By: Diane Benjamin
One more thing from Monday’s Bloomington Council meeting – see 2:45, Tim Gleason’s COVID comments.
The City will be implementing a Customer Service Hub at what Gleason calls the Arena, most call it the Coliseum. He claims it will be a one stop shop for citizens. All of these departments will be moving there:
Parks and Recreation
City Clerk
Community Development
Legal
Finance
Public Works
Nobody is saying what it will cost to turn a building built for entertainment into an office complex.
According to this July 2nd WGLT article, Administration is moving to the Government Building: https://www.wglt.org/post/bloomington-move-more-offices-government-center#stream/0
The article also says the City Clerk and Water Billing are moving to the Government Center, obviously plans changed.
It seems like somebody is clearing out City Hall!
I FOIA’d the application Connect Transfer submitted to the Feds seeking funds for the downtown transfer station. If you remember Rodney Davis claimed all the information is public. https://blnnews.com/2020/08/07/so-is-the-transfer-station-a-secret/
I received 7 pages without the referenced attachments. So far I still don’t have them. This is MUST reading, enjoy: Bus and Bus Facilities Grant Application – 2020
I asked for the attachments and received the same 7 pages again with their apologies. I of course asked again. Nothing yet.
The current City Hall doesn’t fit their plans since they want businesses around the transfer center as it will promote economic development. There isn’t much room for that one on Olive Street. Get the idea that “economic development” is the magic phrase for funding whether it actually works or not?
The Council never voted on any of this. They won’t until the deal is done. So much for elected representatives.
Just hit play to hear Gleason:
OMG! Another 30 million+ mess! I suppose local big wig good old boys contractors club is foaming at the mouth. Perhaps Renner will make a small offer on the fairly new scoreboards so he can count mail in voting results from the comfort of his own home.
It is disappointing Connect chooses to spend so much time and effort to build a transfer center instead of expanding service to the lower-income areas that lost service because of Connect’s decision to purchase such large busses. The Bloomington transfer center will not bring economic development, it did not for Normal. There are fewer businesses in Normal because of the transfer station. New flash, bus riders are not an economic engine. If that were the case there would be gangbuster development at the current transfer locations. All it will do is extend the commute time for those who need the bus service.
in light of the shift to rideshare services and autonomous vehicles, building an expensive transfer center is shortsighted.
This is all about building structures. Likely to compete with Normal, it is not about getting people from a-z faster and more conveniently.
More government waste in action.
Why do I feel like I have just entered into an episode of the Twilight Zone?
Did someone go back in time and disrupt the present by altering something in the past?
Are these people really as dumb, shortsighted and uninformed as it seems?
Are they from an alternate universe that has somehow flipped them into our universe?
It seems to me that the:
Bus Transfer Station (Insane)
Thinking the transfer station will spur economic development (Clueless & Insane)
Believing government can “revitalize the downtown” (Stupid & Insane)
Moving city Hall to create “one stop shopping” for all department (BS & Insane)
Believing in and supporting the bus system (Bat shit crazy)
I don’t know how anyone could have written this application with a straight face. Way too many bald-faced lies and naive thinking to document in a single article or comment. Among other gems… Downtown is “central to the life of the city and region” (yeah, right…it’s the center of the local economy…hahahahaha.); the project will bring more economic and transit-oriented development in Downtown (yes, a bus transfer station will bring in the next tech company and serve as a catalyst for economic development. Businesses want to relocate to Downtown Bloomington, they were just waiting for a multimillion-dollar bus station to open); seek to connect riders with bike paths (so, an unpopular service seeking to leverage access to an even less popular service); hosting multiple meetings and conduct interviews with stakeholders (read: we talk to people that agree with us and/or have a financial interest in the project); and, comprehensive public outreach campaign (which means half-truths and information sharing with those that agree with us). That’s just a first glance. Notably, I did not see anything about the cost of ongoing maintenance associated with the transfer station. Generally, there’s the 1% rule i.e. maintenance costs are at least 1% of the property value per year. So, $60,000 (on $6 million). Add to that, the cost of insurance (10s of thousands of dollars) and, no doubt, the patronage jobs CT will add.
I’ve got copies of the support letters, haven’t gotten around to posting
Oh, oh, don’t tell me… Supporters include (1) Hile Consulting, (2) ISU, (3) unions, (4) Mike Majietka [sp?], (5) Downtown business cabal, (6) Chamber, and (7) EDC. Who’d I miss? RINO Rodney? Dan “afraidy” Brady?
Take out the first 5, have to add the usual suspects
As a life long TOWNIE, IT IS TIME to DITCH all these idiots and their bad thinking, investments, tax increases and representation! IT’s TIME to “sack and loot” city hall and clean out the trash!