocal agreement.

At the county council’s first meeting of the year on Jan. 9, it should start to become clear if the delay by councilors and county commissioners will prove to be just a hiccup, or if county officials will insist on amendments that would require re-approval by the city council and the mayor.

Continue reading “Monroe Convention Center planning maintains pace, CIB to consider OK for construction manager RFQ, politicos still mulling interlocal agreement” →

Showers West construction contracts on hold until after Kerry Thomson becomes Bloomington mayor

StudioAXIS rendering of Showers West fire administration entrance.
StudioAXIS rendering of Showers West police station entrance.
Bloomington fire chief Jason Moore addresses the RDC (Dec. 18, 2023)
RDC members from left: Cindy Kinnarney, Randy Cassady, Deborah Myerson, and Deb Hutton (Dec. 18, 2023)
Bloomington councilmember Matt Flaherty, mayor John Hamilton at RDC meeting (Dec. 18, 2023)

At its regular meeting on Monday, Bloomington’s redevelopment commission (RDC) let four resolutions die that would have approved separate construction contract awards for the Showers West renovation and remodeling project.

That does not mean the contracts themselves are dead.

It just means that the contracts, which totaled around $12.7 million, could be up for a vote sometime in January 2024—but maybe not as soon as the very next meeting of Bloomington’s RDC, which is scheduled for Jan. 2.

The winning bids, which included a base plus some additional money for an IT room were: SCS Construction Services, Inc. (general trades) for $4,623,400; Multicraft Fire Protection (fire protection) for $310,500; Harrell-Fish Inc (mechanical and plumbing) for $4,128,000; and Cassady Electric (electric) for $3,655,900.

The Showers West project is supposed to remodel the portion of the city hall building that was purchased early this year, to make the 110-year-old brick former factory building into a suitable home for the fire department administration and police department operations.

Part of outgoing mayor John Hamilton’s plan was to sell the city’s 3rd Street police station, and move police operations to Showers West. Last Wednesday, the city council voted unanimously to reject the sale of the police station, at least for now.

Hamilton appeared in person in front of the RDC on Monday to advocate for going ahead and approving the construction contracts. Councilmember Matt Flaherty also appeared in person to urge approval of the construction contracts.

As she did on Wednesday, mayor-elect Kerry Thomson weighed in from the public mic on the Zoom video conferencing platform to advocate for putting off a decision.

Thomson said on Monday, “I wanted to ask you all to wait for the new administration to have an opportunity to review these bids in detail and ensure that there’s proper contingency and funding for all of the equipment and other needs before we move forward.” Continue reading “Showers West construction contracts on hold until after Kerry Thomson becomes Bloomington mayor” →

Board looks to potential fall 2026 opening of Monroe Convention Center expansion

The image links to the slide deck presentation to the CIB by Schmidt Associates on Dec. 13, 2023

The now hoped-for timeline for the opening of an expansion to the Monroe Convention Center is fall or winter of 2026.

That’s a takeaway from the third meeting of the capital improvement board (CIB) that was created by county commissioners in July.

Still pending is the ratification by Monroe County of an interlocal agreement that outlines how county government will work with the city of Bloomington on the Monroe Convention Center expansion.

But Wednesday’s meeting reinforced the impression left by CIB members when they met in October and November: They are not looking to dawdle in getting the convention center project back up and running, after it stalled out in March 2020, just before the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

Invited to give a presentation on Wednesday  was a team from Schmidt Associates, led by Sarah Hempstead, which worked on the project four years ago before political wrangling led to a pause that was made longer by the pandemic.

Some key takeaways from the presentation include a hoped-for timeline that calls for occupancy of an expanded facility the fall or winter of 2026. Continue reading “Board looks to potential fall 2026 opening of Monroe Convention Center expansion” →

Bloomington mayor wants Dec. 13 vote by city council on police station sale

The police station is in the upper left corner of the aerial image.
Calendar of upcoming key dates in Showers West projectg.

At its Wednesday meeting in a little over a week from now, Bloomington’s city council will likely be asked by outgoing mayor John Hamilton to vote on the sale of the city’s police station.

That’s a key takeaway from a Monday noon work session of Bloomington’s city council.

Next week’s Dec. 13 council meeting is the city legislative body’s final regular meeting of the year.

But before the council is asked to approve the sale, Bloomington’s board of public works will hold a public hearing this Friday, Dec. 8. Even though the three-member board does not need to approve the sale, it is required under state law to make a recommendation to the city council and the mayor.

So on Friday, the administration is just looking for the board of public works to indicate its attitude about the sale—for, against, or no recommendation either way.

At Monday’s session, deputy mayor Larry Allen revealed that the city had so far received three offers for the purchase of the police station. The building is located on 3rd Street north of The Waldron, Hill and Buskirk Park.

One offer is right at the $3.2-million minimum offer specified in the city’s notice of sale, published on Oct. 11.  The minimum offer is the same as the lower of two fair market value appraisals that were done by the city, Allen revealed.

A second fair market appraisal, Allen said at Monday’s session, put the value of the police station at $4.4 million. The city had also received an offer to purchase the real estate at that price, Allen said.

A third offer exceeded $4.4 million, Allen said.

Even though just five of nine councilmembers attended Monday’s work session, a measure of the topic’s importance was mayor-elect Kerry Thomson’s attendance. Continue reading “Bloomington mayor wants Dec. 13 vote by city council on police station sale” →

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

Excerpt from construction drawings for the Showers West renovation.
Excerpt from construction drawings for the Showers West renovation.

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” →

Board picks former Encore Cafe owner to join group to oversee Monroe Convention Center expansion

CIB meeting (Nov. 8, 2023). Adam Thies attended via the Zoom video conferencing platform.
John Whikehart
Joyce Poling
Eric Spoonmore.
From left: Doug Bruce and Mick Renneisen

On Wednesday afternoon, Jim Silberstein was appointed as the final member of Monroe County’s seven-member capital improvement board (CIB).

Silberstein’s LinkedIn profile describes his role in founding the Encore Cafe and Tina’s Cuisine, which operated for 18 years, until the early 2000s, in the 6th Street building that is now home to Bloomingfoods.  Among the credentials cited at Wednesday’s meeting in support of his appointment were Silberstein’s MBA from Northwestern University and his work for Deloitte Consulting in Chicago.

The CIB was established by Monroe County commissioners in July of this year, under the terms specified in state law.

According to the ordinance enacted by the commissioners, the first six appointments to the CIB have to come from four different entities—county commissioners (2), county council, the mayor (2), and the city council. Those six then choose a seventh—which turned out to be Silberstein.

On Wednesday, the vote among the six on the seventh appointment was 4–2. The other two votes went to Valerie Peña. She is associate vice president in Indiana University’s office of government relations. Continue reading “Board picks former Encore Cafe owner to join group to oversee Monroe Convention Center expansion” →

Bloomington set to pay $1.9 million for NE part of parking lot, planned for convention center expansion

In 2019, Bloomington’s redevelopment commission (RDC) paid $4,995,000 for most of the downtown block that formerly housed the Bunger & Robertson law firm.

It was a move that put a significant sum behind the city’s preferred site for the planned expansion of the Monroe Convention Center. But it came with at least some amount of controversy for what was supposed to be a city-county collaboration.

For some of the actors involved in convention center planning at the time, it had been an open question: Should the expansion be located north or south of the existing convention center at 3rd Street and College Avenue? The city’s purchase appeared to be an attempt to settle that question.

The price tag was just under the $5-million statutory threshold that would have required the city council’s approval. And the deal still did not put the whole block under the city’s control.

The city was still negotiating with a different property owner for the remaining 0.4 acres, which consists of about 45 surface parking spaces.

Now, Bloomington’s RDC is set to buy the remaining part of the block.

On the RDC’s Monday meeting agenda is a purchase agreement for $1.9 million to buy the parcel located at 216 S. College Ave. Continue reading “Bloomington set to pay $1.9 million for NE part of parking lot, planned for convention center expansion” →