Judy Markowitz was Bloomington's first female mayor and its first Jewish mayor.
Markowitz was one of the first people architect Russel Francois met when he first came to Bloomington in the 1970s. Francois noted her infectious enthusiasm for the city, especially downtown.
“It was constantly that promotion for the city and she just never failed to have that same enthusiasm, and that bright red lipstick and that big smile carried a lot of weight for those people who are around her,” Francois said, adding he also appreciated how she was always forthright in their encounters over the years.
When Markowitz served on the city council, she helped stop an effort to demolish the entire block south of the McLean County Museum of History. After it was spared, Francois moved his architectural firm there, where it stood for decades.
Jim Fruin sat next to Markowitz on the council for two years, and said he learned so much from her, especially her ability to listen to everyone.
“I don’t think she looked at dividing lines, whether it was geographic or whatever the case may be. I think she looked at the city as a whole and wanted to do what was before for the community,” Fruin said.
Fruin noted Markowitz would host an open house at the mayor’s office every spring where she would invite all city employees to share a piece of pie and discuss whatever issues that were concerning them.
“That was her way of saying, ‘My door is always open,' and it was,” Fruin said.
As mayor, Markowitz led a successful campaign to add sexual orientation to the city's anti-discrimination ordinance in 2002.
Fruin said Markowitz deftly navigated what was a hotly debated issue. She was on the council when it failed six years earlier.
“I think Judy, because of her Jewish background, she understood discrimination. She didn’t really make an issue of it herself,” Fruin said.
Fruin and Francois both say Markowitz was deliberate in her decision making as mayor, but also stuck to her convictions.
For many, Markowitz's legacy will be leading an effort for the city to build the downtown arena in 2003.
“I’m proud to vote yes,” Markowitz beamed as she cast the tie-breaking vote.
The arena remains a contentious issue nearly two decades later.
“I think she was disappointed that it had not become the magnet that she had envisioned for the community,” Francois said.
Francois and Markowitz remained close friends all the way up until her death in 2021 at age 82.
“It seems like a great loss for me whenever there’s a personality that we assume to be such a positive force,” Francois said.
