Before heading into its annual summer recess, the Bloomington City Council passed several legislative items Monday night, ranging from COVID-19 relief funding to local rental occupancy to the celebration of Pride Month.
First, the Residential Unit and Lodging Establishment Inspection Program was approved. This new law will require landlords and tenants to sign occupancy affidavits for the Housing and Neighborhood Development (HAND) department.
The goal of the ordinance is to help the city track rental occupancy and respond more efficiently to complaints from residents in the neighborhoods.
"This will help us collect better and harder data," said HAND director John Zody.
These affidavits confirm how many people live together in a rental unit. Bloomington's Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) puts this limit at three adults and their dependent children per living unit in zoning districts R1, R2, R3 and R4.
"If I get a call from a neighborhood or a neighbor saying, 'I’m afraid this unit is over occupied, what can you do about it?' We do a complaint inspection. We call the landlord. They should have an updated affidavit on file for that period," said Zody.
Zody said the occupancy affidavits only apply to buildings with four or fewer rental units because that is where the majority of complaints stem from.
When asked how many complaints the city receives on average, Zody said about 25 to 30 per year.
"I think the scope of the problem is too small to implement this broad policy," said councilmember Matt Flaherty.
Despite opposition against the ordinance, council voted in favor 5-3.
American Rescue Plan Act Funding
For the last few weeks, city officials have been developing strategies on how to spend millions of federal funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).
The City of Bloomington's cut of $22.27 million can be used for a broad range of programs and services that relate to COVID-19 relief.
Mayor John Hamilton is expected to present an appropriation ordinance sometime in late July that requests ARPA funding for this fiscal year. The rest of the funds will be spread out into the 2022 and 2023 city budgets.
City council's task Monday night was to officially establish a fund. It passed unanimously.
Retreat At Switchyard
Another item on the agenda was to designate the future 'Retreat At Switchyard' housing complex an economic revitalization area.
This means the 48 affordable units within the 64-unit building will receive a 10-year tax abatement. The breakdown of the tax abatement is as follows:
Year 1: 100%
Year 2: 95%
Year 3: 80%
Year 4: 65%
Year 5: 50%
Year 6: 40%
Year 7: 30%
Year 8: 20%
Year 9: 10%
Year 10: 5%
Real America Companies based in Indianapolis is building the complex off South Walnut Street where Night Moves used to be.
"We want to give back to communities and this is our way of doing that in Bloomington by creating a mixed-income, mixed-use development right near your new and beautiful Switchyard Park," said Jeff Ryan, Real America's vice president of development.
Construction on the project is expected to begin next month.
"We all know that affordability and housing is a critical need in this community and this is a real step forward in that direction," said councilmember Susan Sandberg.
June Celebration of Pride Month
In honor of Pride Month, Bloomington recognizes the significant contributions made by members of the LGBTQ+ community and it will formally recognize the 52nd Anniversary of the Stonewall Riots.
The 1969 protests that took place at the Stonewall Inn in New York City are widely touted as a substantial moment in the push toward equality for all LGBTQ+ individuals in America and around the world.
Every June, people from around the globe come to the Stonewall Inn to celebrate Pride Month and honor those who rallied for equal rights in 1969. (Courtesy: AP News)
"Bloomington is a city that has over and over again reminded and underscored its values of commitment to equity and inclusion, and this resolution is in many ways a very logical extension of that," said councilmember Sue Sgambelluri.
Council president Jim Sims said similar to how the council formally denounced white supremacy last year, the city has a responsibility to be forward-thinking and should be obligated to promote equality.
"It's important to recognize that many of these marginalized groups, those that have suffered from discrimination and other inequitable situations, have a lot in common," said Sims.
Jack Hopkins Funding
Finally, city council voted to allocate $511,000 to various local organizations through the Jack Hopkins Social Services fund.
