BLOOMINGTON – Numerous infrastructure improvement projects are underway this season to advance community goals, including safety, sustainability, accessibility, equity, economic vitality, and quality of life in Bloomington.
The City will provide regular public updates on a range of these improvements as they progress. City departments coordinate with one another, as well as with private developers, to minimize the impact on Bloomington residents and visitors.
PARKS & RECREATION
Farmers’ Market: Bollards at City Hall
Bollards have been installed on the Morton Street entrance to the City Hall parking lot. Installation of a second set of bollards along the Rogers Street entrance to the parking lot, just east of the entrance to the CFC lot on the north side of the B-Line plaza began this week. During the installation process, the City Hall parking lot will not be accessible from Rogers Street via 8th Street, but there is access to the lot from Morton Street.
This closure will extend into next week to allow the concrete to properly cure. The CFC lot and the Trades District parking garage will both still be accessible from Rogers Street via 8th Street. These bollards will separate Bloomington Community Farmers’ Market customers from vehicle traffic and are in place during the Farmers’ Market; the entrance is open to vehicle traffic during times when the market is not in session.
Switchyard Park
On July 11, starting at approximately 7:30 a.m., Otto’s Parking Marking will paint arrows and a crosswalk at Switchyard Park’s Rogers Street entrance. The paint dries in 15 minutes and the work is expected to take a couple of hours. There may be a short-term and temporary disruption to entering the park during painting, but access will be possible at both the Grimes Lane and Walnut Street entrances.
UTILITIES
Hidden River Pathway Project
The two-year downtown stormwater infrastructure reconstruction project to prevent flooding during rain events will continue to necessitate the closure of East 4th Street between Lincoln and Grant. The City will coordinate with other construction and road projects as they reconstruct 1,829 feet of culverts to protect downtown area residential and commercial buildings. There will be no changes to the traffic pattern this week. However, Duke Energy will be de-energizing the lines in the alley between Soma and The Venue, so there may be some congestion in the alley when they are there working.
Evergreen Village Stormwater
City of Bloomington Utilities will be doing restoration work on a drainage ditch and detention pond in Evergreen Village, off Susie Street. Weather permitting, the project will be complete in early August.
PUBLIC WORKS
Street Paving
This week crews are milling and resurfacing on East 7th Street from North Union Street to Hillsdale Drive. This work is being completed in coordination with the City’s 7th Street Neighborhood Greenway project. Crews this week are installing ADA-compliant ramps ahead of scheduled resurfacing on East 13th Street from North Jackson Street to North Maple Street.
Engineering
E 14th Street
Landmark Construction placed a temporary asphalt surface on E 14th Street from N Walnut Street to N Dunn Street this week as a condition of the new development on the south side of the road. This section of E 14th Street will be reconstructed by the developer in the 2023 construction season.
E 17th Street Multiuse Path
E 17th Street between Walnut and Dunn temporarily remains open to one-way only eastbound traffic as a part of the city’s project to install a new multi-use path on the north side of the road. This week the eastbound traffic lane shifted to the north side of the road to provide the contractor space to construct new ADA-compliant sidewalk curb ramps on the south side of the road. The project is on schedule for substantial completion prior to IU’s move-in week and the first home football game.
Graham Neighborhood Greenway
Work is underway to construct neighborhood greenway improvements on Graham Drive between Rockport Street and Bryan Street, in addition to traffic calming on Ralston Drive between Rockport Street and Rogers Street. Neighborhood Greenways are low-speed, low-volume, shared-space streets that create high-comfort walking and bicycling connections.
Crosswalk Improvements
Construction has begun on the City’s project to improve the crosswalks at 3rd and Grant, 3rd and Patterson Drive, and 11th and Blair. The Project will include improved pedestrian crossings at all three locations. Work is anticipated to be completed by the end of the summer.
Hopewell Phase 1 East Demo
The City anticipates demolition activities may start as early as late July at the Hopewell Phase 1 East project site bounded by 2nd Street to the north, 1st Street to the south, B-Line to the east, and Rogers Street to the west. Some activities may begin next week including the installation of site fencing, equipment mobilization, and building preparations for demolition. Additional information about the project and the contractor can be found at the following links: https://bton.in/mRp~I, hopewellbloomington.org & renascentinc.com.
