Mayor votes ‘reluctantly’ in favor of I-69

Bloomington Mayor Mark Kruzan, who has been opposed to Interstate 69 construction since before he was elected in 2003, made what he called a “reluctant” vote in favor of an amendment that would allow federal funding to be used to construct a section of I-69 that would run through Bloomington.

On Nov. 5, a battle about proposed I-69 construction through Bloomington and Monroe County ended at the City Council Chambers of Bloomington City Hall.

At a Bloomington/Monroe County Metropolitan Planning Organization meeting, a representative from the Indiana Department of Transportation stated if the Transportation Improvement Program Amendment was not passed, INDOT would use local transportation funds — which would have been used for local projects — to build Section 4 of I-69.

With a 9-4 vote in favor of the TIP Amendment, the Bloomington/Monroe County
MPO will allow INDOT to use federal funding to construct Section 4 of I-69.

Kruzan was one of those nine votes.

“MPO funds will either be used to build I-69 or for local transportation projects,” Kruzan said, attempting to explain his vote to the crowd at the MPO meeting.

Kruzan was unavailable for further comment.

Kruzan wrote an article for The Bloomington Alternative, a biweekly newspaper whose goal is to “promote and celebrate progressive social change and independent media in Bloomington,”  on March 22, 2009.

He wrote a commentary titled “Kruzan: Public can stop I-69” in opposition to the I-69 construction in Bloomington.

Kruzan wrote, “A no vote by MPO may carry with it a cost in the form of federal funding cuts, but a yes vote would have furthered an I-69-caused erosion of community spirit and economy.”

Kruzan also signed Bloomington City Council Resolution number 4-19 opposing the I-69 route through Bloomington in September 2004.

The resolution cited many reasons for opposing I-69, including negative effects on local businesses, the environment and quality of life in Bloomington.

The resolution also stated that with Indiana State Road 37 connecting Bloomington to Indianapolis, there was no need for a “huge, costly investment in one limited-access
superhighway.”

On Nov. 6, the day after his vote in favor of the TIP Amendment, the Hoosier Environmental Council recognized Kruzan as Elected Official of the Year for his “courageous stand on I-69” at the Council’s third annual Green Policy Forum.

Tim Maloney, senior policy director for the HEC, said the HEC selected Kruzan for the award several months ago based on his opposition to I-69 being constructed in Bloomington as well as Kruzan’s local sustainability projects.

HEC was against the TIP amendment, Maloney said.

“The decision went the other way, and we were disappointed in the outcome and disappointed in the mayor’s vote as well,” Maloney said.

However, Maloney said he understood the position the mayor was put in with the threat of INDOT using local transportation funds for I-69 construction.

“The threat of losing state funding is clearly a serious threat for any leader of a municipality, and the mayor has to take all that into account in his action,” Maloney said. “It’s still clear to us from what he said that he’s still opposed to I-69 coming through Bloomington.”

Sam Sarvis, deputy commissioner of major programs for INDOT, said he wasn’t surprised by the mayor’s vote in favor of the TIP amendment.

“He’s recognized the fact that it is coming, we are going to build the interstate and the route is going to go through Bloomington,” Sarvis said.

Kruzan had come to the point where he had to deal with the cards he was dealt, Sarvis said.

“At some point as a public official, you have to bring about what’s best for the community,” Sarvis said. “They push to the best of their ability for the agenda, but at the end of the day, they have to do what’s handed to them.”

The Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce has been a longtime supporter of I-69 construction in Bloomington, said Morgan Hutton, director of advocacy for the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce.

Hutton said the Chamber supported the TIP amendment so the Bloomington community could have a say in I-69 decision making.

“There will be a lot of important decisions in the planning process that will have a major impact on the community,” Hutton said. “We felt that this action by the MPO was a critical action to maintain the ability to have a seat at the table.”

Hutton also applauded Kruzan’s “reasonable approach” to voting in favor of the TIP amendment.

“He took a very responsible step as mayor to make sure funding is kept locally and took a step to make sure funding is kept toward local projects,” Hutton said.

Sandra Tokarski, co-founder of Citizens for Appropriate Rural Roads, an organization that has opposed I-69 construction for the past 20 years, said the MPO has lost any bargaining power with INDOT, in part because of Kruzan’s vote.

“If Mayor Kruzan had taken a strong position and stood up to the bullying of the Federal Highway Administration and the Indiana Department of Transportation, it’s very likely that the committee would’ve voted down that amendment,” Tokarski said.

Tokarski said she was frustrated with Kruzan’s vote. 

“We were extremely disappointed that Mayor Kruzan shifted his position on I-69 and supported the amendment,” Tokarski said. “I think it was very short-sighted.”