Representatives of a real estate consulting group are sharing their initial impressions of Bloomington with city leaders and residents as they consider what is needed to revitalize the west side.
The Counselors of Real Estate is an international network of around 1,000 real estate professionals. The group sent its Consulting Corps to survey Bloomington’s Gridley-Allin-Prickett, near east side and Dimmitt’s Grove neighborhoods over the past week.
On Monday, the corps invited residents in those neighborhoods to share their feedback at Miller Park. On Friday, they shared preliminary findings and early recommendations at the Bloomington Public Library.
Residents love where they live
The group said there is a clear passion and love for the west side, and those who live there are highly motivated to see their neighborhoods improve, without being pushed out by the effects of gentrification.
“That’s the double-edged sword of gentrification,” said Consulting Corps Team Lead Brett Pelletier. “Uplifting a neighborhood without displacing the population that made the neighborhood great in the first place.”
In their feedback, residents shared their love for the city’s libraries, parks and amenities. There also was a strong sense of community, and plenty of connection among neighbors.
“I talked to so many people who said, 'I'm doing this garden for a neighbor, or I have chickens and they have a bakery and we swap,'” Pelletier said, “and it's just phenomenal, it's wonderful. The community is genuinely a community.”
The group spoke with more than 80 community groups, county and city agencies, businesses and residents during the week it was in Bloomington.
They found there were multiple community groups already trying to solve housing and neighborhood revitalization problems, like the West Bloomington Revitalization Project, McLean County Habitat for Humanity and many others.
However, none of those community groups can spearhead the daunting initiative alone. The consultants argued there needs to be a centralized group that can generate funding to cover development and assist buyers while streamlining the acquisition and rehabilitation of housing.
“We spoke to a number of different organizations and individuals that said, ‘I want to participate in solving the housing problem here. I don’t know how, on my own, but if you put us together and get us a vehicle to do something, we’re on board,’” Pelletier said.
Her said there are lots of people and resources that could be incredibly helpful to the city’s efforts, but they might need assistance like extra funds.
Rent, mortgages have risen rapidly
Sara Rutledge, a consulting corps member and economist, presented financial data that showed how much rent and home prices have risen over the past decade.
Rutledge said the data reflected what she heard from the community — that rents used to be much lower and now they keep going up.
“Home prices and rents have soared,” Rutledge said. “Since 2019, home prices are up 78% in the city. That’s a huge jump.”
Rutledge also compared different levels of income in Bloomington to those housing costs. The data show 91% of people earning a minimum yearly income of $31,200 could not afford a new construction home priced at $464,800. Just over half, 56%, in that same income bracket could not afford an existing home priced $287,200.
As for rent, 76% of those making $31,200 a year cannot afford a single-family home priced at $1,980 a month. Slightly under half of them, 44%, cannot afford to rent a multi-family unit priced at $1,100 a month.
At the average wage of $43,500 a year, 65% of earners cannot afford the newly built home. Existing homes are slightly more affordable, but 40% of average wage earners cannot afford them. As for rent, 55% cannot afford to rent a single-family home at $1,980 a month, and 30% cannot afford a multi-family rental unit.
Median income households fare better. The median household income in Rutledge’s data was $78,100; 36% cannot afford the newly constructed home, and 22% cannot afford existing homes.
Solutions so far
The consulting corps recommended the city utilize real estate as currency for economic development.
The group strongly recommends against tearing down homes without trying every other possible option first. It creates a vacant lot that can be difficult to redevelop.
“It isn’t going to do much for the neighborhood and it isn’t going to do much for housing,” said corps member and Champaign-area real estate consultant Alex Ruggieri.
Some buildings will have to come down, the corps admitted, but there are alternative housing options that may be less costly, like using prefabricated or manufactured homes instead of building from scratch.
Some manufactured home models shared during the corps presentation start at over $200,000, without the addition of a porch, garage or basement. Pelletier said there are some cheaper options, like a one-bedroom, 650-square-foot unit that was around $60,000.
While residents love the west side, the corps warned they could feel fatigue and distrust without significant action. The corps considered the residents’ love and enthusiasm one of the city’s best assets.
Clean, predictable and fast permitting processes would help, they said. They also recommended a digitally integrated and centralized system for the city’s utilities, so developers can quickly know what hookups a property may or may not have without having to contact multiple agencies.
That system would not be cheap, said corps member Matthew Rueff, but it is expected of municipalities in the modern world.
Zombie properties
The corps also recommended cracking down in some form or another on so-called “zombie properties” that are homes not lived in or maintained.
The corps said sometimes zombie property owners can have multiple properties, and recommended finding ways to de-incentivize those owners from keeping the properties, either by charging fees or allowing them to donate the property for redevelopment.
City staff are preparing an ordinance to address vacant or abandoned properties, requiring the homeowner to register the property with the city and pay a fee every six months. The fee would be used to cover city legal fees and costs associated with those properties.
If, or when, abandoned or neglected homes are acquired by the city or centralized housing group, the corps recommends the city forgive any outstanding debts to not burden the developer or future buyer.
