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Local Government

Articles in this section cover Bloomington city council, the mayor's office, Monroe County's board of commissioners, county council, and all the other local units.

Crowded Bloomington town hall comes same day as governor’s call for special legislative session on redistricting

Crowded Bloomington town hall comes same day as governor’s call for special legislative session on redistricting

On Monday, state representative Matt Pierce hosted a town hall about the GOP push for mid-decade redistricting in Indiana. Pierce’s event came after governor Mike Braun earlier in the day announced a special legislative session, starting Nov. 3, to address congressional district boundary changes.

Monroe County council faces $11.4M decision on jail site amid renewed community pushback

Monroe County council faces $11.4M decision on jail site amid renewed community pushback

Around 50 people gathered in the Meeting Room of the UU Church on Sunday afternoon for a town hall focused on Monroe County’s new jail and justice center proposal. On Tuesday, the county council is set to vote on an appropriation to pay for North Park, site of the planned new project.

Cars vs. Peds: Bloomington city council reverses course, disallows visual aids for public comment

Cars vs. Peds: Bloomington city council reverses course, disallows visual aids for public comment

Last Wednesday, Bloomington resident Greg Alexander wanted to support his three minutes of public comment with six photographs, to be projected onto the screen in council chambers. But the council departed from the guidance on its website that allows for this, and did not let him use the photos.

After fiery Monroe County election board meeting, vote centers still nonstarter ‘in the short term’

After fiery Monroe County election board meeting, vote centers still nonstarter ‘in the short term’

After a contentious election board meeting on Thursday, and a meeting between the two county chairs of the major political parties on Friday, Monroe County does not look like it’s any closer to adopting vote centers as a way for registered voters to cast their ballots.

Monroe County council to weigh jail land purchase, putting Thomson PUD on offer for sale

Monroe County council to weigh jail land purchase, putting Thomson PUD on offer for sale

Next Tuesday’s draft meeting agenda of the Monroe County council was already packed with significant items. Now it looks like Tuesday’s agenda could include another item with a historical connection to jail planning—authorization to offer the 87-acre county-owned Thomson PUD property for sale.

Bloomington bus ridership down 6% so far in 2025, as 2 teams bidding for ops center merge

Bloomington bus ridership down 6% so far in 2025, as 2 teams bidding for ops center merge

Fixed route ridership on Bloomington’s public buses continues to lag about 6% behind last year’s numbers. Along with the ridership numbers, the board received an update on the process for selecting the builder and designer of the new operations center, to replace the one on Grimes Lane.

Bloomington city council sets 2026 pay scales for general employees, police and fire, clerk’s office

Bloomington city council sets 2026 pay scales for general employees, police and fire, clerk’s office

At its regular Wednesday meeting, Bloomington’s city council approved three salary ordinances establishing the pay for city employees in 2026. The council’s action covered all the jobs in city government except for the eleven elected positions of city council, clerk, and mayor.