WEBVTT 00:00:00.866 --> 00:00:12.299 - OK. Good evening everyone. Let me call to order this special hearing of the city of Bloomington Plan 00:00:12.299 --> 00:00:23.392 - Commission for October 28th 2026. Let's start just with a roll call for attendance. Burrell here. 00:00:23.392 --> 00:00:29.278 - Bishop here. Seabourn. Co Brodke here. Holmes here. 00:00:31.202 --> 00:00:43.879 - Here Smith here Stossberg Whistler here Morris here no Kinsey All right Looks like we do have a quorum. 00:00:43.879 --> 00:00:56.312 - So with that we'll continue the meeting and I'm gonna turn it over to our director link going Tell us 00:00:56.312 --> 00:00:58.750 - why we're here Lynn 00:01:00.482 --> 00:01:08.663 - I'll sort of turn this way because it's as much for our audience today as it is for us. So purpose of 00:01:08.663 --> 00:01:17.326 - this meeting this is a special hearing that the plan commission the city of Bloomington is holding pursuant 00:01:17.326 --> 00:01:25.427 - to House Bill 1001 that was passed last year by the Indiana legislature. The Indiana legislature did 00:01:25.427 --> 00:01:29.598 - a lot of work on what they thought they could do to 00:01:29.698 --> 00:01:35.967 - improve the availability and affordability of housing. And they adopted several statutes. There's a 00:01:35.967 --> 00:01:42.674 - great deal of data collection that we're going to do that will get submitted to the state. Every community 00:01:42.674 --> 00:01:49.006 - is doing this, not just us. So all the units of government are doing the same thing that we're doing 00:01:49.006 --> 00:01:55.337 - here tonight. And one of the requirements of the statute was is that we hold a hearing and get input 00:01:55.337 --> 00:01:58.910 - from the community on our unified development ordinance. 00:01:59.266 --> 00:02:17.618 - specifically related to housing. So Eric, could you pop up that first slide? Just a second here. Yeah. 00:02:17.618 --> 00:02:26.526 - Next. There you go. Nope, back one. There you go. 00:02:27.234 --> 00:02:33.541 - So what this is, you don't have to read this. This is the actual text of the statute, and it talks about 00:02:33.541 --> 00:02:39.608 - what we would like to do here today. And there's a bunch of things we wanna get input on. It doesn't 00:02:39.608 --> 00:02:45.615 - have to be specifically to each one of these, but it's general input, but this is what the state is 00:02:45.615 --> 00:02:51.743 - sort of looking for us to consider. And so we wanna hear from you tonight. This is your meeting, this 00:02:51.743 --> 00:02:54.686 - is why we're holding this, is for you to tell us 00:02:55.138 --> 00:03:01.593 - any thoughts you may have about the unified development ordinance of housing, attainability, affordability, 00:03:01.593 --> 00:03:07.690 - and so forth. It's a very high priority for the mayor. So this affords us with a great opportunity to 00:03:07.690 --> 00:03:13.787 - do this. And that's what we're about. So the next thing I'd like to do is I will turn it over to Eric 00:03:13.787 --> 00:03:20.003 - Grulick, our management of development services, who will explain what we have done so far. And it may, 00:03:20.003 --> 00:03:22.334 - maybe this will trigger something that 00:03:23.138 --> 00:03:29.984 - You'll think of and you can have a comment based on on what you hear. But we have already done quite 00:03:29.984 --> 00:03:36.829 - a few things to move housing forward. So with that Mr. President I will turn it over to Eric Grulick 00:03:36.829 --> 00:03:40.286 - and he will give you this quick report. Thank you. 00:03:45.762 --> 00:03:52.443 - services manager. So as our director explained, you know, we are required to have this hearing to go 00:03:52.443 --> 00:03:54.494 - through certain aspects of HB. 00:03:54.594 --> 00:04:00.993 - that were directed toward all communities within Indiana to look at their unified development ordinance 00:04:00.993 --> 00:04:07.146 - for certain areas of improvement to promote housing within the community. We had already started to 00:04:07.146 --> 00:04:13.484 - initiate a lot of these aspects, and some of these were already things that were allowed by our zoning 00:04:13.484 --> 00:04:19.884 - code. So by the time the legislation ended up being passed and enacted, we were well on our way towards 00:04:19.884 --> 00:04:24.560 - bringing forward legislation that was looking to amend some of the sections 00:04:24.560 --> 00:04:31.902 - of our zoning code that were addressed with House Bill 10 0 1. So one of the things that the House Bill 00:04:31.902 --> 00:04:38.750 - directed us to do or communities specifically was to look for areas to allow additional housing. 00:04:38.946 --> 00:04:44.661 - in a variety of different housing types within the community. And so there is language in there, as 00:04:44.661 --> 00:04:50.662 - I mentioned, that was already enabled within the zoning code, for instance, allowing buildings and mixed 00:04:50.662 --> 00:04:56.549 - use districts to have multifamily dwellings within there. So our unified development ordinance already 00:04:56.549 --> 00:05:02.722 - allowed for that. There was language that directed us, directed communities to allow for accessory dwelling 00:05:02.722 --> 00:05:08.894 - units in all zoning districts where residential units are allowed. Again, our UDO already allowed for that. 00:05:09.058 --> 00:05:16.563 - provide a path for duplexes, triplexes, and fourplexes in residential zoning districts. And so our unified 00:05:16.563 --> 00:05:23.927 - development ordinance allowed for that as well. And then there was also language regarding certain other 00:05:23.927 --> 00:05:31.151 - aspects regarding floor area ratio, minimum garage sizes, and roof pitches. A lot of those were things 00:05:31.151 --> 00:05:39.006 - that the unified development ordinance did not restrict. So we were already kind of ahead of the curve on that. 00:05:39.554 --> 00:05:45.890 - We have two packages of amendments that were in the works or were coming forward around the time that 00:05:45.890 --> 00:05:52.350 - this was coming in. Some of those have already been passed. So the count of the Plain Commission heard. 00:05:52.802 --> 00:05:59.070 - amendments to the zoning code related to the council resolution which directed us to look at several 00:05:59.070 --> 00:06:05.338 - things setbacks minimum lot size minimum lot area subdivision standards parking minimums. Those were 00:06:05.338 --> 00:06:11.668 - all things that were addressed in the council resolution. There were also components of HB 10 0 1 and 00:06:11.668 --> 00:06:15.454 - I'll briefly kind of step through some of those in a minute. 00:06:16.066 --> 00:06:21.802 - And then there were other aspects that were part of the U.D.O. amendments related to housing 00:06:21.802 --> 00:06:28.155 - and sustainability that the Plain Commission just heard on October 12th that is making its way to city 00:06:28.155 --> 00:06:34.631 - council that attended to lead to be heard on November 4th. And that was related to some of the standards 00:06:34.631 --> 00:06:39.134 - regarding duplexes accessory dwelling units and then also cottage homes. 00:06:39.586 --> 00:06:45.278 - So real briefly, I'll just kind of step through some of the things that were specifically mentioned 00:06:45.278 --> 00:06:51.083 - in HB1001, how those might already be allowed by the Unified Development Ordinance, and then how some 00:06:51.083 --> 00:06:57.059 - of the changes that we were bringing forward addressed some of those. So the first statement was provide 00:06:57.059 --> 00:07:01.214 - for a higher density development of duplexes, triplexes, and fourplexes. 00:07:01.410 --> 00:07:08.002 - So density we don't really regulate within the UDO as we had historically done in terms of units per 00:07:08.002 --> 00:07:14.789 - acre. Instead of the number of units or the houses that you can get on a lot is controlled by setbacks, 00:07:14.789 --> 00:07:21.315 - impervious surface coverage, and just the raw amount of lots that are available to be developed. So 00:07:21.315 --> 00:07:27.646 - we addressed a lot of those standards that were limiting how much could be done on a property by 00:07:27.810 --> 00:07:35.117 - Removing or reducing a lot of the side yard setback standards increasing the impervious surface coverage 00:07:35.117 --> 00:07:42.564 - and then adjusting the Minimal lot area and minimum lot with standards to allow for new lots to be created 00:07:42.564 --> 00:07:45.278 - that would allow for new housing to be 00:07:46.178 --> 00:07:52.650 - constructed on those lots. So some of those standards with the setbacks and previous surface coverage 00:07:52.650 --> 00:07:59.123 - was addressed with the council resolution. The language specifically regarding duplexes triplexes and 00:07:59.123 --> 00:08:05.595 - fourplexes was just most recently heard at the October meeting where the staff is proposing to remove 00:08:05.595 --> 00:08:09.022 - the 150 foot buffer and the maximum maximum number of 00:08:09.122 --> 00:08:15.125 - duplexes that are allowed within a calendar year. So that will be heard by the council soon. So that 00:08:15.125 --> 00:08:21.186 - is how we address that particular aspect. Again as I mentioned with the minimum lot sizes and minimum 00:08:21.186 --> 00:08:24.990 - lot width we propose several reductions within the code and the 00:08:25.250 --> 00:08:31.135 - City Council amended those a little bit as well to allow for new lofts to be created that were substantially 00:08:31.135 --> 00:08:36.643 - smaller than what they had historically been to mimic a lot of the historic development patterns that 00:08:36.643 --> 00:08:42.096 - we had seen within the neighborhoods within Bloomington. So we were we were addressing that criteria 00:08:42.096 --> 00:08:44.094 - with those two series of amendments. 00:08:44.386 --> 00:08:50.357 - Um, the next regarding, uh, attached dwelling units, uh, accessory dwelling units. Again, this has been 00:08:50.357 --> 00:08:56.328 - in the zoning code, uh, the unified development ordinance for a long time. Um, so we were already ahead 00:08:56.328 --> 00:09:02.357 - of the curve with that. Uh, some of the language within HB 10 01 addressed, uh, the definition and size, 00:09:02.357 --> 00:09:08.385 - um, that went along with accessory dwelling units. Um, so in the housing attainability amendment package 00:09:08.385 --> 00:09:13.438 - that the planning commission just heard, um, we were proposing to amend our definition. 00:09:14.114 --> 00:09:20.541 - of accessory dwelling units to reflect that new language within the HP-1001 regarding the maximum size. 00:09:20.541 --> 00:09:27.091 - So we were already kind of working with that language. As I mentioned, the third, one of the other things 00:09:27.091 --> 00:09:33.456 - was the adaptive reuse of commercial buildings to allow for multifamily units within those. Again, our 00:09:33.456 --> 00:09:40.254 - zoning code already allowed for that. We did make some changes several years ago that removed the requirement 00:09:40.386 --> 00:09:46.269 - or the restriction on ground floor dwelling units. So within all of our multifamily and commercial districts 00:09:46.269 --> 00:09:51.882 - now you can have ground floor dwelling units and dwelling units throughout the building. So this allows 00:09:51.882 --> 00:09:57.549 - for reuse of buildings commercial buildings that had been historically used for commercial uses to allow 00:09:57.549 --> 00:09:59.006 - for those to be converted. 00:09:59.714 --> 00:10:06.301 - to multifamily uses. One of the other restrictions regarded floor area ratio. A lot of communities in 00:10:06.301 --> 00:10:12.759 - Indiana have this restriction and it deals with massing of a building on a property relative to the 00:10:12.759 --> 00:10:19.346 - size of that property. We did previously regulate floor area ratio but that was removed in 2007 so we 00:10:19.346 --> 00:10:24.190 - no longer regulate that component so there was nothing to be done on that. 00:10:24.450 --> 00:10:31.372 - The fifth regulation or the fifth section of HB 1001 dealt with several different things, seven different 00:10:31.372 --> 00:10:38.032 - aspects, garage size and placement. We don't have a minimum size for garages, so there was nothing to 00:10:38.032 --> 00:10:44.758 - be done on that. The UDO does somewhat regulate placement in terms of the location of detached garages 00:10:44.758 --> 00:10:51.745 - relative to the house, but we did not see that as really something that had prevented housing. But really, 00:10:51.745 --> 00:10:53.182 - I think going back to 00:10:53.858 --> 00:10:58.820 - just a requirement that there is no minimum and you don't have to have a garage that in and of itself 00:10:58.820 --> 00:11:03.686 - doesn't really restrict a development on a property because you're not required to have a garage or 00:11:03.686 --> 00:11:04.318 - any parking. 00:11:04.738 --> 00:11:10.689 - As I mentioned steeper roof pitch there's nothing in the UDO that requires steep roof pitches so there 00:11:10.689 --> 00:11:16.523 - was really nothing to address with that. As I mentioned with the minimum lot size and square footage 00:11:16.523 --> 00:11:22.358 - aspect of HB 1001 that was addressed with the council resolution. So we already amended the language 00:11:22.358 --> 00:11:27.038 - for that as well as for the greater setbacks that we substantially reduce those. 00:11:27.202 --> 00:11:33.723 - Off-street parking again that was addressed with the council resolution where all minimum parking 00:11:33.723 --> 00:11:40.776 - requirements were removed within the city as a whole So that was addressed Design standards that restrict 00:11:40.776 --> 00:11:47.564 - or prohibit the use of code compliant products a lot of this this particular one deals with You know, 00:11:47.564 --> 00:11:50.558 - I think a lot of interior Aspects of a house 00:11:50.722 --> 00:11:57.269 - The UDO does have language regarding exterior finishing materials, and while there is a list of specific 00:11:57.269 --> 00:12:03.629 - things, there is flexibility within the UDO that allows for us to consider other comparable materials 00:12:03.629 --> 00:12:10.175 - if they replicate the design and appearance of approved materials, so we already had an allowance within 00:12:10.175 --> 00:12:13.854 - that. And then property height limitations was the seventh 00:12:13.954 --> 00:12:20.402 - component of this section five. And as I kind of mentioned you know we haven't really encountered especially 00:12:20.402 --> 00:12:26.614 - within the single family districts the current height limitations that are in place. You know they allow 00:12:26.614 --> 00:12:32.648 - for you know oftentimes up to a three story building. Very rarely do we see those kind of coming into 00:12:32.648 --> 00:12:38.564 - play. So you haven't really encountered any challenges with the height restrictions that are in the 00:12:38.564 --> 00:12:40.990 - unified development ordinance currently. 00:12:41.442 --> 00:12:50.391 - So kind of finishing out the last list here, the HB 1001 directed municipalities to review impact fee 00:12:50.391 --> 00:12:59.516 - zones. We don't have impact fees or impact fee zones. So there was nothing to do there. The next aspect 00:12:59.516 --> 00:13:04.254 - regarded review processes for permits. So there was a 00:13:05.218 --> 00:13:11.809 - House bill that was passed later last year regarding class two permits that gave specific timelines 00:13:11.809 --> 00:13:18.400 - for review of class two permits. So there is already a mandate for those. But then again as well we 00:13:18.400 --> 00:13:25.189 - had already started an internal review of our permitting and review processes. So we're looking we had 00:13:25.189 --> 00:13:31.582 - already started to review what we could do internally to expedite permits and site plan reviews. 00:13:31.714 --> 00:13:37.541 - as well as there are already provisions in the UDO currently that allow for a lot of things to be done 00:13:37.541 --> 00:13:43.199 - at staff level. When we did the updates to the UDO in 2019, we altered the things that had to go to 00:13:43.199 --> 00:13:49.027 - the planning commission. So certainly as the planning commission has seen, you don't see a lot of site 00:13:49.027 --> 00:13:52.478 - plan approvals because a lot of that was delegated to staff. 00:13:52.738 --> 00:13:58.465 - So we've already made amendments within the U.D.O. to give staff the ability to review that at staff 00:13:58.465 --> 00:14:04.135 - level without having to make people go through a formal playing commission review process. And then 00:14:04.135 --> 00:14:09.805 - the last two aspects of the House bill related to property tax abatements to enable higher density. 00:14:09.805 --> 00:14:15.815 - That's not something that the playing commission or the U.D.O. regulates. So that's something that really 00:14:15.815 --> 00:14:19.614 - that the council would be involved with. And then the last aspect. 00:14:19.906 --> 00:14:26.033 - dealt with donating land, vacant land for affordable housing development. Again, that's not really something 00:14:26.033 --> 00:14:31.879 - that falls under the Planning Commission or the UDO purview. So that's not something that we can really 00:14:31.879 --> 00:14:37.500 - address with this. You know, a lot of the language within the HB 1001 was aimed at communities as a 00:14:37.500 --> 00:14:43.290 - whole and trying to identify ways to increase housing within the community. So some of the things were 00:14:43.290 --> 00:14:48.574 - things that could be addressed with a unified development ordinance. Some of the other things 00:14:48.770 --> 00:14:55.843 - depending on how the community is arranged, you know, is really best addressed for more of the legislative 00:14:55.843 --> 00:15:02.717 - branch for tax abatements or the administrative branch for, you know, donating land. So with that, just 00:15:02.717 --> 00:15:09.658 - to kind of summarize, a lot of the language within HB 1001 was already well underway. I would say almost 00:15:09.658 --> 00:15:13.822 - 70 percent of it has already been achieved, either through the 00:15:13.922 --> 00:15:21.583 - resolution amendments or things within the unified development ordinance that were already enabled. 00:15:21.583 --> 00:15:29.550 - So the last aspect regarding duplexes and cottage homes and the ADU definition will be heard by council 00:15:29.550 --> 00:15:37.288 - next week and we'll hopefully be moving through that process very expeditiously. And so that kind of 00:15:37.288 --> 00:15:43.646 - concludes my presentation. I'll turn it back over to our director. Thank you Eric. 00:15:44.194 --> 00:15:50.425 - A lot of technical stuff. I hope you understand what we've been working on this for quite a while. We're 00:15:50.425 --> 00:15:56.537 - moving it forward. But now to the point of this hearing which is where we want to hear from the public 00:15:56.537 --> 00:16:02.827 - your thoughts on the U.D.O. and going forward. So I'll turn it back to you. Sure. Thank you. There really 00:16:02.827 --> 00:16:08.880 - is no commission action tonight. We're not going to have any discussion amongst the commission. We're 00:16:08.880 --> 00:16:11.550 - just going to go straight to public comment. 00:16:11.778 --> 00:16:17.080 - Just as a reminder our rules on public comment anyone wants to speak and have up to three minutes to 00:16:17.080 --> 00:16:22.382 - speak if you want to if you're here in the council chambers and you like to speak just make your way 00:16:22.382 --> 00:16:27.789 - up to the podium I would appreciate if you state your name for the record before you give your comment 00:16:27.789 --> 00:16:33.039 - if you're joining us online and you like to comment you just click on that react button and there's 00:16:33.039 --> 00:16:36.766 - a raise hand option or you can send a chat message to the meeting host 00:16:36.866 --> 00:16:42.134 - and we will recognize you when it is your turn to speak. We'll try to alternate back and forth between 00:16:42.134 --> 00:16:47.248 - comments in the room and online comments if we have enough folks who are waiting online. But if you 00:16:47.248 --> 00:16:51.390 - would like to make comment, just step on up to the podium and we'll get started. 00:17:15.426 --> 00:17:22.280 - Good evening, I'm Kari Bennett. I am operations director with Habitat for Humanity of Monroe County. 00:17:22.280 --> 00:17:29.135 - I did submit comments to the planning department, which they acknowledged and will be in the record. 00:17:29.135 --> 00:17:36.057 - Those were fairly specific. And so I wanted to take just a little bit of time this afternoon to maybe 00:17:36.057 --> 00:17:43.454 - raise the discussion up a little bit and share our perspectives on housing in Bloomington and Monroe County. 00:17:44.002 --> 00:17:51.371 - There are many factors that contribute to high home costs. That's for both new homes and existing homes. 00:17:51.371 --> 00:17:58.530 - The cost of land, the cost of infrastructure, cost of materials, the cost of labor, all of those have 00:17:58.530 --> 00:18:05.618 - gone up significantly in the past five years. Local planning jurisdictions like this one really have 00:18:05.618 --> 00:18:10.110 - no control over those and those factors, and we recognize that. 00:18:10.242 --> 00:18:18.325 - What you do control is zoning and land use. We very much appreciate the recent work that has been done 00:18:18.325 --> 00:18:26.643 - to reduce minimum lot sizes and wits setbacks other changes that Mr. Grulick walked through in his report 00:18:26.643 --> 00:18:27.742 - this evening. 00:18:27.810 --> 00:18:36.210 - And we urge you keep going work with the local community members and housing providers and see what 00:18:36.210 --> 00:18:45.114 - else is possible in our minds. The goal is there are more homes of all types being built in our community 00:18:45.114 --> 00:18:53.514 - being remodeled in our community being rehabbed. And a key in particular for low and middle incomes 00:18:53.514 --> 00:18:56.286 - is more homes per square foot or 00:18:56.386 --> 00:19:03.826 - more homes per acre that allows us to spread those fixed costs like land and infrastructure over more 00:19:03.826 --> 00:19:11.265 - households. So I'll just leave that with you as as food for thought and appreciate the opportunity to 00:19:11.265 --> 00:19:14.110 - make comments this evening. Thank you. 00:19:26.754 --> 00:19:34.693 - Good evening. I am Kristen Weida. I am the CEO of Indiana Uplands Realtor Association. I am here representing 00:19:34.693 --> 00:19:41.983 - the realtors of your community and your constituents who own and rent homes here. I'm going to speak 00:19:41.983 --> 00:19:49.272 - a little bit on the commercial portion of the UDO this evening vacant commercial properties can have 00:19:49.272 --> 00:19:51.582 - negative impact on a community. 00:19:51.746 --> 00:19:58.196 - Empty buildings and storefronts discourage investments They reduce economic activity and they make an 00:19:58.196 --> 00:20:04.646 - area appear less vibrant than it truly is In many cases property owners and business owners are ready 00:20:04.646 --> 00:20:11.160 - to reinvest but current regulations can make it difficult expensive and time-consuming to bring vacant 00:20:11.160 --> 00:20:13.310 - properties back to productive use 00:20:13.634 --> 00:20:20.047 - By reducing unnecessary barriers we encourage redevelopment attract new business and turn vacant buildings 00:20:20.047 --> 00:20:26.160 - into assets that benefit the entire community. These changes recognize that our goal should not be to 00:20:26.160 --> 00:20:32.693 - preserving vacancy but encouraging investment and revitalization. A more flexible and predictable regulatory 00:20:32.693 --> 00:20:38.806 - framework makes it easier for property owners to adapt existing buildings to meet today's needs while 00:20:38.806 --> 00:20:42.462 - still protecting the character and quality of our community. 00:20:43.394 --> 00:20:49.907 - Every time a vacant building vacant building becomes occupied we gain more than just a tenant. We gain 00:20:49.907 --> 00:20:56.293 - jobs tax revenue customers for neighboring businesses and renowned confidence in that future of that 00:20:56.293 --> 00:21:02.869 - area. One example of a change with our current regulation is parking requirements for vacant commercial 00:21:02.869 --> 00:21:10.014 - properties. When a new business moves into existing building it frequently is required to remove parking spaces. 00:21:10.754 --> 00:21:17.423 - even if those spaces are needed for customers and employees. This can lead to more parking on nearby 00:21:17.423 --> 00:21:24.025 - streets and unnecessary removal of pavement, which is then put into a landfill. Instead of removing 00:21:24.025 --> 00:21:30.760 - needed parking, we should focus on solutions that provide greater environmental benefit. For example, 00:21:30.760 --> 00:21:37.561 - businesses could be required to remove invasive species on their property and replace them with native 00:21:37.561 --> 00:21:39.806 - plants to help manage stormwater, 00:21:39.906 --> 00:21:45.471 - Or do a carbon offset such as providing tree plantings and current community green spaces So 00:21:45.471 --> 00:21:51.456 - these improvements can benefit the environment while we are still helping vacant properties attract 00:21:51.456 --> 00:21:57.680 - new investment and productive uses Good planning balances sustainability with practicality by providing 00:21:57.680 --> 00:22:03.664 - flexibility and encouraging creative solutions We can reduce vacancies support local investment and 00:22:03.664 --> 00:22:08.990 - achieve our environmental goals without creating unnecessary obstacles for redevelopment 00:22:09.378 --> 00:22:16.617 - I encourage the plan commission to support these changes and help create a regulatory environment that 00:22:16.617 --> 00:22:23.293 - welcomes investment promotes revitalization and strengthens our communities for years to come. 00:22:23.293 --> 00:22:30.461 - Thank you. We do have at least two people online with their hands raised. OK let's go ahead and we'll 00:22:30.461 --> 00:22:37.278 - go to those two online commenters and then we'll come back to more comment here in the chambers. 00:22:40.578 --> 00:22:47.811 - Deborah Meyerson, you should be able to speak. I'm Deborah Meyerson. I'm a resident of Bloomington. 00:22:47.811 --> 00:22:55.550 - I also work as an urban planning consultant and my work is focused on housing policy that takes me looking 00:22:55.550 --> 00:23:02.783 - at communities around the country. And so I'm really excited to see what the state has proposed for 00:23:02.783 --> 00:23:09.726 - communities statewide and how Bloomington is aligning and exceeding some of those expectations. 00:23:10.050 --> 00:23:16.949 - I particularly want to focus on that zoning, yes, is important, but it's the review process that can 00:23:16.949 --> 00:23:23.985 - be very impactful. And I know that Mr. Grulick talked about that in his overview. But that's something 00:23:23.985 --> 00:23:30.952 - that the zoning determines what's allowed. The review process determines what actually gets built. So 00:23:30.952 --> 00:23:37.919 - a duplex that's hermited on paper but takes many months of review with an uncertain result can be out 00:23:37.919 --> 00:23:39.422 - of reach for a local, 00:23:39.650 --> 00:23:47.059 - small-scale builders that we want to attract. So every month of delay adds to the interest, the holding 00:23:47.059 --> 00:23:54.396 - cost, the risk, and renters and buyers end up paying for that, or the project might just never happen. 00:23:54.396 --> 00:24:01.520 - And so just some examples of what can help includes, you may know of how South Bend has developed a 00:24:01.520 --> 00:24:07.646 - pre-approved catalog of homes. Certainly what Bloomington has started with with ADUs, 00:24:07.842 --> 00:24:14.951 - Their plans include homes, small multiplexes, and so that expedites the review process to go to site 00:24:14.951 --> 00:24:22.061 - review as opposed to a very long and lengthy review process that can precede that in many cases. And 00:24:22.061 --> 00:24:28.677 - that catalog has produced more than 90 homes since 2022, many by first-time local developers. 00:24:28.677 --> 00:24:35.294 - So the steps, again, it sounds like some of them are already underway, but include approving, 00:24:35.458 --> 00:24:42.146 - Code compliant projects administratively, if the project meets the code that's being improved, staff 00:24:42.146 --> 00:24:49.231 - against staff approval, just approve it without discretionary hearings. Run reviews in parallel as opposed 00:24:49.231 --> 00:24:55.919 - to sequentially so that planning, engineering, utilities can review ideally at the same time so that 00:24:55.919 --> 00:25:03.070 - applicants can receive one consolidated set of comments as a way to again help expedite the review process. 00:25:03.810 --> 00:25:11.635 - Setting and publishing firm review deadlines. Builders can then plan around a known timeline, but they 00:25:11.635 --> 00:25:19.384 - can't plan around uncertainty. And then finally, returning to the idea of a pre-approved plan catalog 00:25:19.384 --> 00:25:27.056 - for small neighborhood scale housing types. All of those will be a huge asset and again, I feel like 00:25:27.056 --> 00:25:32.830 - the state element as well as the local efforts are working to advance that. 00:25:32.994 --> 00:25:41.093 - appreciate those efforts, and look forward to their success. Thank you. Thank you. Christopher, you 00:25:41.093 --> 00:25:49.678 - should be able to speak. Yeah, good evening, plant commission. This is Christopher Emdry from the Greater 00:25:49.678 --> 00:25:57.534 - Bloomington Chamber of Commerce. First, I'll endorse the comments of Ms. Minner from the Habitat 00:25:57.986 --> 00:26:03.374 - and Ms. White has commentary on commercial property. I'll be sticking with just residential tonight. 00:26:03.374 --> 00:26:08.762 - Last week, the Chamber spoke at the County Planning Commission about the needs to remove barriers to 00:26:08.762 --> 00:26:14.470 - housing and economic growth, and there was quite a few barriers. Tonight, I want to recognize the progress 00:26:14.470 --> 00:26:19.911 - Bloomington is already making. The city's moving in the right direction, moving towards shedding that 00:26:19.911 --> 00:26:25.406 - hard to do business stigma that has stuck with us for quite some time. Mr. Grulick kind of spelled out 00:26:25.538 --> 00:26:30.936 - progress we've been making. And I want to consider a couple of those things. So real meaningful UDO 00:26:30.936 --> 00:26:36.388 - reforms that have eliminated some parking minimums and reduced some lot size and setbacks and create 00:26:36.388 --> 00:26:41.894 - some more flexibility within housing development and continue to move movement on Hopewell and Summit 00:26:41.894 --> 00:26:47.453 - District, which are two significant opportunities to expand the supply of housing. And the independent 00:26:47.453 --> 00:26:51.070 - permitting audit that identified longstanding problems with delays 00:26:51.362 --> 00:26:57.365 - inconsistent reviews and departmental coordination that we hear from our members all of the time. More 00:26:57.365 --> 00:27:03.368 - importantly, the city is here to address those findings. I want to kudos to the mayor's office and the 00:27:03.368 --> 00:27:09.430 - leadership of Lynn Coyne whose experience and understanding of development has been completely valuable 00:27:09.430 --> 00:27:15.316 - in the department as director. And none of this means the work's finished. We still need predictable 00:27:15.316 --> 00:27:21.086 - approvals and infrastructure planning and regulation to make housing easier to build, we've heard. 00:27:21.378 --> 00:27:27.051 - Ms. Meyers handle on some of those. But I also want to recognize this commission. I watched the plant 00:27:27.051 --> 00:27:32.224 - plant commission for quite a few years and I got to believe Bloomington is one of the finest 00:27:32.224 --> 00:27:38.064 - plant commissions in Indiana. We take our responsibilities seriously. There's difficult questions asked. 00:27:38.064 --> 00:27:43.904 - We challenge assumptions. Examine the facts. Not afraid to ask hard questions on longstanding practices. 00:27:43.904 --> 00:27:48.798 - We don't always agree. There's good planning requires thoughtful debate and we have it. 00:27:49.058 --> 00:27:54.977 - So that careful consideration deserves recognition. The state mandate gives us another opportunity to 00:27:54.977 --> 00:28:01.301 - examine the work and it still needs improvement. Bloomington doesn't have to start from scratch, thankfully. 00:28:01.301 --> 00:28:07.104 - And the chamber is encouraged to sit by the city to build on that momentum, turn these reforms into 00:28:07.104 --> 00:28:12.964 - measurable results. Thank you for your service and thoughtful work. Appreciate it. Thank you. I will 00:28:12.964 --> 00:28:17.374 - come back to the chambers here for any additional public comment in person. 00:28:17.890 --> 00:28:23.111 - Again, just make your way up to the podium, state your name for the record, and you'll have three minutes 00:28:23.111 --> 00:28:23.998 - to make comments. 00:28:47.778 --> 00:28:58.712 - My name is Jan Sorby. I'm a resident of the city and I've been very active for probably about 30 years 00:28:58.712 --> 00:29:09.539 - in Development I worked very hard on the South Dunn Street project to get that through and So anyway, 00:29:09.539 --> 00:29:17.182 - I want to make a few points House bill 1001 only requires that the city 00:29:17.538 --> 00:29:25.761 - Review and report back to them. It does not require any other changes at this point nothing I'd like 00:29:25.761 --> 00:29:33.902 - to see the Plan Commission in the city also examine neighborhood protective covenants that restrict 00:29:33.902 --> 00:29:42.287 - Rather than focus. It's primary Primarily on older neighborhoods where those restrictions do not exist 00:29:42.287 --> 00:29:46.846 - And I'm talking about the neighborhoods that were built 00:29:47.330 --> 00:29:55.738 - after 1948 There's an inventory Do you have an inventory does the city even have an inventory of all 00:29:55.738 --> 00:30:04.395 - those neighborhoods and their covenants and which have expired because there's a real opportunity There 00:30:04.395 --> 00:30:13.385 - as well around neighborhood activity centers. There's a real opportunity for increasing density, especially 00:30:13.385 --> 00:30:16.798 - around neighborhood activity centers and 00:30:16.962 --> 00:30:24.881 - Is there an inventory of neighborhoods with covenants that don't allow splitting lots? There are some 00:30:24.881 --> 00:30:32.955 - areas in Bloomington in the city that have over an acre for one lot. And there's incredible opportunity 00:30:32.955 --> 00:30:38.622 - to increase our density and our homes in those areas. If there's no such 00:30:38.754 --> 00:30:46.311 - inventory has a planned commission considered how these private restrictions affect the distribution 00:30:46.311 --> 00:30:53.868 - of new housing opportunities across Bloomington. If restrictive covenants prevent additional housing 00:30:53.868 --> 00:31:01.650 - in some neighborhoods, does the burden of accommodating all the new housing that the city requires fall 00:31:01.650 --> 00:31:07.262 - disproportionately on Bloomington's older, less restrictive neighborhoods? 00:31:07.362 --> 00:31:15.482 - These are really serious questions that we have to look at. Even the APA American Planners Association 00:31:15.482 --> 00:31:23.445 - says we cannot build our way out of this building crisis. We do need more density. We need it across 00:31:23.445 --> 00:31:31.565 - the city. I look particularly around areas that have jobs like around the new hospital area around the 00:31:31.565 --> 00:31:36.926 - mall. There's other neighborhood community centers across the city. 00:31:37.314 --> 00:31:47.191 - But I really think that these are very serious questions and I will say Athens Georgia over 20 years 00:31:47.191 --> 00:31:57.361 - ago got pre-designed houses to fit in each of their neighborhoods. Thank you very much. Thank you. Good 00:31:57.361 --> 00:32:05.086 - evening commissioners. John's already with CDF friendly Bloomington. We are a. 00:32:05.826 --> 00:32:12.454 - regional nonprofit community development organization who's tasked with helping, being one of the folks 00:32:12.454 --> 00:32:19.146 - in the conversation about bringing people together on housing and small business development, childcare, 00:32:19.146 --> 00:32:25.584 - finance. And here tonight to talk a little bit about housing and really for the public record, since 00:32:25.584 --> 00:32:29.790 - this is a sort of a state mandated action, I think it's important 00:32:30.114 --> 00:32:35.436 - Consider not just Bloomington but the entire state and housing affordability and attainability across 00:32:35.436 --> 00:32:40.863 - the state of Indiana and the age of our housing stock and how we're getting more people in those houses 00:32:40.863 --> 00:32:46.446 - either through rent or ownership and so one of those things to keep in mind and I'll ask the commissioners 00:32:46.446 --> 00:32:51.872 - to keep in mind and those members of the public as we move through this process are how we finance that 00:32:51.872 --> 00:32:52.446 - and how we 00:32:53.122 --> 00:32:59.692 - Create and preserve those tools whether they're in the UDO or in other mechanisms to make sure we're 00:32:59.692 --> 00:33:06.588 - helping people achieve homeownership or affordable and safe rental housing here in Bloomington and across 00:33:06.588 --> 00:33:13.223 - the state and so One of the ways you know when I was thinking about comments and I was thinking about 00:33:13.223 --> 00:33:20.053 - the Hopewell conversations with the planned unit development for the 98 homes that are going to be built 00:33:20.053 --> 00:33:22.590 - at Hopewell South and so talking about 00:33:22.690 --> 00:33:30.190 - Increased density and how we look at those tools and encouraging people to be flexible for how We are 00:33:30.190 --> 00:33:37.543 - incentivizing those homes to be built whether that's through Different tools for affordability, but 00:33:37.543 --> 00:33:45.117 - also how we like I said get those homes financed there are CDF eyes are mission-based lenders who work 00:33:45.117 --> 00:33:47.838 - across the country and distressed by 00:33:48.162 --> 00:33:55.272 - Census tracts or to help those who are low to moderate income usually 80% AMI and below there are lots 00:33:55.272 --> 00:34:02.657 - of loan products out there for the development of housing and also encourage people to look at our banking 00:34:02.657 --> 00:34:09.560 - partners who do mortgages that are designed to help those those populations of people and Certainly 00:34:09.560 --> 00:34:15.358 - a lot of Hoosiers and people here at Bloomington can can use those products in half 00:34:15.522 --> 00:34:21.678 - In addition to that Bloomington is very special in its ability to have programming locally through its 00:34:21.678 --> 00:34:27.775 - HUD dollars through the housing development fund which is a huge incentive for development of housing 00:34:27.775 --> 00:34:33.752 - as all of you know and so just encourage everyone who's listening and moving forward to think about 00:34:33.752 --> 00:34:37.278 - how we finance the great ideas that are being proposed and 00:34:37.410 --> 00:34:43.452 - being put into the UDO for that increased density and how we actually get it done. So the CDFI community, 00:34:43.452 --> 00:34:49.266 - again, those mission-based nonprofit lenders, many of whom work in affordable housing, are glad to be 00:34:49.266 --> 00:34:53.598 - part of the conversation and at the table. So thanks for your time tonight. 00:35:15.362 --> 00:35:23.369 - My name is and cryo camp and I am a resident of Greenacres which is currently being eviscerated. I want 00:35:23.369 --> 00:35:31.222 - to pull the microphone down just a little bit so we can hear you a little better. My name is and cryo 00:35:31.222 --> 00:35:39.075 - camp. I'm a resident of Greenacres which is currently being eviscerated. I've lived here twenty three 00:35:39.075 --> 00:35:42.462 - years the longest I've ever lived anywhere. 00:35:43.202 --> 00:35:51.406 - I was shocked that I really love it so much. I'm a westerner and an Easterner but not a midwesterner. 00:35:51.406 --> 00:35:59.691 - Now I am very much so. Bloomington is my absolutely favorite place and I developed a little Greenacres 00:35:59.691 --> 00:36:03.230 - community inside Greenacres of three homes. 00:36:03.554 --> 00:36:10.615 - that we grow food together and we share meals once every two weeks together, not just the ones that 00:36:10.615 --> 00:36:17.746 - are there, but the people from the neighborhood and our friends. The point is we are trying to build 00:36:17.746 --> 00:36:24.948 - relationships with each other on every level. And so when I see what's happening on Jefferson Street, 00:36:24.948 --> 00:36:32.574 - what is it, eight buildings on one block and 10 people in each one, I think, oh my God, are they there for, 00:36:32.898 --> 00:36:41.914 - for each other, or are they just there to make money for the developers? It feels like an either or. 00:36:41.914 --> 00:36:51.376 - What are the value systems that we live by? My value systems do not have money as the scream over nature. 00:36:51.376 --> 00:37:00.392 - Nature is the most important thing. We are all part of nature. And I think that's all I have to say. 00:37:00.392 --> 00:37:01.374 - Thank you. 00:37:05.282 --> 00:37:17.028 - Go to an online comment. Jenny Southern, you should be able to speak now. Yes, I would like the plan 00:37:17.028 --> 00:37:29.239 - commission and the city council and city administration in general to think about as we increase density 00:37:29.239 --> 00:37:32.030 - downtown. I'm not sure. 00:37:32.482 --> 00:37:41.385 - why we're removing single-family homes to do that. There's only so much of that we have. It's like you 00:37:41.385 --> 00:37:50.029 - have so much room on the beach or on a mountainside or something like that. And once you use it up, 00:37:50.029 --> 00:37:59.710 - it's gone. So I'm really concerned about this really push for the duplexes and triplexes replacing older homes. 00:38:00.386 --> 00:38:07.505 - We were told that the more density we got, that prices would go down. And we said, and you know, and 00:38:07.505 --> 00:38:14.695 - the density's gone up and lots and lots of apartment buildings have been built, so many. I don't know 00:38:14.695 --> 00:38:22.026 - how many new apartments we've added to the Bloomington City lit-ups, but it's gotta be in the thousands 00:38:22.026 --> 00:38:27.806 - in the last five years where we've been told this increased density is necessary. 00:38:28.610 --> 00:38:36.494 - So what I see happening, maybe you see something different, is the new apartments are built, but they 00:38:36.494 --> 00:38:44.378 - sometimes are built by removing the older housing. I understand that. But those older apartments that 00:38:44.378 --> 00:38:52.261 - were taken away were the affordable housing in Bloomington, where they were $400 or $500 per bedroom. 00:38:52.261 --> 00:38:56.126 - Now they're $1,000, $1,200 per bedroom, and more. 00:38:56.738 --> 00:39:04.500 - This removes a lot of housing for families. There's no family that can afford that So now if it's halfway 00:39:04.500 --> 00:39:11.896 - affordable a small home, it's immediately looked at by investors Oh, can I tear this one down make a 00:39:11.896 --> 00:39:19.512 - duplex or triplex makes perfect? Realtor sense perfect investment sense, but those used to be the homes 00:39:19.512 --> 00:39:20.830 - that families are 00:39:21.218 --> 00:39:28.354 - could buy into and improve. I mean, if they need a bigger house later, they could sell it and they could 00:39:28.354 --> 00:39:35.218 - buy another house. Those are not, that's not happening anymore. Unless it's like a private sale that 00:39:35.218 --> 00:39:42.014 - nobody knows about. So I would like to see like a survey or something. We're both told that we have 00:39:42.014 --> 00:39:48.606 - all this empty housing. And so we need to like tear down the old stuff. It's empty or something. 00:39:49.250 --> 00:39:59.369 - And we'll also say, oh, we need more housing. And it can't be both and make sense to your average citizen. 00:39:59.369 --> 00:40:09.015 - It just sounds wrong. And we really need to be explained how that could possibly be and why we should 00:40:09.015 --> 00:40:17.054 - support further inroads into the stock, the little bit of stock we have of downtown. 00:40:17.154 --> 00:40:24.194 - It's the pushing the historic districts. They're lovely things, but most people would rather do what 00:40:24.194 --> 00:40:31.373 - they want with their own homes But they're really gained popularity because people feel like they have 00:40:31.373 --> 00:40:38.413 - no choice that if they don't do it that Investors will look at their little lots and go ten seconds. 00:40:38.413 --> 00:40:45.662 - We could fit triplex there Understand I have only a certain amount of time but this is really confusing 00:40:45.858 --> 00:40:55.542 - I will say for the average homeowner citizen that is your time that lives in Bloomington. Thank you. 00:40:55.542 --> 00:41:05.226 - Thank you Okay, we'll come back to the council chambers now for anyone else who wants to make public 00:41:05.226 --> 00:41:15.198 - comment just step up to the podium Sue McCracken, I'm a homeowner in Bryan Park. I'm also a survivor of 00:41:15.586 --> 00:41:24.363 - building a duplex off of my single-family home. As of Monday, it took me seven months to get permission 00:41:24.363 --> 00:41:33.057 - to get my sewer and water installed. It has been an incredibly lengthy, difficult process. If I wasn't 00:41:33.057 --> 00:41:40.990 - partly retired, I might have given up. And so I think that it's so heavily weighted right now 00:41:41.186 --> 00:41:48.561 - to investors who have time, money, staff to make those things happen. And it is really difficult for 00:41:48.561 --> 00:41:56.009 - somebody like me who I think is doing what the city intended and wanted. We're adding a small home in 00:41:56.009 --> 00:42:03.458 - the back that's attached to the front. We're going to be renting on the front. We're going to live on 00:42:03.458 --> 00:42:08.350 - the property. Um, and, but it was an incredibly difficult process. 00:42:08.930 --> 00:42:18.865 - And I would really like to see that part of it made easier for homeowners so that you get what you really 00:42:18.865 --> 00:42:28.894 - wanted for your neighborhoods. That's all I've got to say right. Thank you. Any additional public comment. 00:42:54.754 --> 00:43:02.252 - I live in Greenacres also, and I kind of agree with Anne Kralkamp, who just spoke a few minutes ago, 00:43:02.252 --> 00:43:10.047 - and the lady, I guess, Mrs. Sorby. I've lived in Greenacres for 50 years, and I'm dismayed by how things 00:43:10.047 --> 00:43:17.619 - are going downhill from my point of view. Instead of modest homes and families and people running all 00:43:17.619 --> 00:43:21.182 - over the place, we now have rentals everywhere. 00:43:21.570 --> 00:43:28.981 - We also have replacement dormitories since IU tore some of theirs down. And it just doesn't make sense 00:43:28.981 --> 00:43:36.464 - to me that these modest homes on modest lots represent affordable housing. And what we're doing is tear 00:43:36.464 --> 00:43:43.803 - them down and build something huge that no single family can afford. I just don't find that favorable 00:43:43.803 --> 00:43:50.494 - and hope you could not make it happen so much. Thank you. Do I need to leave a phone number? 00:43:51.650 --> 00:43:58.558 - Thank you. Any additional public comment. 00:44:19.490 --> 00:44:26.154 - Uh, hello, my name is Emerson Arante and I am a recent, uh, entrepreneur in Bloomington. I am starting 00:44:26.154 --> 00:44:32.819 - a brick and mortar business on sixth street. Um, we are renovating a building that had been, uh, close 00:44:32.819 --> 00:44:39.289 - to the public for several years and, uh, at the risk of sounding vain. Um, I think it's going to be 00:44:39.289 --> 00:44:46.018 - very helpful to the community. I want to talk about the cost of site compliance. Um, by my calculation, 00:44:46.018 --> 00:44:48.606 - I'm going to be spending about $20,000. 00:44:48.706 --> 00:44:55.176 - for minor site compliance for this building. And that is about 5% of my total building costs. I think 00:44:55.176 --> 00:45:01.646 - I share or mirror a lot of the sentiments here that my interaction with the UDO, it is clearly biased 00:45:01.646 --> 00:45:08.116 - towards people who have more money than I do. And I think of the Charlie Munger quote who worked with 00:45:08.116 --> 00:45:14.776 - Warren Buffett where he said, if you show me the incentive, I'll show you the outcome. And the incentive 00:45:14.776 --> 00:45:17.694 - of this UDO is not for small business owners. 00:45:18.498 --> 00:45:24.987 - So I want to just talk about a few things that are concrete. I am spending about $7,000, six to $7,000 00:45:24.987 --> 00:45:31.349 - on a bike rack. Now, bit of background, I am a former professional cyclist. I race professionally in 00:45:31.349 --> 00:45:37.901 - Europe. I've been all around the world. I am very sympathetic to cycling infrastructure, but I can hold 00:45:37.901 --> 00:45:44.830 - two thoughts in my head. One, cycling infrastructure is important, and two, the way this city does it is bad. 00:45:45.474 --> 00:45:52.609 - So it is required that I have three bike racks outside my business. However, if you go to most European 00:45:52.609 --> 00:45:59.676 - cities, there's a concentrated bike parking area where people then park and walk to wherever they need 00:45:59.676 --> 00:46:06.537 - to go. Two blocks from me is the intersection of six street and the beeline. I went there today and 00:46:06.537 --> 00:46:12.574 - I measured you could put about 15 bike racks there, probably with ample space for more. 00:46:13.762 --> 00:46:21.856 - that would reduce the cost of site compliance for five to six businesses. It would cost the city $3,000. 00:46:21.856 --> 00:46:29.565 - Whereas if you had all these businesses do it, you are north of $20,000 just for bike racks, right? 00:46:29.565 --> 00:46:37.582 - And as a small business owner, you know, it's scary. I have an, I have an SBA loan has to be personally 00:46:37.582 --> 00:46:41.822 - guaranteed. This money means something to me. Hi. And, 00:46:43.106 --> 00:46:49.468 - Hello, thank you You know any any amount, you know if it costs the city six hundred dollars to take 00:46:49.468 --> 00:46:55.958 - seven thousand dollars off my plate I mean that again that's meaningful and you know, it's as a small 00:46:55.958 --> 00:47:02.320 - business owner It's really the small cuts that really hurt like the expression the straw that broke 00:47:02.320 --> 00:47:08.746 - the camel's back like this is just one of those straws that would be so easy for the city to fix and 00:47:08.746 --> 00:47:10.782 - help bring down what is again a 00:47:11.202 --> 00:47:20.023 - prohibitive cost for overall site compliance. Thank you. Thank you. Is there any additional public comment 00:47:20.023 --> 00:47:28.350 - here in the chambers. We have any additional online commenters. Eric if there is anybody else online 00:47:28.350 --> 00:47:35.358 - that would like to speak please use the raise hand function so we can recognize you. 00:47:44.674 --> 00:47:52.442 - I'm not seeing anybody else. All right. Last call for public comment. All right. Seeing none. That's 00:47:52.442 --> 00:48:00.133 - really all we were here for. Thank you all for coming out. Thank you for giving us your input. This 00:48:00.133 --> 00:48:07.978 - is very very helpful as we go through the process of planning for the future. We appreciate your your 00:48:07.978 --> 00:48:12.670 - being here and hope you have a great night. We're adjourned.