Common Council Organizational Meeting

Bloomington Common Council-Organizational Meeting Minutes Bloomington Council Chambers, City Hall, Bloomington, Indiana Wednesday, January 07, 2026 at 6:30pm Call to Order [6:30pm] Council President Hopi Stosberg called the meeting to order. 1.​ Roll Call (*Indicates participation via Zoom) [5:00pm] Council Members: Isak Nti Asare At-Large, Council President Courtney Daily District 5, Council Parliamentarian Matt Flaherty At-Large Isabel Piedmont-Smith District 1 Dave Rollo District 4 Kate Rosenbarger District 2 Andy Ruff (arrived at 6:31pm) At-Large Hopi Stosberg District 3 Sydney Zulich District 6, Council Vice President City staff, officials, and guests present: Nicole Bolden City Clerk Lisa Lehner Common Council, Administrator/Attorney Kari Bennett Common Council, Deputy Administrator/Attorney Stosberg paid tribute to Perry Township trustee Dan Combs who recently passed away. 2.​ Agenda Summation [6:31pm] Stosberg summarized the agenda. 3.​ Reports [6:32pm] 3.1.​ Councilmembers: Flaherty and Ruff thanked the outgoing Common Council leadership. Rollo spoke about Dan Combs, also known as Carp Combs, and his public service. Piedmont-Smith mourned the passing of Dan Combs, a dedicated public servant. She noted that the previous day was the fifth anniversary of the violent insurrection on January 06, 2025; an attempted coup by Donald Trump. She gave information on violations of international law by the Trump administration, and an incident where an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot a person in the face while she was turning her car around. Daily acknowledged the passing of Dan Combs. Stosberg spoke about her constituent meetings. 3.2.​ The Mayor, City Clerk, City Offices, and City Boards and Commissions: There were no reports. January 07, 2026 3.3.​ Council Committees: There were no reports. 3.4.​ Public: Christopher Emge, Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce, thanked the Common Council and spoke about the chamber’s legislative priorities. 4.​ Election of Officers [6:43pm] Ruff moved and Rollo seconded to elect Isak Nti Asare as President, Sydney Zulich as Vice President, and Courtney Daily as Parliamentarian. Asare spoke briefly about his plans as the Common Council President, should he be elected. Zulich discussed her plans if elected the Common Council Vice President. Daily spoke about her serving as the Parliamentarian the previous year and believed continuity was key. The motion was approved by voice vote. Piedmont-Smith thanked Stosberg for her leadership throughout the previous year. Asare took the seat as Common Council President and announced the new seating order: Flaherty, Stosberg, Piedmont-Smith, Zulich, Asare, Daily, Rollo, Ruff, and Rosenbarger. Councilmembers assumed their new seating arrangement. 5.​ Assignments to Council Committees [6:52pm] Asare made the assignments for the following committees: ●​ Jack Hopkins Social Services Funding Committee: Asare, Daily (Chair), Rollo, and Ruff. ●​ Committee on Council Processes: Daily, Piedmont-Smith, Stosberg (Chair), and Zulich. ●​ Sidewalk Committee: Daily, Rosenbarger (Chair), Ruff, and Zulich. ●​ Fiscal Committee: Flaherty, Piedmont-Smith (Chair), Rollo, and Stosberg. Asare made the following assignments to board and commission Interview Committees: ●​ Interview Committee Team A: Asare (Chair), Rosenbarger, and Stosberg. ●​ Interview Committee Team B: Daily, Flaherty, and Ruff (Chair). ●​ Interview Committee Team C: Piedmont-Smith, Rollo, and Zulich (Chair). 6.​ Appointments to Boards and Commissions [6:52pm] Zulich moved and Flaherty seconded to make the following appointments: ●​ Bloomington Economic Development Corporation: Asare. ●​ Downtown Bloomington, Inc. Board of Directors: Zulich. ●​ Economic Development Commission (city): Asare. The motion was approved by voice vote. Piedmont-Smith moved and Stosberg seconded to reappoint Flaherty to the Transportation Commission. The motion was approved by voice vote. Zulich moved and Daily seconded to appoint Stosberg to the Metropolitan Planning Organization. The motion was approved by voice vote. Daily moved and Zulich seconded to make the following appointments: ●​ Citizens Advisory Committee, Community Development Block Grants-Social Services: Daily. 2 January 07, 2026 ●​ Citizens Advisory Committee, Community Development Block Grants-Physical Improvements: Rosenbarger. The motion was approved by voice vote. Zulich moved and Daily seconded to make the following appointments: ●​ Monroe County Food and Beverage Tax Advisory Commission: Zulich. ●​ Public Safety Local Income Tax Allocation Committee: Daily, Piedmont-Smith, Rollo, and Ruff. The motion was approved by voice vote. Zulich moved and Daily seconded to reaffirm the appointment of Flaherty to the Utilities Services Board. The motion was approved by voice vote. Piedmont-Smith moved and Stosberg seconded to make the following appointments: ●​ Project 46 Advisory Committee: Stosberg. ●​ Bloomington Commission on Sustainability: Rollo. ●​ Environmental Resource Advisory Council: Ruff. ●​ City of Bloomington Climate Action Team (internal): Piedmont-Smith. The motion was approved by voice vote. 7.​ Legislation for First Reading [7:11pm] 7.1.​ Ordinance 2026-01 To Amend Title 20 (Unified Development Ordinance) Of The Bloomington Municipal Code – Re: Response To Resolution 2025-12 Related To Amending The Affordable Housing Incentives and Payment-In-Lieu Provisions Daily moved and Zulich seconded that Ordinance 2026-01 be introduced and read by title and synopsis only. The motion was approved by voice vote. Clerk Nicole Bolden read the legislation by title and synopsis. 7.2.​ Ordinance 2026-02 To Amend Title 20 (Unified Development Ordinance) Of The Bloomington Municipal Code – Re: Response To Resolution 2025-17 Related To Amending The Eligibility Subsection, The Qualifying Standards For Planned Unit Development Subsection, and Defined Terms Section Of Title 20 Daily moved and Zulich seconded that Ordinance 2026-02 be introduced and read by title and synopsis only. The motion was approved by voice vote. Bolden read the legislation by title and synopsis. 7.3.​ Ordinance 2026-03 To Amend Ordinance 2025-40 To Fix The Salaries Of Appointed Officers, Non-union, And A.F.S.C.M.E. Employees For All The Departments Of The City Of Bloomington, Monroe County, Indiana For The Year 2026 Daily moved and Zulich seconded that Ordinance 2026-03 be introduced and read by title and synopsis only. The motion was approved by voice vote. Bolden read the legislation by title and synopsis. 8.​ Legislation for Second Reading and Resolutions [7:15pm] 3  January 07, 2026 8.1.​ Resolution 2026-01 To Update Membership Requirements And Program Funding Conditions Of The Jack Hopkins Social Services Funding Committee Of the Common Council Daily moved and Zulich seconded that Resolution 2026-01 be introduced and read by title and synopsis only. The motion was approved by voice vote. Bolden read the legislation by title and synopsis. Daily moved and Zulich seconded that Resolution 2026-01 be adopted. Stosberg presented the legislation which had one change pertaining to appointing resident members via a recommendation by the chair to the full council. There were no council questions. There were no public comments. Daily spoke in support of the legislation. Zulich thanked Stosberg for streamlining the information. The motion to adopt Resolution 2026-01 received a roll call vote of Ayes: 9, Nays: 0, Abstain: 0. 9.​ Additional Public Comment [7:21] Kevin Keough commented on the timeliness of the city’s annual comprehensive financial report. 10.​ Council Schedule [7:22pm] There was a brief review of the council’s upcoming schedule including interview committee meetings for board and commission appointments. 11.​ Adjournment [7:25pm] Asare adjourned the meeting. Approved by the Common Council of the City of Bloomington, Monroe County, Indiana, upon this day 29 of July, 2026. Approve: Signature of Isak Nti Asare, Common Council President Attest: Signature of City Clerk Nicole Bolden Clerk’s Note: The above minutes summarize the motions passed and issues discussed rather than providing a verbatim account of every word spoken. Bloomington Common Council meetings can be accessed on the following websites: ●​ Community Access Television Services1 (CATS) ●​ City of Bloomington YouTube2 Background materials and packets3 are available on the Common Council website. 1 https://catvstv.net 2 https://youtube.com/@citybloomington 3 https://bloomington.in.gov/council/meetings 4