Common Council - Consensus-Building Activities
Regular MeetingBloomington, IN · August 14, 2024
Minutes
In the Council Chambers of the Showers City Hall, Bloomington, COMMON COUNCIL
Indiana on Wednesday, August 14, 2024 at 6:30pm, Council CONSENSUS BUILDING ACTIVITY
President Isabel Piedmont-Smith presided over a Consensus 14 August 2024
Building Activity (CBA) of the Common Council.
Councilmembers present: Courtney Daily, Isak Nti Asare, Matt ROLL CALL [6:30pm]
Flaherty, Isabel Piedmont-Smith, Dave Rollo, Kate Rosenbarger,
Andrew (Andy) Ruff, Hopi Stosberg, Sydney Zulich
Councilmembers present via Zoom: none
Councilmembers absent: none
Council President Isabel Piedmont-Smith gave a land and labor AGENDA SUMMATION [6:31pm]
acknowledgment and summarized the agenda.
Piedmont-Smith appointed Rosenbarger to the Hiring Committee APPOINTMENTS TO BOARDS AND
for the Council Attorney/Administrator position without objection. COMMISSIONS [6:33pm]
Piedmont-Smith introduced the focus question for the evening’s FOCUS QUESTION [6:35pm]
consensus building activity: “What actions should the City Council
take to address street homelessness and support the work of others
addressing street homelessness?”
Asare noted that the conversation that evening was one of several
that were happening as part of the larger ecosystem around
homelessness. Asare said the focus for the evening was particularly
on what the city council could do to address the issue.
Flaherty explained the role of council, and provided examples of the
ways council could take action.
Asare stated the notes from that evening would be made available
and would help inform future legislation.
Piedmont-Smith added the notes would be available on the council
website under meetings and documents. She noted that the
deliberations would not conclude that evening and there would be
future sessions. Piedmont-Smith introduced Joelene Bergonzi, from
the Community Justice and Mediation Center (CJAM), who would be
the facilitator that evening.
Bergonzi gave an overview of the process for the evening, and
discussed the difference between dialogue and deliberation.
Bergonzi She introduced the other CJAM members who would be in
each of the breakout groups: Susan Klein, Vanessa Roberts, John
VanderZee, Wilson Mosley, and Ed Greenebaum. Bergonzi asked for
patience with councilmembers who were not trained facilitators,
and said the CJAM folks would be assisting them. Bergonzi reviewed
the group agreements.
Group Reporting: Collecting different perspectives, common values, Breakout Groups: Part 1-
questions that arose, and possible action steps. Facilitated Dialogue
Cms Flaherty, Asare, Stosberg, Ruff, Zulich, and Daily reported out
on behalf of their groups. Notes from the group reports are attached
to these minutes.
Group Reporting: Synthesizing priorities, values, needs, tradeoffs. Breakout Groups: Part 2-
Deliberation practice
p. 2 Meeting Date: 08-14-24
Several members of the larger group discussed their observations Large Group Debriefing
from the session.
Bergonzi thanked everyone for their participation and thanked the
council for stepping out of their comfort zone. She invited people to
look at the CJAM website for more information and noted that there
would be a follow-up survey.
Piedmont-Smith thanked the members of CJAM for their support ADJOURNMENT [8:32pm]
and thanked the members of the public for coming out and
sharing their ideas. She encouraged people to provide feedback
and then adjourned the meeting.
APPROVED by the Common Council of the City of Bloomington, Monroe County, Indiana upon this
_____ day of November
20 ____________________, 2024.
APPROVE: ATTEST:
_________________________________________ _______________________________________
Isabel Piedmont-Smith, PRESIDENT Nicole Bolden, CLERK
Bloomington Common Council City of Bloomington
Agenda
MEMORANDUM
Bloomington Common Council-Regular Session
Bloomington City Hall, Council Chambers, 401 N. Morton Street, Bloomington, Indiana
Wednesday, August 14, 2024
Meeting called to order: 6:30pm
Council President Isabel Piedmont-Smith presided.
ROLL CALL
Councilmembers present: Isak Nti Asare, Courtney Daily, Matt Flaherty, Isabel Piedmont-Smith, Dave
Rollo, Kate Rosenbarger, Andy Ruff, Hopi Stosberg, Sydney Zulich
Councilmembers present via Zoom: none
Councilmembers absent: none
City staff, officials, and guests present: Joelene Bergonzi, Colleen Williamson, Ash Kulak, Chief Deputy
Clerk Sofia McDowell, Clerk Nicole Bolden
AGENDA SUMMATION
APPOINTMENT TO BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
ACTION: Piedmont-Smith appointed Rosenbarger to the Hiring Committee without objection.
TOPICS
Issue Overview
Breakout Groups: Part 1
Group Reporting
Breakout Groups: Part 2
Large Group Debriefing (Clerk’s Note: The notes from this portion are attached below.)
Closing of the Session
ADJOURNMENT [8:32pm]
ACTION: Piedmont-Smith adjourned the meeting.
Memorandum prepared by:
Sofia McDowell, CHIEF DEPUTY CLERK
City of Bloomington
1
Reports from small groups
Group 1: Resources stretched from use by people outside the county
Concerns of individual safety and security
Lack of basic services, like bathrooms
What does it mean to be “from here?”
Misalignment between available services and needs
No alternatives when people are displaced from “clearing camps”
Need to work together, coordinate at levels of government, businesses, and organizations
Need more resources – reallocate or make better use
Storage for belongings, safe sleeping needs, provision of supplies
Group 2: Significant pressures on community resources
Humanity of those experiencing homelessness
We should not accept the current situation
Focus on work force and skill development
Organize govt to deal with issue, centralize staffing and budget allocations
Funding, capacity for sharing data
Need for public bathrooms, showers, storage
City as convener to help parts work together
Important of rapid rehousing and temporary housing
Need to use groups to take on certain tasks
Access to grants for organizations
Responsiveness to needs from City
Funding for eco-housing, transitional housing, etc.
Group 3: Urgency of this issue for health and safety of population
Desire to learn more about the situation
Mental health needs not being addressed
More trash pick-up, need for bathrooms
Increase lighting, security, might move people to other areas
Increase street outreach teams
Add to different housing types/models
Restrict sleeping in public areas
Incentivize landlord for applications, avoid eviction
Group 4: To address issue, start from sense of respect and dignity for those experiencing
homelessness
Prioritize policies in any way to encourage affordable housing
Need better mental health care and addiction services
Learning from methods of other communities
IU as source of contributions of human resources and funding, collaboration
Council’s power to convene used to bring together different parts of government and
organizations to collaborate and centralize
Group 5: Support for people in transitions of housing
Discrimination for qualifying for housing and health care
How to make housing available for unrelated individuals
Increasing funding and staffing for current programs, like through Jack Hopkins grants
Group 6: Not enough low-income housing or shelters, especially for women
Where do the individuals in need WANT to go, what do they care about
Honor people’s choices in what they are looking for
People who have been in encampments for a long time may need different priorities
Moving them can re-traumatize them
Barriers to shelter may be animal ownership, people staying together
Difficult to take steps toward long-term housing
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