With local city leaders surrounding him, Mayor Mark Kruzan announced arrangements for a new $60,000 Downtown Plan for Bloomington with the help of an alliance including a nationally recognized consulting firm based in Boulder, Colo.\nBoth Mayor Kruzan and City Council President Mike Diekhoff addressed concerns about fiscal issues in Bloomington and the implementation a $60,000 plan.\n"This is the time to invest in downtown, even with fiscal issues present," Kruzan said. "What we do now will affect downtown in 20 years."\nThe city will be working with Winter & Company, a Colorado-based consulting firm, to develop the downtown plan. Winter & Company has a record of substantial experience in downtown planning, making it the best choice for the job, Kruzan said.\n"We've contracted an expert -- this consulting firm is a perfect match for Bloomington," he said.\nTom Micuda, Bloomington planning director, said Winter & Company offered the best ideas of all the companies interviewed.\n"We interviewed several candidates in the process, and this one made the best presentation," Micuda said.\nThe planning process will take about nine months to finish, Kruzan said. The firm and city will be conducting focus groups, meetings and interviews with local merchants and business owners to better understand the needs of downtown Bloomington.\n"It will be up to each of us in the community to get involved in this citizen-driven process and help envision Bloomington's future," City Councilman Chris Sturbaum said in a statement. "Engaging Nore Winter, a nationally renowned urban planner, should help us gain insights for our downtown from other communities' successful experiences."\nThe city and Winter & Company will be holding public meetings to hear the community's perspective. The first of these meetings will be from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Sept. 28 at the Bloomington Convention Center.\nDiekhoff said the city council has had the downtown plan on its priority list.\n"Funding this was always a council priority," Diekhoff said. "We have a great downtown and want to make it better."\nRon Walker, economic development director, said that to bring money into Bloomington, jobs must be created. Micuda said the only way to create jobs is to attract employers to the downtown area.\n"(It) never ceases to amaze me how downtown can grow. Job growth is a high priority of mine, and that cannot happen if employers don't exist in the downtown area," Walker said. "This plan keeps adding to the needs of the downtown businesses, both large and small."\nThe plan for downtown Bloomington will not just be passed and enacted. It first must go through a series of steps so changes can be made if necessary. \nKruzan said a steering committee will be appointed consisting of city leaders, officials, University members, city council members and business owners to complete the plan. Once the plan is finished, it will be adopted as a formal amendment to Bloomington's Growth Policies Plan.\n"I believe we are doing something truly important for our community," Sturbaum said. "What Bloomington will be like in 10 or 20 years can be forever changed for the better by the Downtown Planning Initiative."
-- Contact senior writer Lindsey Jancek at lmnjancek@indiana.edu .
