Sign in Subscribe

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.

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.

City council again mulls ‘Stadium District’ as name for area around Bloomington urban wetland park, as liquor zone question looms

City council again mulls ‘Stadium District’ as name for area around Bloomington urban wetland park, as liquor zone question looms

Returning to the Bloomington city council’s agenda for Oct. 22 is a resolution that would give an official name to a swath of territory around an urban wetland park called Miller-Showers Park on the north side of the city. If the resolution passes, the area would be called the “Stadium District.”

Bloomington eyes more housing in Hopewell project—but zoning code changes are needed to maximize potential

Bloomington eyes more housing in Hopewell project—but zoning code changes are needed to maximize potential

At the city planning commission’s November meeting, Bloomington mayor Kerry Thomson is hoping to have a significant zoning change in Hopewell South ready for review. The change would be needed in order to allow for the kind of denser development Thomson would like to see there.

Vote postponed on $5M TIF set-aside for southwest Bloomington infrastructure planning

Vote postponed on $5M TIF set-aside for southwest Bloomington infrastructure planning

At its Monday meeting, the Bloomington Redevelopment Commission put off a vote on a resolution setting aside $5 million in TIF funds for public infrastructure planning in the city’s southwest quadrant. But the reason for the delay does not appear to be based on the merits of the policy choice.

Bloomington seeks $35K state grant to update decade-old ash tree management plan

Bloomington seeks $35K state grant to update decade-old ash tree management plan

Monroe County’s board of health passed a resolution in support of the city of Bloomington’s application for a $35,000 grant from the Indiana DNR to update the city’s management plan for ash trees. Bloomington urban forester Haskell Smith hopes to have the application done by the end of this week.