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Bloomington monolith project stalled again after public works board fails to act

By Lucas González

Posted October 11, 2023

(From left) Board of Public Works members Jane Kupersmith, Elizabeth Karon and Kyla Cox Deckard. (Lucas González, WFIU/WTIU News)

Bloomington Mayor John Hamilton’s controversial monolith gateway project has been stalled again.

That’s because the City’s Board of Public Works failed to vote on a lane and sidewalk closure request for the project at a Tuesday meeting.

The board’s approval is needed to begin construction at Miller-Showers Park, where the City plans to install the 40-foot structure.

Board member Elizabeth Karon introduced a motion to approve the item — but neither of her fellow board members seconded her motion, meaning they could not vote.

Nearly 40 seconds of silence passed before Board President Kyla Cox Deckard declared the motion dead.

“We do not have a second at this time; motion fails,” Cox Deckard said.

Immediately afterward, a crowd of people who came to oppose the project erupted in applause.

Many of those attendees also participated in a protest outside city hall less than an hour before board members met in the Bloomington City Council chambers.

This latest meeting was the third time the board considered the item for a vote. A motion to approve the closures also died for lack of a second a meeting preceding Tuesday's.

The typically three-member board has been without one member at the last two meetings. A third member was present Tuesday.

The board’s failure to act is, in part, a response to public outcry against the $1.1 million project. People began speaking out against it last month, despite it having a five-year history.

The project was greenlit by the Bloomington City Council in 2018 as part of the City’s bicentennial bonds. It later went through the City’s arts commission and parks department and was opened for public input then.

But many of the project’s opponents said they weren’t aware of the project until recently.

“I don’t know how this got this far,” Mark Riggins said. “There are so many people in the community that did not see this coming until this article showing the picture of it in the paper — and that’s wrong. Whatever happened here, I think, should be a lesson for us in the future so that (it) doesn’t happen again.”

Mark Riggins. *(Courtesy of Community Access Television Services)*

Riggins was referring to news reports following the City’s formal announcement of the project.

Residents have criticized the monolith for several other reasons. They’ve said it costs too much, serves no purpose and is not visually pleasing,

Valda Hillery touched on those points, and a few others, in her remarks.

“It is an unsuitable location," Hillery said. "It is an unsuitable representation of Bloomington and not created by local talent. It is unsuitable for wildlife. It is (an) unsuitable use of funds, given the many other pressures on our community right now.”

Valda Hillery. *(Courtesy of Community Access Television Services)*

A few others said they simply prefer the monolith be built elsewhere in the city.

Betty Rose Nagel mentioned Hamilton by name in her comments, even though he was not present at the meeting.

“It’s going to be a prominent part of his legacy; it’s going to be a welcome to Bloomington,” Nagel said. “So, please, for all of the considerations — the aesthetics and all the rest of it — save John Hamilton from this mistake. He has made a number of mistakes during his two terms, but you can save him from this one.”

Betty Rose Nagel *(Courtesy of Community Access Television Services)*

Hamilton recently told WFIU/WTIU News the monolith is either already built or close to being finished.

Given that, and the fact that it’s already under contract, the public works board was the last holdup for the project to advance.

It’s unclear exactly what will happen next, and whether members of the public will have another chance to comment on the project in a public forum.

The board says the item could return for a vote at a later meeting.

Until then, the project cannot advance.

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Bloomington monolith project stalled again after public works board fails to act

By Lucas González

Posted October 11, 2023

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Indiana Public Media | WFIU - NPR | WTIU - PBS

Indiana Public Media News

Bloomington monolith project stalled again after public works board fails to act

By Lucas González

Posted October 11, 2023

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Recent Government and Politics Stories