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NOTE: This guest column article featuring President & CEO Eric Spoonmore, was originally published by The Herald-Times on Friday, November 28th, 2025. On Nov. 3, the Monroe County Council voted to reject the purchase of the North Park property between Bloomington and Ellettsville to construct a $230 million justice complex. The project included a new jail and sheriff’s department, nine new courtrooms with accompanying judges’ chambers and new offices for the prosecutor’s staff, county clerk’s staff and the public defender’s office.
While the proposal for North Park failed, one fact remains: County officials remain committed to the urgent need for, at minimum, a new jail. The existing facility is inadequate and no longer meets modern operational standards. A safe, humane, and functional jail is a critical component of a forward-looking justice system. Fortunately, there are viable and accessible sites near Bloomington where the county can construct a new facility that better reflects our community’s values. And while the jail itself does not need to be located downtown, all other justice-related services absolutely should remain there.
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NOTE: This news article featuring Senior Director of Government & Community Relations, Christopher Emge, was originally published by WFHB on Tuesday, October 14th, 2025.  Photo courtesy of the Herald Times. The Bloomington City Council met on September 30th. During the meeting, a proposal to name a section of Bloomington the “Stadium District” was introduced. The naming would be the area surrounding Miller-Showers Park. In today’s feature report, WFHB News Correspondent Katrine Bruner speaks with Co-Founder of Heartwork Brewing Aubrey Williams and Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce’s Christopher Emge about naming an area in Bloomington the “Stadium District.” She also features perspectives from residents of the area who pushed back against the proposal.
NOTE: This news article featuring President & CEO, Eric Spoonmore, was originally published by Indiana Public Media by Ethan Sandweiss on Friday, September 12th, 2025.  Devan Ridgway / WFIU/WTIU News Just south of downtown on Walnut St., businesses and property owners say they’re losing business over problems caused by street homelessness. Despite the efforts of local government and nonprofits, some locals said they haven’t seen improvements. Ty Osborne grew up at Stahl Furniture. That’s no exaggeration — his father has managed the store since 1976 and bought it from Ray Stahl in the early 2000s.
“Now my son's the third in the business,” Osborne said. “He's third generation of Osbornes running the store, and I want to have a location where he's got a future, and where I've got a future.” That location, he said, isn’t in Bloomington. Just south of downtown on Walnut St., businesses and property owners like Osborne say they’re losing business over problems caused by street homelessness. Despite the efforts of local government and nonprofits, some locals said they haven’t seen improvements. “A lot of days we come to work, and we have to work an hour just to open up our front door with all the paraphernalia, food and clothing and bedding that's been left there,” Osborne said.
NOTE: This news article featuring Senior Director of Government & Community Relations, Christopher Emge, was originally published by WTHR Channel 13 by Ashton Hackman on Friday, September 12th, 2025.
Dubbed the "Stadium District," the Greater Bloomington Chamer of Commerce is working alongside the city of Bloomington to make it a reality.
Hoosier football fans are in full swing for another season and still hyped up after a historic 2024 season for Indiana.
City leaders are building off that excitement, launching a new district in the city at the area around Walnut Street, the SR 45/46 bypass, and 17th Street on the north end of Bloomington as visitors enter town from the north.
NOTE: This news article featuring President & CEO, Eric Spoonmore, was originally published by WRTV 6 by Taj Simmons on Tuesday, August 12th, 2025.
NOTE: This Legislative Update featuring Senior Director of Government & Community Relations, Christopher Emge, was originally published on CATS on Monday, April 21st, 2025. The Leagues of Women Voters of Bloomington-Monroe County, Brown County, and Johnson County, and the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce are pleased to co-sponsor this event.
NOTE: This news article featuring Senior Director of Government & Community Relations, Christopher Emge, was originally published by Indiana Public Media, WFIU on Noon Edition by Patrick Beane on Friday, April 11th, 2025.  (Schmidt Associates, Convergence Design) Trees have been cut down, parking barriers installed, and plans are underway for construction to begin in June on the expansion of the convention center in downtown Bloomington.
Even the name has changed, from the Monroe Convention Center to the Bloomington Convention Center. It’s taken almost a decade to get the expansion project to this point. The plan includes a 61,000-square foot building across College Avenue from the current convention center, along with renovations to the current building. That includes a full-service kitchen that could serve close to 2,000 people, a bus pull-off with Third Street corridor alignment, a loading dock ramp, relocation of utilities, and a climate-friendly green roof. NOTE: This Legislative Update featuring Senior Director of Government & Community Relations, Christopher Emge, was originally published on CATS on Monday, March 10th, 2025. The Leagues of Women Voters of Bloomington-Monroe County, Brown County, and Johnson County, and the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce are pleased to co-sponsor this event. NOTE: This news article featuring President & CEO, Eric Spoonmore, was originally published by IDS - Gabby Rogers on Friday, March 7th, 2025.  The council chambers are pictured Sept. 4, 2024, in City Hall in Bloomington. The city council approved construction to begin on the Monroe County Convention Center expansion at a meeting Wednesday. Photo by Molly Gregory / The Indiana Daily Student A round of applause filled the council chambers after Bloomington City Council unanimously passed the critical step in the years-long Monroe County Convention Center expansion project.
The council greenlighted $46,825,000 in lease rental revenue bonds to renovate the center. NOTE: This Legislative Update was originally published on CATS on Monday, February 18th, 2025. The Leagues of Women Voters of Bloomington-Monroe County, Brown County, and Johnson County, and the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce are pleased to co-sponsor this event. |
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