Common Council Special Session

Bloomington Common Council-Special Session Minutes Council Chambers, City Hall, 401 N. Morton Street, Bloomington, Indiana Monday, December 15, 2025, 4:00pm CALL TO ORDER [4:03pm] Council President Stosberg called the meeting to order. 1. ROLL CALL (* indicates participation via Zoom) [4:03pm] Councilmembers present: Isak Nti Asare At-Large Courtney Daily (arrived at 4:05pm) District 5, Council Parliamentarian Matt Flaherty At-Large Isabel Piedmont-Smith District 1, Council Vice President Dave Rollo* (arrived at 4:05pm) District 4 Kate Rosenbarger District 2 Andy Ruff* At-Large Hopi Stosberg District 3, Council President Sydney Zulich District 6 City staff, officials, and guests present: Nicole Bolden City Clerk Lisa Lehner Council Attorney Christine Chang Temporary Council Researcher David Hittle Planning & Transportation, Director Jessica McClellan Controller Anna Killion-Hanson Housing and Neighborhood Development, Director Kerry Thomson Mayor Margie Rice Corporation Counsel Jane Kupersmith Economic & Sustainable Development, Director Andrew Cibor City Engineer Mike Diekhoff Police Chief Allison Thurmond Quinlan Principal Architect + Landscape Architect, Flintrock LAB 2. AGENDA SUMMATION [4:04pm] Stosberg summarized the agenda. 3. FRAMING REMARKS FROM THE MAYOR [4:04pm] Mayor Kerry Thomson introduced the Hopewell Planned Unit Development (PUD), which was drafted after four years of master planning, a task force, public feedback, council deliberation sessions, and consultations. The goal was to provide young professionals, or other groups such as seniors, with attainable housing. The administration aimed to have some units available by the end of 2026. Many units would be 80% or below of the Area Median Income (AMI). Compact lot and smaller home sizes would offer more affordable homeownership. 4. PRESENTATION OF HOPEWELL SOUTH [4:10pm] David Hittle, Planning & Transportation, Director, noted that PUDs allowed specific regulations and property type mixes that were not allowed in existing zones. He discussed Hopewell South, a three-block area which was proposed in 2018 and was part of the Bloomington Hospital Site Redevelopment Master Plan created in 2021. Themes included housing type diversity, neighborhood scale, walkability, connectivity, and adaptability. Hittle explained the process that PUDs go through. Thurmond Quinlan, Principal Architect + Landscape Architect, Flintrock LAB, presented the proposed development. They had designed a pre-approved plan program, which expedited processes and reduced costs, provided opportunities for local builders, and supported permanently Meeting Date: December 15, 2025 affordable homes. Architecture was selected to be compatible with neighborhood character and local demographics. Housing policy was built during the Boomer generation for a nuclear family of two adults with children, with three bedroom houses and large yards. American household sizes had shrunk, with only 26% being larger than two people, but American houses skewed large and 62% of homes had 3 or more bedrooms. More residential properties on smaller lots provided homebuyer affordability and more tax revenue, allowing cities to fund more infrastructure. Bloomington had few missing middle housing, much of which was illegalized through 1970s zoning codes. The Hopewell plan drew facets from historic villages with higher density, smaller streets, and pedestrian-friendly design. Bloomington’s platted alleys and deep lots allowed for building in the back and using alleys as frontages. Existing zoning allowed for twenty-eight lots, but the PUD would allow almost one hundred units. The proposal included a future police station, accessible housing units, green infrastructure, and pedestrian/public safety. The public program launch was planned for June 2026. 5. COUNCILMEMBER QUESTION AND ANSWER Piedmont-Smith and Rollo asked about housing price point, types, and lot plans. Thurmond Quinlan stated that the predicted average price point would be $400,000 if the area were zoned R4, but the proposal lowered the average to about $270,000. She explained unit affordability measured by AMI. Flaherty asked about zoning and multifamily housing. Thurmond Quinland stated that condo mortgage financing was more difficult. Even if a type of zoning was legal, they still had to handle building codes, financing, affordability, and other challenges. While a PUD was more complicated, the design provided attainable housing with buyer access to traditional mortgages. Rollo and Asare asked about developers, single efficiency units, and unit type mix. Thurmond Quinland stated that unit mix was matched with Bloomington household sizes and on market desirability. Bloomington had a high percentage of accessible units, and unit types were intermixed throughout the PUD. The Redevelopment Commission (RDC) could add another unit type to the housing catalog in the future, but lots would be built with a specific house type in mind. Flaherty asked about using a PUD versus an overlay, market-rate home affordability, and developing a new zoning district instead. Thurmond Quinlan did not believe an overlay could accomplish the same results. Smaller homes on their own lots was the best option for affordable homeownership. If the focus were on general affordability, the plan would likely have more multifamily rentals. Hopewell South was an opportunity to test code changes and custom street sections on a small, controlled scale and could be later assessed for citywide implementation. Additional council discussion and questions focused on public works, financing, and national and state legislation. Zulich expressed thanks and interest in the developer/lender aspect of the project. Flaherty appreciated the discussion but wished it had been held earlier in the process. Stosberg was concerned about using a PUD and thanked those involved. 6. ADJOURNMENT [5:38pm] Stosberg adjourned the meeting. APPROVED by the Common Council of the City of Bloomington, Monroe County, Indiana, upon this 04 ________ day March of __________________________________________, 2026. APPROVE: ATTEST: ____________________________________________ _____________________________________________ Isak Nti Asare, COUNCIL PRESIDENT City Clerk Nicole Bolden Clerk’s Note: The above memorandum summarizes the motions passed and issues discussed rather than providing a verbatim account of every word spoken. Bloomington City Council meetings can be watched on the following websites:  Community Action Television Services (CATS) – https://catvstv.net  YouTube – https://youtube.com/@citybloomington Background materials and packets are available at https://bloomington.in.gov/council 2