The City of Bloomington has released a report looking at digital equity among city residents. The report is intended to guide development of the city's digital equity strategic plan. Among the findings:
Click here to read the report.
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Bloomington Council is holding its 2021 budget hearings from Aug. 17 through Aug. 20. All sessions start at 6 p.m. Here’s the lineup: MONDAY, 8/17: Zoom link Overview, HR, Clerk, Legal, IT, Council, Controller, Mayor TUESDAY 8/18: Zoom link Fire and Police WEDNESDAY 8/19: Zoom link Public Transit, Housing Authority, HAND, Economic & Sustainable Development, Community & Family Resources, Parks & Rec THURSDAY 8/20: Zoom link Utilities, Planning & Transportation, Engineering (new department), Public Works (includes animal control, parking, street/traffic, etc.) Council Commentary The 338-page budget book with more materials is posted here. The Bloomington Parks & Recreation Department is surveying residents for its 2021-2025 master plan. Click here to take the survey. Click here to read the current 2016-2020 master plan. A master plan is required in order to receive grants from the state and federal government and other sources. It is also required for accreditation from the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA). In June, the Bloomington Board of Park Commissioners approved a $72,500 contract with Troyer Group Inc. to develop the plan. As part of ongoing work to develop the 24-acre site where the IU Health Bloomington Hospital is now located, the City of Bloomington is asking for feedback on preliminary design concepts. Consultants hired to develop the site's master plan (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill) have developed three concepts based on input so far. A presentation of their work is available here. Click here to take the survey. Click here to view the project's website. Note: This "It's Your Business" column by Erin Predmore, the Chamber's President & CEO, first appeared in the Aug. 14 issue of the Bloomington Herald-Times. Earlier this summer, we unveiled an important historical marker for our community as a whole, for the business community and, most importantly, for the Black business community. In the 1960s, a business called The Black Market operated in the spot where Peoples Park is located now. Owned and run by Indiana University grad student Rollo Turner, it was a Bloomington store celebrating Black culture, with African art, clothing and music. It was a welcoming place for Black IU students and community members to gather. On Dec. 26, 1968, in a violent reaction to the civil rights movement, the Black Market was firebombed. What was one moment a thriving, locally owned business and center for Black culture became in the next moment a burning symbol of hatred and racism. The store was destroyed in the fire. As time passed, this location became a gathering place for local students, civil rights activists and other residents. The family that owned it later gave this land to the city of Bloomington to be maintained forever as a public park — Peoples Park. But as time passed, the story of this place — The Black Market, the firebombing, and its place in the history of the local civil rights movement — was left behind. People stopped telling others about it, and many residents never knew what happened here. I first learned about this history almost two years ago, when the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce began working with leaders in the Black business community in an effort that led to the formation of the chamber’s Black-Owned Business Affinity Group. With their leadership, we partnered with the city of Bloomington to submit an application to the Indiana Historical Bureau. That work led to the installation of an historical marker at Peoples Park that we celebrated on July 31. But really, we were celebrating our community’s Black business owners and acknowledging that what happened here in 1968 still matters to Bloomington today. We forget that history at our peril. The treatment of people of color in Bloomington and Monroe County has been horrible, ranging from microaggressions at work to racial profiling to physical violence. Taking a stand against these behaviors is required by of all of us who want to be decent and humane. For those who don’t believe this is a moral issue or don’t acknowledge that racism still exists here, at least consider the economic impact of our community’s reputation. This summer, our office has fielded calls and emails from individuals and groups who were no longer willing to come to Bloomington because of the racist actions of some of our community members. In 2018, visitors spent over $418 million in Monroe County. What would we do if they all decided not to come back after the pandemic abates? Here’s another harsh reality, from the Monroe County Quality of Place & Workforce Retention Plan: “Minority residents do not feel the sense of welcoming community that Monroe County prides itself on. The legacy of the KKK in the region is remembered and felt today. Recruiters have trouble attracting diverse candidates to the region, to Monroe County, and to Bloomington.” Our community’s success is intricately tied to the success of our neighbors, friends and colleagues. We will all rise or fall together, and we can only rise by supporting those who need to be recognized as valuable members of our community. We must embrace the minority members of our community and stand for equality, equity and inclusion. To all people of color, the chamber is glad you are here. Three panelists representing different aspects of Bloomington's performing arts sector shared their views at an Aug. 13 Chamber Speaker Series event. Speakers were:
Topics in the wide-ranging discussion included the impact of COVID-19 on performing arts organizations, how groups are adapting in creative ways, infrastructure needs, ways that new collaborations are forming, and the need for ongoing support during these challenging times. According to a 2019 study commissioned by Cardinal Stage, the Bloomington/Monroe County performing arts sector adds over $4 million annually to the local economy and supports more than 160 jobs here. Click here to view a recording of the Speaker Series discussion. The Indiana Small Business Development Center and Indiana University Kelley School of Business are offering a no-cost technology consulting service to small businesses with the goal of establishing or increasing their online presence and/or creating digital capabilities. Eligible companies may apply for no-cost assistance to help establish or increase their online presence through website development, e-commerce support and other digital tools and services. Under this Project HOPE program, Kelley students and recent graduates are offered paid internships to assist small businesses in solving technology issues or providing new digital capabilities. Projects include creating or modifying websites, building e-commerce platforms, improving cybersecurity frameworks, migrating data, and more. Indiana small businesses can submit applications online here. For more information, contact Troy Phelps, Assistant Director for Ivy Tech Bloomington’s Gayle & Bill Cook Center For Entrepreneurship, at [email protected]. The South Central Indiana SBDC is housed at Ivy Tech Bloomington. Over 150 companies have been helped so far, with more than 80 in the pipeline. The project engages with 40 new clients every two weeks and will be continuing this level of engagement through the rest of 2020. The City of Bloomington released a housing assessment study that was commissioned in 2019, analyzing the current status of housing stock and identifying goals and actions to take. A sampling of findings:
Chamber CEO Erin Predmore served on the steering committee for this study. Click here to read the full report. The City of Bloomington has started a pilot program to convert parking spaces into additional spots for outdoor dining in the downtown area. Restaurants that want to create these “parklets” can apply to the city, which will then install barriers to protect the seating area. Businesses can apply online here. More information is available on the city's business resource page, or contact Kaisa Goodman at [email protected]. The program will be available at least through Sept. 30. |
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