(BLOOMINGTON) – The Brighten B-town initiative marks its first milestone Monday, May 13 at 8:30 a.m. in People’s Park with a celebration of the completion of service delivery to the first of ten geographical zones slated for coverage.
Since April 1, staff from multiple City of Bloomington departments have coordinated efforts to deliver upkeep and maintenance services to Zone 1 (an area bounded by Indiana Avenue and Rogers Street, and 2nd and 10th Streets), has made the following improvements:
- 7,562 pounds of debris have been removed from streets.
- 94 fire hydrants have been painted, and all hydrants have been flushed.
- 537 stormwater inlets have been cleaned.
- 4,666 linear feet of curb has been painted. Remaining curbs are being cleaned and prepped for painting.
- 92 truckloads of mulch have been spread.
- 12 trees have been planted.
Downtown Bloomington, Inc. and area businesses will sponsor a breakfast celebration for all the Public Works, Parks and Recreation, and utility staff contributing to Brighten B-town. (In case of rain, the event will be held inside Bloomington Bagel Company, 113 N. Dunn St.).
Following the event, crews will proceed to Zone 2 (bounded by Rogers and Adams Streets, and 2nd and 11th Streets), where they will continue to work block by block to deliver services in tandem. Brighten B-town progress may be charted at https://data.bloomington.in.gov/dataset/brighten-b-town-status
Last Thursday, May 2, the City hosted visioning sessions in which city employees, business leaders, and the public interacted with representatives from CSO Architects and construction manager F.A. Wilhelm to share information and receive feedback about the Fourth Street parking garage. Items discussed included architectural considerations, safety concerns, the facility’s public art component, and its sustainability.
Key features under consideration include more than 200 additional parking spaces, retail space, public art, ten electric vehicle charging stations, solar panels to offset electrical needs, bicycle parking, dedicated carpool parking, and public restrooms.
The garage is currently being decommissioned in preparation for demolition, which is scheduled to begin this summer. Completion of the new facility is anticipated by the end of 2020. Bloomington Common Council voted in March to approve funding for a complete rebuild and expansion of the facility when structural analysis revealed that the cost of repairing the existing garage exceeded previous estimates.
City-led infrastructure improvement projects continue as follows:
Sanitary sewer infrastructure updates that will serve the new IU Health Bloomington Hospital continues, restricting Range Rd. to eastbound traffic only, with access from the State Road 45/46 Bypass and exit only at E. 10th St. The closure began on April 15, 2019, and will end May 15, 2019.
City of Bloomington Street Division staff paving the roadway at S. Summerwood Ct. in the Wylie Farms Neighborhood.
The 17th Street Reconstruction Project has required the temporary relocation of the Bloomington Transit bus stop at Lismore Dr. and W. 17th St. to the roundabout located at Arlington Rd. and W. 17th St. The bus stop will return to its original location before the completion of the project, scheduled for the fall of 2019. More information about the project can be found at https://bloomington.in.gov/engineering/projects/17th
Construction of the missing gap in the existing multi-use path along the north side of 2nd/Bloomfield Road between Adams Street and Patterson Drive continues with the installation of sidewalks and curb ramps at the intersection of S. Patterson Dr. and W. 2nd St. This project will construct a multi-use path along the north side of W. 2nd St/W. Bloomfield Rd. from S. Patterson Dr. to S. Adams St.
It will also construct improvements for the signalized intersections of W. Bloomfield Rd. at S. Landmark Ave. and W. 2nd Street at S. Patterson Dr. The project is included in the Bloomington/Monroe County Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) Transportation Improvement Plan (TIP) and is programmed with federal funding for preliminary engineering ($104,331), construction engineering ($50,491), and construction ($743,376).
Construction completion is slated for fall 2019. More information about the Second & Bloomfield Multimodal Safety Project is available at https://bloomington.in.gov/engineering/projects/bloomfield
An Indiana University-led project has required traffic to be rerouted on E. 10th St. between Fee Ln. and Jordan Ave. from May 6-19. The replacement of the roof of the Wells Library has required a crane to be positioned in the street. The closure was approved by the Board of Public Works (BPW) at its April 30 meeting.
Traffic restrictions will also be in place on S. Walnut St. from May 6 through August 1, 2020, for demolition and removal of debris in preparation for the construction of Urban Station II. Grand Contracting, LLC was approved for a temporary alley, sidewalk and bike lane closure at 321 S. Walnut St between W. Smith Ave. and W. 3rd St. by the BPW April 30. The contractor has also requested temporary, intermittent lane closures in the eastern lane of S. Walnut St. to accommodate construction material deliveries. These lane closures will take place outside of the rush hour traffic times of 7 – 9 a.m. and 3 – 6 p.m. The use of right of way would begin on May 6, 2019, and end on or before August 1, 2020. Grand Contracting LLC has been working with the City and adjacent property owners to collaborate on logistics as the build-out continues. The contractor will coordinate with Bloomington Transit on the temporary relocation, removal, and replacement of the bus stop adjacent to the construction site. The anticipated completion date for this project is August 1, 2020.
Public Works’ Streets Division is currently paving streets in the Wylie Farms Neighborhood. Paving will start along Dunn St. between N. Old State Road 37 and the S.R. 45/46 Bypass during the week of May 13 after a one-week weather-related delay. The department updates the paving schedule at this map: https://bloomington.in.gov/interactive/maps/pavingschedule
