By: Diane Benjamin
Ever since Tari was first elected, a never-ending supply of Master Plans covering everything in Bloomington has been produced at great expense. In order to get Council support they were sold as “advisory”. They never were meant to be advisory, they are considered law. The hard-core leftist on the current Council frequently ask if proposals comply with whatever plan is applicable.
The City currently has 13 Master Plans: http://www.cityblm.org/government/advanced-components/documents/-folder-107
That link doesn’t include the 242 page Comprehensive Plan done by the McLean County Regional Planning Commission based on Bring It On Bloomington. MCRPC wanted 10% of the population to participate, only 1.5% did. This document is considered the bible to Bloomington.
Information on the study: https://blnnews.com/2014/09/19/bring-it-on-bloomington-flops/
Link to the Comprehensive Plan: http://www.cityblm.org/home/showdocument?id=12032
So what starts tomorrow?
The all Tari appointed Planning Commission is holding a hearing on changes to zoning. Remember back in September when the Council talked about rezoning downtown? https://blnnews.com/2018/09/26/bloomington-downtown-zoning-delusional/
Zoning for downtown has been replaced by rezoning the entire City.
The plan is 246 pages: http://www.cityblm.org/Home/ShowDocument?id=20438
This is a link to the proposed zoning map that is close to incomprehensible: http://www.cityblm.org/Home/ShowDocument?id=20440
Even after downloading the map and viewing it on a large monitor, I found most of it unreadable.
Government control never works because they are not capable of rapidly responding to changing conditions. The private sector is because they have to.
See PDF page 5 of the 246 page document. It lists THREE zoning types for single family homes. Why? The document doesn’t say. It lists TWO types of multi-family zoning, again not defined. I’m sure they have a completely logically explanation, what it amounts to is CONTROL.
Play a little game. This is a link to the 2017 map: http://www.cityblm.org/home/showdocument?id=16246
Open the proposed map too. Flip between the two. Taxpayers paid to turn map 1 into map 2. Why?
If you want to know, go to the Public Hearing tomorrow:
I doubt they are responding to developer requests to amend the map. Given the state of residential and commercial real estate markets in this town there don’t appear to be any developers left.
The won’t be back with this unfriendly business government either.
From: Phil Boulds
At the city website there is a (dis)informational flyer with a sub-title Frequently Asked Questions that includes this one. “Q. – Is this a form based code? A. – No, past experiences showed that form-based codes are not well received in Bloomington. The proposed code is a hybrid, containing limited design standards specific to the specific to the downtown area.” My comment: So evidently it is a hybrid of the form based code. Skimming through the 246 page document it looks like the same old form based code designs and descriptions that the Farr and Associates introduced several years ago, that the Main Street Association soundly disturbed the use of that terminology with the “Save Main Street” campaign. Thereafter, I believe it was Julie Hile that made a comment stating that “We’ll never call it form based code again.” So there you have it folks, “not well received” “never call it form based code again” is still the plan.
“Everyone has a plan ’till they get punched in the mouth.” – Mike Tyson. I know it’s news to Tari & the elites, but the local economy is getting continuously punched in the face by the realities of the marketplace. State Farm is replacing high skill and tech jobs with claims and customer service roles, the population is down, and few if any companies are interested in Illinois, let alone Bloomington. A master plan from a centralized government authority has never worked and will never work. It will fail even twice as bad in a place like Bloomington where outmigration is getting much worse. Maybe if Tari and his pals let the market decide…oh wait, then we wouldn’t get the “right fit” as determined by bureaucratic ideologues. This will be one of the defining moments in the downfall of Bloomington that will be referenced years from now. Where’s the Chamber and EDC?! Aren’t they interested in protecting and promoting the private sector?!
At this point they can do whatever they want…. Bloomington-Normal is on the way down no matter what they do. There is not enough talent, IQ and skills in the leadership and in the population here in general to change anything for the better. This is a corporate and higher education area with leadership and people who fit in. The biggest attribute they all have is the ability to be conformists. They keep their heads down…. collect their big salaries (as we saw in an earlier post) and hope they can move up the ladder and the pay scale. We have an area filled with these people. These are not risk takers…. startup people….or entrepreneurs…. they are corporate and higher education drones who have spend a large part of their lives getting and keeping the worthless jobs they now occupy.
The real talent and brains that is needed to bring this area into the 21st Century is already gone or in the process of leaving. Why would any of them stay here?
“They keep their heads down…. collect their big salaries (as we saw in an earlier post) and hope they can move up the ladder and the pay scale. We have an area filled with these people. These are not risk takers…. startup people….or entrepreneurs…. they are corporate and higher education drones who have spend a large part of their lives getting and keeping the worthless jobs they now occupy.”
Nailed it
Love it. Beyond excellent evaluation of what this community is and the type of people that live and work here. B-N is “no talent central.” The only thing saving this area is the clock and that won’t be a factor sooner rather than later.
If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and LOOKS like a duck….YOU get the ideal…
Form based code is the DUMBEST thing that they EVER hired FARR and IDIOTS for, and they just seem DETERMINED to shove it DOWN OUR THROATS!! Well, I’d really like to shove it back, as it’s unfair, insensible, hostile to business and just plain IDIOCY!!
I just don’t get WHAT these folks are THINKING? Maybe that’s the problem? NO THINKING, they NEED a consultant.
Wait a minute. I thought the end was in 2016. https://blnnews.com/2016/10/09/the-end-of-bloomingtonnormal-as-we-know-it/
this statement right here takes away your right to use your land .
E. To permit public involvement in the planning of private land uses which have the potential
for significant impact on the use and enjoyment of surrounding property or on the public
resources and facilities of the City of Bloomington;
this gives King Tari the right to use YOUR land as he sees fit! Private Property? NOT ANYMORE!
King Tari declares that ALL of Bloomington is HIS to rule and use as HE SEES FIT!
Tari is a hardcore Marxist/Stalinist/Communist (Also Drunk, Pervert, and Sociopath, but I digress). In his ideal world, there should be NO private property.