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Old B Square

Local income tax notebook: How Monroe County stacks up statewide

Local income tax notebook: How Monroe County stacks up statewide

During a Feb. 24 speech, Bloomington mayor John Hamilton made explicit what had been implicit since last fall’s budget deliberations: Some kind of request for a local income tax increase would be put in front of the city council this year. During the February speech, Hamilton put some effort

When it rains, it sewers: Monday’s overflow first in 8 months for Bloomington utilities

When it rains, it sewers: Monday’s overflow first in 8 months for Bloomington utilities

On Monday, city of Bloomington utilities (CBU) posted an alert on Facebook about a sanitary sewer overflow on Rogers Street between Charlie Avenue and Old State Road 37. The Facebook posting advised: “Any individual who has come into direct contact with untreated sewage is advised to wash their hands and

13% pay increase for Bloomington police in first year of new labor agreement

13% pay increase for Bloomington police in first year of new labor agreement

Members of FOP Lodge 88, Bloomington’s police union, voted last week to accept the city’s proposal for a new four-year labor deal starting in 2023, according to FOP president Paul Post. The current agreement between Bloomington and its police union expires at the end of 2022. In the

Complaint filed: City’s plan commission violated Open Door Law, says Bloomington resident

Complaint filed: City’s plan commission violated Open Door Law, says Bloomington resident

In a formal complaint filed with Indiana’s public access counselor (PAC) on Friday, Bloomington resident Andrew Guenther has alleged that the city’s plan commission violated Indiana’s Open Door Law (ODL) when it held a lunch session on Feb. 8. The apparent purpose of the Feb. 8 meeting,

Column: Blurry images instead of digital text should not be good enough for Bloomington government

Column: Blurry images instead of digital text should not be good enough for Bloomington government

The government of every city in America tries to talk a good game about transparency and accessibility. Bloomington, Indiana is no different. But Bloomington fails at basic accessibility just as often as many other cities with way fewer resources. Today’s example comes from the information packet that has been

Monroe County needs poll workers: “I’ve gotten to be such good friends with somebody in another party!”

Monroe County needs poll workers: “I’ve gotten to be such good friends with somebody in another party!”

Last Thursday’s meeting of the Monroe County election board included at least one newsy item: Election workers are still needed for the May 3, 2022 primary elections. Early in-person voting starts on April 5, which is just four weeks away. That makes the need to get enough workers on

Photos: “There is syrup at the bottom of this hill !!!”

Photos: “There is syrup at the bottom of this hill !!!”

This weekend The B Square continued its relentless coverage of the maple syrup beat with a visit to Thomas Westgård’s sugar camp southeast of town. On Saturday, a day with clear skies that saw the temperature hit 75 F degrees, Westgård hosted a maple syrup workshop. Here’s what