The Indiana Supreme Court issued a unanimous order Tuesday that declined to review a case where the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled against the City of Bloomington’s efforts to annex two unincorporated areas on the city’s west side.
This order upheld the Indiana Court of Appeals’ September 2025 decision to reject the city’s appeal of a 2024 Monroe County Circuit Court decision. This decision ended the city’s attempt at annexing two of its seven bids.
The 2024 circuit court decision ruled that the annexations did not meet statutory requirements, and that the city didn’t have enough evidence of available resources to warrant annexing the areas. Annexation would make the areas part of the city, providing them with city services. Many residents oppose the push for annexation as it would increase property taxes, according to The Herald-Times.
The areas that the city will not be able to annex, known as Area 1A and Area 1B, are 3,163 acres and 1,755 acres, respectively. The city’s attempt to annex the areas, along with five others, began with a proposal from former Bloomington Mayor John Hamilton.
The original annexation attempt was blocked by a piece of special legislation that the Indiana Supreme Court declared unconstitutional in 2020 because it targeted Bloomington. The city adopted new annexation ordinances in 2021, but County Residents Against Annexation filed a petition to appeal.
There are around 8,600 residents in total in both areas, according to the Herald-Times article. Court documents show more than 50% of residents in both areas were opposed to the city’s 2021 annexation efforts.
The city then appealed the 2024 circuit court decision, and the Indiana Court of Appeals rejected the motion. The city then asked the Indiana Supreme Court to hear the case. Tuesday’s order means that the circuit court decision will stand.
The five other areas the city is trying to annex are part of a separate legal case pending before the Indiana Supreme Court.
