The final frontier

The scenery along Tapp Road is about to undergo a drastic change. A new elementary school, an inn, a conference center and approximately 8,000 residential units are a part of the Bloomington Planning Departments proposal for the city's southwest side.\nThe plans include development to the old Woolery Farm site, on the northeast corner of Tapp and Weimer roads, and the Sudbury planned unit development, just north of Woolery Farm. \nA third large development is also planned on the southside of Tapp Road, across the street from the Woolery Farm and adjacent to the Bloomington Country Club.\nBecause of the Lake Monroe watershed to the southeast side of the city, and Lake Griffy to the north, Bloomington's southwest side is one of the last large tracts of land for the city to grow, zoning planner Jim Roach said.\nSome developments, such as apartments off Weimer Road in the Sudbury land, have been completed, and others, such as the Adams Hill Farm neighborhood, located between the Southern Pines neighborhood and Monroe House assisted living center are currently being developed.\nChris Langley, who is developing Adams Hill Farm, actually lives in the neighborhood.\n"It's convenient to walking trails," Langley said. "With the school going in it looked like an attractive place to put homes in."\nThe new Broadview elementary school, will be next to Adams Hill Farm, and serve the new developments, and the surrounding neighborhoods.\nMike Scherer, director of extended services for the Monroe County Community School Corporation, said the current location of the school is old and in the middle of a residential neighborhood, stifling any possible growth of the current school caused by the new subdivisions.\n"We anticipate an increase in enrollment," Scherer said. "600 students opposed to 300 students."\nScherer says the school is in the initial planning stages, and will begin construction in the spring of 2003 and be ready for occupation by the fall of 2004.\nAn inn/condominium facility is also in the works for the Woolery Farm area. Randy Cassady is developing the old stone mill on the site, in what he calls an "adaptive-reuse project."\n"It fits in with the area, utilizing the mill we have as an emphasis on the limestone industry," Cassady said.\nCassady added that the site would have 48 rooms and 43 condominiums as well as banquet and conference facilities. There will also be a stone carver on the site and a climbing gym on the property.\nMark Cornett, architect for Kirkwood Design Studio who is designing the property, added that the inn will have a park-like setting, and take advantage of the local nature paths.\n"It will have a unique industrial flavor," Cornett said. "It's a boutique hotel in terms of scale."\nAll of this development will cause more traffic in the development and to and from major attractions. Frank Nierzwicki, the long range/transportation manager for the city, said the city is exploring different ways to cope with the traffic.\nNiezwicki said that the neighborhoods in this area would have bus pull-offs and shelters for riders.\n"That's the ultimate goal," Nierzwicki said. "Get people out of the car and into the bus."\nBut, Nierzwicki admitted that bus service would not entirely replace cars, and improvements will be made to Tapp Road, the main traffic corridor through this area. Tapp Road is scheduled to be widened in 2005 to four travel lanes with signals, sidewalks, side paths and possible bike lanes.\n"From a planning standpoint, it is very important that we save corridors," Nierzwicki said.\nWhile parts of this land are currently being developed, Roach estimated that this area would not be completely developed for 20 years.