Bloomington determined to turn hospital site into housing

By: Taj Simmons

BLOOMINGTON — The former IU Health Bloomington Hospital site has sat as a grassy field since the hospital's demolition. The city wants to build hundreds of affordable housing units on the site, but none of them are intended for students first.

"What has been lacking is the local housing for people who live and work in Bloomington," said Bloomington mayor Kerry Thomson. "That is my focus."

The site, which was renamed the Hopewell neighborhood, does not have any new housing under construction yet.

The Bloomington Redevelopment Commission rejected all of the requests for proposals it received for a portion of the Hopewell site on June 30. Instead, the city selected a developer who will focus on building workforce housing first.

"It's very important for me not to do it quickly, but to do it right," Thomson said. "It should not be all wealthy people who can live within walking distance of our downtown."

Thomson said construction on the housing could start in the next six months.

Becky Markis and Linda Zimmer both live across the street from the former hospital.

"All three of my children were born here," Markis said. "I'm excited to see what's next."

"I've worked at the hospital for 20-something years as a volunteer, then watched it get picked away as it was demolished," Zimmer said.

Both Markis and Zimmer are eager for Bloomington to build more affordable housing, especially if it is in their neighborhood.

"I hope it helps a lot," Markis said. "I hope it helps people who otherwise wouldn't afford purchasing a home an opportunity to do that."

"I don't know if I'll be here when it happens on account of my age, but hopefully it will turn out to be something special," Zimmer said. "It seems slow, but that's how progress is, too. I understand that."

Bloomington has already built a park, Hopewell Commons, for the new neighborhood. Additionally, the Bloomington Police Department hopes to turn an abandoned medical office building in Hopewell into its new headquarters.