The Bloomington City Council approved an $83 million budget for 2018 at its meeting Wednesday.
The budget included some one-time expenses including $250,000 for next year’s bicentennial celebrations, and a $1 million allocation for low cost housing.
Council member Steve Volan praised Mayor John Hamilton’s administration for giving priority to low income housing.
“I have to commend the administration for making it front and center the number one issue of our time, it has certainly become that this year."
Daniel Bingham, board president of Bloomington Cooperative Living says the $1 million could be used by co-ops such as his, where funding from commercial banks is more difficult to get.
“Grassroots projects that want to try to experiment to provide affordable housing in new and different ways loans funds like the city’s loan fund are all that’s available to us.”
The budget also included a 2 percent raise for non-union city employees and elected officials as well as funding to unify the communications system used by the different fire departments in the county.
