- Good afternoon. Let me call the meeting of the Monroe County Capital Improvement Board of May 20th,
- 2026 to order. And with that, I will ask Mr. Parris, who's in attendance with us today, to take the
- role. John Weichart. Present. Doug Bruce. Here. Jim Silberstein. Here. Joyce Pauling. Here. Galen Cassidy.
- Here. Jay Baer is absent. Thank you.
- Before we move on, I think it's only appropriate to mention, as Mr. Parris is in attendance today, that
- since we last saw Mr. Parris, he is now a married man. And I think it's only appropriate that we offer
- congratulations, I believe, to the groom, so I would like to congratulate Mr. Parris on his nuptials.
- I don't believe I've ever seen a young attorney blush before. Second order of business is approval of
- the consent agenda.
- you've uh... should have received the minutes of the board meeting of april fifteenth minutes of the
- special meeting of april twenty fourth claims and the financial report and if uh... i could ask for
- a motion to approve the consent agenda so moved to move and seconded uh... net we're now open for questions
- discussions comments any questions about the consent agenda i think you've seen uh... none item number
- three treasurer's report mister silverstein do you know i'm sorry i'm sorry about
- We got to stop and do a roll call on the motion to approve. So if you'll hold off briefly on your Treasurer's
- Report, Mr. Silberstein, we'll now vote on the motion to approve the consent agenda. John Weichart?
- Yes. Doug Bruce? Yes. Jim Silberstein? Yes. Joyce Poehling? Yes. Galen Cassidy? Yes. All right. Now,
- item number three, Treasurer's Report. Mr. Silberstein? Yes. I know you've been waiting for this, but
- I have no report. All right. Thank you. President's Report.
- Change orders, and I think we have a slide, do we not? It's been a busy, busy few weeks of change orders,
- $25,000 or less. So you can see this list of change orders that I have approved since we last met. And
- if you have, and you'll also see the use of contingency to date.
- which is 1,161,458, which is 48%. You'll see the original contingency of slightly more than 2.4 million
- and the remaining contingency of 1.2 million. So if you have any questions about any of those contingencies
- that I've approved, now would be an opportunity for you to ask about them.
- I'm not seeing questions or concerns, so we will move on from that. It's just my monthly report to you
- of change orders. A second item under President's report, environmental study contract. You may recall
- last month you authorized me to move forward with an environmental study. We have contracted with VET,
- V-E-T, which is a local environmental study group.
- in the amount of $8,219 for an environmental study that will be completed by the 29th of June.
- And in fact, that study began today. So they are, unless the rain has stopped them, the rain did not
- stop them. So they're onsite today beginning their environmental study. Next item, appraisal contracts.
- I have approved two
- contracts for appraisals, one with Integra, which is an Indianapolis firm, in the amount of $26,500,
- and that appraisal will be completed by June 29. The second one is First Appraisal, which is a local
- group for $19,500, and that one will be completed June 22.
- The difference of roughly $7,000 is First Appraisal did an earlier appraisal of these properties, so
- they're updating their appraisal, so that's why you might see that amount and wonder why there's a $7,000
- difference. So they are moving forward as well, and those were authorities that you gave me last month,
- and so we've moved forward with both appraisals and an environmental study, and we will have those by
- the end of June.
- Happy to answer any questions if you have them about that. All right, item number five, construction
- update. Mr. Sherry. Thank you, John. Andrew Sherry, project manager with the Weddell Brothers.
- I should have taken some pictures yesterday before all this rain, but these are as of this morning.
- So we'll go through the construction progress in some upcoming activities. This is a photo from the
- North elevation. It's hard to see with the lights, but the middle openings here have frames probably
- three quarters of the way up. And we are progressing around the building. So structural steel progress update.
- Our structural steel detailing continues in the main portion of the expansion. So this is a photo from
- the south mezzanine over the main exhibit hall. We will be halfway complete with this tomorrow,
- or I'm sorry, Friday, then working on the west half of the exhibit hall. We're preparing for installation
- of our partition walls. So our team had the partition walls installer come out on site last week. We
- have all this material procured, ready to put up.
- finish framing walls around that. And then our sequence seven back of house steel that we've been talking
- about is completed with roof decking installed. So the majority of our steel sequences are complete.
- Slab on grade and decks. So our slab on grade, our last slab on grade pour, which was the sequence five,
- the back of house was completed last week.
- There is only a small portion remaining where the temporary site access is currently, which we plan
- on having done here in a couple of weeks. Our elevated decks have been poured to the second floor. Our
- only remaining deck pour is the north side mechanical room, which is upcoming here in the next few weeks.
- Exterior progress, our building envelope, our exterior brick is completed at the southeast portion of
- the project around the registers lot.
- Our exterior column wraps on the east elevations are to be completed within the next two weeks. They're
- working around the frames. So this photo here on the right-hand side is the east corridor. You can see
- the curtain wall frames from inside. This is looking from the north towards the south. Our exterior
- limestone and granite has started on the southeast side of the project. This will allow us to start
- getting ahead on site work, moving towards sidewalks, light pole bases, and just exterior improvements.
- Curtain walls are set on the east elevation and currently in progress on the north elevation. We do
- have glass on site at our temporary construction office. And we will now see temporary enclosures being
- placed around the perimeter of the building. So our team is working hard to have temporary units installed
- so that we can start moving towards drywall, hanging, finishing, interior finishes, those types of things.
- Here are some exterior photos. So the top left is the north elevation.
- The bottom left is the east elevation from the bus station, and then the northeast corner here. So you
- can see that the canopy has been framed and sheathed, the column wraps, and then again on the lower
- left-hand side, it's hard to see, but we have the window frames in. So glass on site, we will be progressing
- to install that, quickly trying to wrap this building for weather days like today.
- We did have a lot of contractors stay on site today. Our team may or may not have said we were gonna
- buy lunch and had to cancel because of skeleton crews. So maybe that's why they stayed. But again, a
- lot of great progress. Interior progress. So interior framed walls around the exhibit hall continue.
- This is from the patio area, looking along the north corridor. So on the lower right-hand side, you'll
- see these are the restrooms, the main doors to get into the north side of the exhibit hall. Our in-wall
- rough-ins are taking place.
- Overhead rough ends are in progress. So we have duct work on site, sprinkler hangers for the system
- and plumbing, all overhead starting on the east side of the project and working counterclockwise. Our
- interior CMU walls are starting at the back of house. Plan on starting those Monday, doing layout and
- everything currently. And then again, finalizing temporary power to the project now that we have our
- slab pores completed. So Duke set temporary power to the south lot.
- Now that we have the last slab on grade poured, we will set up our temporary units. We'll have trees
- and everything for a more solid power source. Here are some interior photos. On the left-hand side,
- you'll see carriers for the restrooms, for the toilets, in-wall. The middle photo is the backup house,
- so the kitchen area. You can see a lot of stub-ups. There's gonna be a lot of equipment and stuff in
- that area. And then on the right-hand side is the north corridor. So again, you see the in-wall progress
- that we have with plumbing and electrical.
- Upcoming activities, so our interior framed walls will continue, including in-wall rough-ins. Our interior
- CMU will progress throughout the back of house. Our overhead rough-ins will progress from the east side
- of the project towards the west, and then we will be jumping into the exhibit hall. And then, again,
- the temporary climate-controlled place of the building to allow for drywall and finish work to take
- place. Exterior work upcoming.
- We plan on continuing with the brick column wraps. Our curtain wall systems progress on button up the
- east and the north elevations and then go to the west. Canopy system to continue with our roof detailing
- to follow. This photo right here on the right hand side is the granite and limestone that will wrap
- the perimeter of the building. So we have started that.
- We are preparing for the remainder of the site demolition existing curb so that we can start getting
- sidewalks, light pole bases and those types of things installed. And then starting our exterior features
- on the south side of the project. So trash enclosures, our main entrance ramp, those types of things
- at the loading dock area. A big talking point over the next couple of months will be the connector
- preparation. So we are planning to proceed with the next closure of College Avenue on June 30th through
- July 24th.
- We have a Board of Public Works meeting June 2nd at 530. We have been coordinating with the Board of
- Public Works talking through all the logistics planning the closure. Luckily, we've are luckily or unluckily.
- We've been through this before. Luckily, we hope to not have two feet of snow hit the same day we plan
- to close. But if so, we do have a snow blower this time. So
- We currently have started our work to prepare for the closure, so we're getting ahead everywhere that
- we can. This photo of the closure, you can see the parapet wall is framed. We've framed underneath for
- the metal panels. We're buttoning up ramps for the elevation changes, and then we will start installing
- curtain wall systems prior to this closure that way that we really focus on just getting across the
- road in this time period. So I want to eliminate any risks that we may have.
- Again, we will have the curtain walls, metal panels, plumbing, electrical rough ends and roof work completed
- during this closure. So we've spent a lot of time, our team spent a lot of time coordinating deliveries,
- procurement, prep with subcontractors. Again, the board of public works to plan for this. So expect
- that to go well. I have issued our letters to all the property owners between second and third street,
- trying to check all the boxes. So the next big,
- Big hurdle here, be a good one. And that's what I have. Thank you. Any questions for Andrew? All right,
- thank you, Andrew. Working group updates. The first one, wayfinding with Schmidt Associates. And I guess
- this will be Mr. Layton.
- Eddie Leighton, Smith Associates Project Manager. We are here today to give an update on the wave finding
- package and the work we've been doing with the committee since the last time we talked, really looking
- towards bid approval. So we're going to talk about signage types, locations, cost estimate, our schedule
- for bidding, and then ask for official approval to release the bids.
- So from the signage types, there are nothing new that you haven't seen before, but just providing an
- update. This is the monument sign that replaced the message sign on college. This is, if you might remember
- from our BZA hearing, the request there was that the sign would be six feet tall, max, which is we've
- addressed that and adjusted the signage and the digital message board to reflect that.
- We've got some other exterior signs as well, kind of get people around the building to the parking lots.
- And once they're in the parking lots to know where they should be parking, those are located throughout
- the site. We've got the signage on the buildings themselves. We've got two signs on the new building
- at each corner. And then a similar sign on the existing building in one of the solid infill panels faces
- the parking lot.
- So once you're in that parking lot area, there's a consistent messaging and you know where you are and
- where you should be. We also developed with the group a whole series of interior signs that all have
- a similar aesthetic, similar look and feel, various sizes, messaging. We had a long meeting last month
- with the group where we went through each of these signs and confirmed what they would say, what they
- would look like.
- You know, what is the text that actually replaces the Latin placeholder there? So we've worked through
- all that so that we can, in the big package, have a schedule that relates each sign location to a sign
- type. So as far as outside, we've got the signs all throughout the campus, around both buildings and
- through the parking lots and on both College and Walnut Streets.
- to get people into the sites and around and know where they should park. The big package also includes
- interior floor plans. I'm not going to go through all of them because that would take a while. But just
- as an example, showing where each sign is located by type and those types relate back to the slide I
- showed a minute ago with the different messages, that sort of thing.
- and mostly focused in the pre-function area, because that's where most of the way finding happens, but
- also within the exhibit halls and meeting rooms and backup house as well. Part of the document also
- is, as I mentioned, the sign schedule. So this will tell the bidders for each of those tags what that
- sign should say, what type it is, and then some comments on that sort of thing.
- And then as far as cost estimate, we had a budget for the entire project of $800,000 as we've looked
- at this. And we did get some preliminary pricing from some vendors we work with so we could check our
- estimate. We've got currently 266 signs throughout the buildings. We are still holding a contingency
- for signs and things that we might have forgotten or might decide we need later, but happy to report
- that we are still well under the budget.
- with a good amount remaining. But that is important to note that the one thing that's not in this budget
- yet would be some of the historic graphics and storytelling signage, which we've talked about location
- possibly being in the new corridor that's created in the great room on the second floor where the bridge
- connects. And we're working with getting the content from the historical people here to
- sure we're showing the right thing. So that's going to be something that still needs to be developed,
- I think, as we work through that. But being that that's part of the second phase of the project, I think
- we have a little bit of time as well to address that in a different manner. So when we look at the schedule,
- we're requesting that approval to bid today. The documents are already, so they'll be able to be released tomorrow.
- We've set up for our advertisements in the paper as required for public bid. We've got a couple
- of placeholder dates for addendum. We're expecting to, if approved, to receive the bids on June 17th,
- which is the next CIB meeting date, just trying to get it all together. We'd spend the next few weeks
- reviewing the bids with the low bidder, making sure everything's covered so that we could make
- a recommendation at the July meeting to move forward.
- That's what I've got in this quick update. Happy to take any questions. Any questions related to the
- wayfinding signage and the request for approval to go out for bids? Is there a motion to move forward
- with the bids for the signage package? I'll move for approval for the signing package to go out for
- bid. Second.
- It's been moved and seconded. Any discussion or comments from board members? All right, seeing none.
- Mr. Paris? John Weichart? Yes. Doug Bruce? Yes. Jim Soberstein? Yes. Joyce Poehling? Galen Cassidy?
- Yes. Thank you. Next item under working group furniture fixtures and equipment. Just a very quick update.
- The committee is getting back together the first week of June to look at some final selections on
- chair types and furniture types, things like that. And then we'll have another update in June, but the
- group will be ready to go out to bid and ask for bid approval. So they're ready to go in July. Any questions
- related to furniture fixtures and equipment? All right, thank you. Art installation, the Bead Advisory
- Group. Galen Cassidy, who I want to recognize right away and upfront is
- been so involved in all of this and given so much of his own time. And we much appreciate that. So Galen,
- we'll turn it over to you. Thank you. I'd like to begin actually by thanking everyone that has contributed
- to us getting here today. Our list, hopefully. So these are some prominent members, and I apologize if I've
- left you off this list, but our first round here, Ajaan Rose, Jennifer Muyeznovich, Malcolm Abrams,
- Talisha Kopek, Steve Versa, Chad Rabinowitz, Karen Jepson-Inez, Dallas Evans, these were all part of
- our bead advisory committee that kicked off this project. Maya Michelson, Christina Ellum, Adam Tease,
- Joyce Poling, and Rob Shakespeare all made up the recommendation committee that helped choose this final
- recommendation.
- We also took input from the Bloomington Arts Commission. Of course, John Weikart and the rest of the
- Capital Improvement Board were great helps, as well as Mike McAfee and Visit Bloomington. Special shout
- out to Jane Coopersmith helping throughout this process. And of course, Eddie and Andrew have been excellent
- to work with as we talked with all these artists.
- about different opportunities. Special, last but not least, I definitely wanted to recognize Holly Warren
- here. She was a part of both of our Beat Advisory Committee and the Recommendation Committee. And I
- can't overstate this enough, but we really would not be here without the legwork that Holly put into
- this. So I'm not sure if she's in the room or online. Stand up, Holly, so we can- Holly, is it true
- here? Yes.
- So, you know, in June of 2024, the Capital Improvement Board formed the Bloomington Entertainment Arts
- District Advisory Committee. That was represented by community members and business owners that all
- lived or worked within the bead itself. And being one of 12 cultural art districts in the state, one
- of our charges was to advise the CIB on the arts portion of the project, specifically the 1% for the
- arts budget.
- As the project progressed, this group had many great discussions about what makes Bloomington the place
- we all know and love and how art could reflect that in this project. With the help of Holly, specifically,
- we began our first round of public feedback in September of 2025, which helped us determine what the
- community was looking for in the art. By October 2025, we were ready to release our call for artists.
- That call attracted more than 180 artists from around the world.
- Holly and I then formed the recommendation committee to help sort through these artists, which consisted
- of representation from the Bloomington Arts Commission, the CIB, and the Beat Advisory Committee, as
- well as other members involved in the arts in this community. Our first round narrowed it down to roughly
- a top 60, then a top 10, and by the end of December and early January, we had narrowed it down to a top five.
- These five finalists then spent the next several months working on proposals based on the themes represented
- in our public feedback session, and we hosted several of the artists on site for a chance to meet with
- the stakeholders and community members. By April, we had four finalists move on to the last stage, where
- a recommendation committee, along with Schmidt and Weddle Brothers, interviewed each artist
- We also did another round of public feedback where the community got to see each proposal and vote for
- their first and second choices. We received nearly 1000 responses to that survey. Is there anything?
- Looks like the little bit out of focus. Yeah, sure. It's very clear on my screen that. You know how
- helpful I can be in this. Here we go.
- Yeah, great. Well, I didn't do anything, so. We'll see. Well, it must have been something I did, then.
- Thank you very much. So after the interviews and the public feedback, our recommendation committee analyzed
- each proposal and graded them on artistic merit, implementation, feasibility and experience, community
- engagement and impact, and then met to deliberate each of the finalists. Each finalist had a unique
- theme in their proposals, and the decision proved to be very difficult.
- as there were many strengths to each. Ultimately, our group went back and forth on each proposal. In
- addition to our recommendation committee, the Bloomington Arts Commission and the public survey were
- also considered in the recommendation. The proposal we are recommending finished first in both
- the recommendation committee and the Bloomington Arts Commission and finished second in public voting.
- It ultimately ended up being the only proposal to finish in the top two of each of these groups.
- With that said, on behalf of the recommendation committee, I'm proud to recommend a form of connection
- from Ball Nogue Studio be awarded the Convention Center Art Project. And I'd like to quote the artist
- on their narrative here. The best public art changes how people recognize and remember a place. For
- the Bloomington Convention Center, I invented a singular sculptural form that winds around the sky bridge
- connecting the existing Convention Center to the new expansion.
- It then extends outward over the courtyard and then forms a kind of entry canopy at an entrance to the
- original building. In traversing along all the walls of the bridge, the work transforms a familiar piece
- of connective architecture into a civic marker and gives the convention sitter a new image by which
- it can be known. The work takes form of a lyrical line overhead, vine-like in spirit, but abstract.
- It wraps the sky bridge, thickening and narrowing as it entwines the bridge.
- at times drawing close to the architecture, and at times pressing outward over the courtyard. The scale
- matters here. I want the work to have a presence from below the sky bridge, from inside the convention
- center, and when viewed from up and down College Avenue. It holds its own in relation to the building
- from all these vantage points. Up close, viewers can read the pattern, precision, and intricacy of its
- colored panels. But from a block or two away, they grasp the scale of its signature urban gesture.
- I am not after a literal emblem. I am after something more potent, a form so particular in its relationship
- to the buildings in the urban context that people cannot separate it from how they know the place. Its
- overhead sweep, its unusual intimacy with the bridge, and its transformation of a functional connector
- into a memorable civic gesture can make it a lasting image for the convention center and, over time,
- a lasting symbol for Bloomington itself.
- I'd like to quote another member of our Beat Advisory Committee, Chad Rabinowitz, on his feedback about
- this piece, which he recommended, as I think it's a great summary of the piece. So when he was asked
- why he would recommend, he said, it's one that creates a sizable and memorable piece of art that also
- embraces the new building and its architecture. This is the postcard. This is the magazine cover. This
- is the image that will represent the attractiveness and uniqueness of our community to the outside world.
- Form of Connection is a high impact piece that features hundreds of pieces of custom marine grade aluminum
- finished with powder coating. The piece has a lighting integrated throughout to help provide an unmistakable
- after dark presence that extends the sculpture visibility and reinforces it as a landmark.
- Upon acceptance of this recommendation, the artist would begin working with Schmidt and Weddle immediately
- to ensure the necessary structural components are in place for when the art is installed. The tentative
- installation timeline provided for the artist includes a 16-month timeline from start to finish.
- A preliminary budget, including design, fabrication, installation, contingency, and other general expenses
- has been provided and falls within the $400,000 project budget. Thank you again.
- and especially all those that have contributed to this project, I'm happy to answer any questions. Dale,
- and we had, you know, what we were looking at was kind of fading in and out. Your budget sheet, I think
- it was the second one to the last. Yeah, so within the,
- The artist is clearly staying within the $400,000 budget, including a contingency or anything that may
- be necessary in working within the bridge structure itself. Yeah, that's true. There's a 10% contingency
- in that budget. And I don't know if it'd be helpful, but Cindy does have the PDF that might be clear
- if I can. Okay. Yeah.
- Well, as we're looking for it. So you brought this forward as a report from the committee. May I take
- it that you're also bringing this forward as a motion that we approve this? That's correct, yeah. So
- we have a motion, because then we'll move to discussion and comments. So we have a motion to approve
- this recommendation. Is there a second to the motion? And Joyce would second the motion, and I would
- point out that both
- Neil and Joyce were members of this committee representing the CIB. So it's been moved and seconded
- that we approve this recommendation. So let me open this up for comment or discussion among board members.
- Comments? Okay, and the budget is up. I just wanted to make sure we all knew this was within the budget
- that we set aside for the ARD installation.
- And I would welcome, of course, any comments from Weddle Brothers or Schmidt about the installation
- or the project itself. I know you've looked at it as well and from a structural standpoint and what
- we're working with on the bridge and the connection. Yeah, I mean, during the interviews and the final
- process, you know, we talked about schedule and how that ties into what we're doing. I do feel very
- confident that
- After approval, we can start working as a group with the connection points, accommodate that while we're
- finishing out the connector, that way it doesn't hold anything up, and as we wait on the final product
- to be brought to the job site. So I think it was great conversations, there was a lot of coordination,
- great groups, it was awesome to be a part of all the artists involved, but we did talk in detail about
- all those different things. And knowing that we can move forward while you're still
- Under construction if you will on the bridge, it's a good opportunity Excuse me to to get things done
- with the bridge that that support the the installation as well Yes, it's not gonna stop anything that
- we're doing so and it's better than going back later and making Accommodations to the bridge later.
- Absolutely. Okay and Eddie any comments from from Schmidt I agree with that out of all the
- different installations, this one was probably the one that had the most complicated connection to the
- bridge, but they also, I think, put the most thought into it and had ways to work through it in a way
- that was sequenced with the construction. So knowing that the final piece is not gonna arrive too much
- later, the connections are separate and meant to be installed first, so. Thank you. Questions from board
- members or comments? Mr. Silverstein.
- Let's take Mr. Silberstein for example. This is the first time I've noticed the illumination on the
- piece. Is it firm that they're gonna illuminate it the way they're showing here? That's correct, yeah.
- That it's integrated throughout the whole piece and it's kind of tucked away. There's not a great image
- on here but they tuck that away in the paneling so it's not easily, it's accessible if you need to work
- on it but it's not easily accessed for any other purpose, yeah. LED lighting or something like that.
- And it's meant to just provide subtle
- lighting, not just to be something flashy, really. Yeah. OK, great. Thank you. Joyce. We had great committees
- who worked very, very hard. Lots of great public comments. I think everybody should be proud that that
- many people responded. So thank you to Galen, Holly, the whole team that worked together.
- And I think, if I recall correctly, that this particular piece had the most public reaction, both strongly
- for and strongly against, which shouldn't be too surprising. We're talking about art. So I would guess
- that would—to me, that's somewhat inspiring, that we have so much attention to it, and it has attracted
- that kind of reaction, strong reaction. So I appreciate that. Any other questions, comments, observations?
- Okay, so we have a motion and a second. Mr. Parrish, would you take the role, please? John Weichardt?
- Yes. Doug Bruce? Yes. Jim Silverstein? Yes. Joyce Poehling? Yes. Galen Cassidy? Yes. Okay, thank you.
- And thank you so much to everybody who's been so involved in this for so many months. We know how much
- hard work you've put into it.
- I'm looking around the room and I see all of you, and you're probably thinking, thank God this part
- of it's over, so we can move on to something else. And Holly, thank you again so much for your leadership
- and assistance in all of this. Much appreciated. But thank you very much to all of you. I'm going to—you
- know what? I'm going to applaud, because I think this was a—
- Next item on the agenda, approval of various professional services, JS Held. Yeah, I'm going to allow
- my associate, Mary Karpinski, who you've seen before, she's going to do this. Thank you, Mary Karpinski.
- We have been working back and forth with professional service groups to bring you this.
- The first one is for Pro Blue for their professional services for network engineering and hardware
- installation. This is a not to exceed figure as we'll look at it as we get them under contract should
- you approve them. This is for both buildings and so this really is the hard work that makes all the
- other technical things in the project work.
- So just to note, also ProBlue has been a partner for a long time and much of their research and early
- work on this has been donated in their time and effort towards the project. That's outside the number
- that you're seeing here in front of you. The second one is a request for approval for IMG as professional services.
- And this is for identifying the audio visual equipment in the existing building. As you may recall,
- the new building does have all the AV equipment incorporated into the project already. We did not do
- that for the existing building because of budget purposes early on. IMG is being asked to engage to
- create the list of equipment that
- is needed for this building. So this is just for their service. We will then, after that, work through
- a QPA process to procure that equipment. But this is just to identify it. Just so you know, IMEC has
- been the engineering firm on the project through Schmidt, who has identified the rest of the AV for
- the project. So with that, we would ask for approval for these professional services.
- Okay, Mr. Whitlatch, are you, can you hear me? Are you muted? We what?
- Okay, I'm going to let me let me turn to Mr. Paris and ask Mr. Paris a question. Should we deal with
- this as two separate approvals or can this be one approval? Two separate. Okay, so we're so we're seeking
- approval for two separate contracts. So let's take let's take the request for approval for pro blue
- pro blue professional services. Let's take that one first. Is there a motion to approve? So moved.
- Is there a second? Any discussion? David, please take the roll. John Weichardt? Yes. Doug Bruce? Yes.
- Jim Silverstein? Yes. Joyce Polling? Gail and Cassidy? Yes. All right, the second one then is the request
- for approval for IMEG professional services for the audiovisual equipment for existing building. Is
- there a motion to approve? So moved. Is there a second? Second. Second. Any discussion or comment?
- If you take the role, please, Mr. Parrish. John Weichart. Yes. Doug Bruce. Yes. Jim Silberstein. Yes.
- Joyce Pulling. Yes. Galen Cassidy. Yes. All right. Thank you. Thank you, Mary. All right. Next item
- of business is update on newly acquired properties. And I'll take that. That's bright.
- First, let me report and just as a reminder that we've had properties offered to us by the county to
- the south that include these properties we're gonna talk about today. We have not yet been deeded these
- properties. So we're sort of in this position where we're talking about leases for buildings on properties
- that have not yet been deeded to us. Although I've had conversation with the county attorney today and
- we expect all the deed process
- for him, Mr. Whitlatch, to review that yet before this week is out. And so we anticipate that these
- properties will be formally deeded over to us by the 1st of June. So with that as background, I want
- to catch you up on the leases for the properties to the South. And we have both residential and we have
- commercial properties to the South. So
- There are 35 units in total, 31 of them are residential, 4 of them are commercial. Of the residential
- units, and there are 31, 14 of them are vacant and unrented. So they have not been rented,
- they are vacant, they have been left as open units, and that's roughly 45% of the total units in the
- residential properties. There are 17 units then,
- that are occupied. Three of the residents in units have notified us of their intent to move out. Three
- of the 17. Another different three of the 17 are delinquent in their rental payments. And one of those
- residents is actually
- up against an eviction notice. One resident does not have a lease at all and has not had a lease since
- December 31st of 2025, so is on a month-to-month sort of rolling lease, living there and obviously paying
- rent, and that's a month-to-month lease. So that leaves 10 residents who have current standing among
- the 17 who are there who have current leases.
- So efforts to work with tenants have included the Monroe County Renters Association, which has conducted
- four open houses for tenants to review other apartment options that they have. And the apartments, those
- four apartments who have had open houses have agreed to waive credit checks for any residents who are
- interested. Residents have also been notified that if they
- terminate their leases early because these are all leases to July, roughly the first part of July. If
- they terminate their leases early, they'll be released from their leases and their damaged deposits
- will be returned to them. In addition, two men in a truck movers here in Bloomington is offered to move
- any residents free of charge from their current location to wherever they might choose to move. So that's
- an update on the residential units.
- Commercial units, there are four of them. Three of them are on leases that expire in July. One of them,
- Blue Tip Billiards. I've not spoken with him personally, but it's my understanding that he has found
- a new location effective June 1st, but is still working out details of that new location. Friendly Beast
- is the cider business that's located down there. They've also found a new location
- But there's a complication, as one of the owners and I have discussed, in that moving in June, even
- if there's an available space, makes a change in the liquor license for Friendly Beast. It means they
- have to reapply for a liquor license, which would mean that they would miss an opportunity in the month
- of August for both Taste of Bloomington and Pride Fest.
- which can be an important part of their business relationships. So they have requested, if it's possible,
- that they be allowed to stay through the month of August so they don't miss those opportunities. The
- third one with a current July lease is My Sister's Closet. We've had conversations, and they've asked
- for an extension of an indefinite length as they continue to work on their own relocation efforts. My
- Sister's Closet has had its rent waived since April of 2025.
- And to date, uncollected rent waived by the county has been in the amount of $52,500, which has been
- a county donation, if you will, to My Sister's Closet to help them with their relocation expenses. The
- fourth commercial resident is Jeff's Warehouse. And Jeff's Warehouse has a lease that goes to the end
- of February of 2027, to February 28th of 2027.
- But I've had conversations with the owner, and he has agreed to revise that lease with a termination
- of no later than September 30th of 2026. So he has agreed that he will move out and end his
- lease relationship at the end of September rather than five months later at the end of February of 2027.
- And he also has a new location and is working on his new location.
- So that's an update on where we stand with all the leases, both residential and commercial, that we
- will receive when these deeds are transferred to us, estimated now to be the first part of June. So
- what I'm asking the board and what I'm proposing today is that to aid with some of these requests and
- to bring these leases into alignment,
- I am asking for a motion for the following two actions from the board. First action is at the time of
- the deed transfer from the county of the parcels that the CIB will notify the remaining residential
- and three of the commercial tenants that we will offer them the option of extending their leases to
- August 31st of 2026. So rather than ending those leases the 1st of July that we would extend those through
- through July and through the month of August. That secondly, we will also amend the lease with Jeff's
- warehouse for it to end no later than September 30th of 2026. So in this fashion, we can bring these
- leases into closer alignment, also allow residents some additional time for them to have the opportunity
- for relocation with the assistance that's being provided to them, and certainly allow in particular,
- friendly beasts, for instance, so that we're not causing any harm as far as their business relationship
- and their business model. So I am asking for a motion for those two actions. If I can have a motion
- in a second, then we can discuss this. So it's been moved. Is there a second? Second? Second. Oh, second.
- So it's been moved and seconded. So now I would open the floor for discussion.
- Notifying these residents and tenants once these properties are transferred to us the 1st of June that
- we are willing to extend these leases to August 31st if they so desire and to work with Jeff's Warehouse
- to revise that particular lease to a September termination rather than February. So are there questions?
- Is there discussion? Are there comments?
- I would simply point out that we're providing three more months from now, actually, for the tenants,
- for the residential tenants, to continue to look at relocation opportunities. As I said, we're meeting
- the business needs of Friendly Beast, and we're providing two additional months for my sister's closet
- relocation and extending the financial contribution, not only that the county is making, but by extending
- that lease
- And we're actually extending an additional $13,000 of our own contribution in rent waiver that would
- bring support from the county and the CIB to $65,400 to my sister's closet to assist in their relocation.
- So I would add those as additional comments. Are there any additional comments from or questions from
- board members? All right, seeing none, Mr. Paris, will you take the role?
- John Weichart? Yes. Doug Bruce? Yes. Jim Silberstein? Yes. Joyce Poehling? Yes. Galen Cassidy? Yes.
- Okay, thank you. The next item on the agenda is a permit authorization. And I don't know if we,
- do we have Mr. Whitlatch back? Mr. Paris, do you want to speak to this or do you want me to? You can?
- All right, why don't you go ahead and talk to us about the resolution we're asking the board to consider.
- Yeah, so this resolution has been passed out to the CIB members. It is a resolution authorizing the
- removal of real property for some of the buildings on the parcels that will be transferred by the county
- to the CIB. And in order to do that, there's a demolition permitting process you have to go through.
- And so this resolution is a resolution authorizing Mr. Weichart
- and his capacity as president of the CIB to carry out the permitting process to obtain that demolition
- permit in order to facilitate the removal process of those buildings. And happy to answer any questions
- the members have. So if we, let's see this. Is there a motion to move forward for approval of the resolution
- and then we can have discussion? So moved. Okay, is there a second?
- Second. So it's been moved and second, and now we can have discussion. Is there any discussion or any
- comments about the resolution to move forward with this permitting process? So, Mr. Bruce. Yes,
- thank you. So this would get the process started, but this doesn't mean demolition starts immediately,
- obviously, because we have tenants that are there until the end of September, correct?
- So until until the end of August. So well, and then one one for Jeff's warehouse. So through so nothing
- would start before all the tenants are out of all the buildings. We probably have to I'm going to ask
- Deb for some advice here because it's possible we could move forward with them on demolition of some
- buildings and wait
- later for the Jeff's warehouse, but that might be a confusing process for those involved in bidding
- on the proposal. So I think it's safe—it's certainly safe to say that by moving forward with
- the permitting, we would gain the permit, which would give us the opportunity to determine what date
- we would move forward with removal of the buildings. So the fact that we have the permit doesn't mean
- that the instant we get the permit, we would move to remove the buildings.
- Is that a fair statement? Yeah, that's fair. The city has a process for permitting, right? There's a
- certain set of documents that have to be submitted for said permit. We have to follow the rules there.
- And then additionally, there'll have to be a bid for demolition. And the bid for demolition will have
- to come back to this group for award. So you'll have another opportunity to approve the actual demolition
- contractor award is probably the next big step.
- Any other questions or observations or comments? Seeing none, Mr. Paris? John Weichart? Yes. Doug Bruce?
- Yes. Jim Soberstein? Yes. Joyce Poehling? Yes. Galen Castey? Yes. Thank you. Next item on the agenda
- is old business. Is there any old business to be brought before the board?
- Item number 10, any new business? Any new business to be brought before the board? Item 11, comments
- from board members? Any comments from board members? Seeing none, item 12, comments from the public.
- We offer a 10 minute period for the public to make comment with individuals having two minutes to make
- comments. So do we have any comments from the public?
- Green. Do you identify yourself, please? I'm Bryce Green. I'm a representative of Bloomington Homes
- for All, a group that's trying to organize to preserve Seminary Point, the south parcel that we've been
- talking about. I just want to, A, thank you for extending the leases. It seems that that is a vote of
- confidence to some extent in our ability to work something out with the RDC and the relevant bodies
- that would
- result in the land of the College Square property being transferred to the CIB as part of the hotel
- development, which is something that everyone here would like, and that would enable the organization
- to preserve Seminary Point. I would also like to urge this body to endorse the plan that the Homes for
- All group has put forward in terms of
- either proposing a land swap again or proposing a sale to the RDC that would be contingent on the sale
- of the Seminary Point property to a mission-based organization dedicated to preserving affordable housing.
- This plan seems to be workable from all sides and it responds to the needs and concerns of all the relevant
- bodies. This would allow
- of Seminary Point to be preserved, it would allow the College Square property to be used for a host
- hotel, and it would also reduce the bureaucracy that would come with a direct land swap and a transfer
- from the RDC. So I urge you guys to look at that, consider that, and hopefully make public statements
- in support of it and help push this through in private. Thank you, guys.
- Any other public comment? Isabel Piedmont-Smith? I think you may be muted, Isabel. Yes. Hello.
- Thank you. Oh, there you are. OK. I wanted to also encourage the CIB to look at the homes for all proposal.
- And also consider whether a hotelier would actually need an entire block like College Square, because
- one possible avenue for the land swap would be to swap the southern property, which is assessed at a
- quite a bit lower value than College Square.
- for part of College Square rather than the whole block, which would seem sufficient space for a hotel
- if we compare with the other large hotels we have downtown. So I encourage the CIB to look into that
- option. Thank you. Any other comments? Any other hands up? Okay, seeing no one else in person or no
- one else online.
- The next item on the agenda is our next board meeting is June 17th, 2026 at 3 p.m. here in the Convention
- Center. And with that item 14, you don't have to go home but you can't stay here. We are adjourned.