Bloomington City Council

The City of Bloomington will explore development possibilities for land on the northeast edge of Downtown, after acquiring the former Electrolux and Mennonite Hospital property through a land exchange with Illinois Wesleyan University.

It takes more than Facebook comments and email blasts to get results when advocating for change in local government. WGLT talked to those who've done it successfully to create this Local Democracy Playbook — a resource for you to follow in their footsteps.

At Wednesday's forum, only one resident spoke in favor of a data center. The other 24 people raised concerns over water use, pollution, land use and transparency from the city.

The data center public forum will be held at the Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts on Wednesday, May 6. The event will be from 2-4 p.m. and continue from 6-8 p.m.

The show at the Interstate Center will involve 300 drones and include animation elements, custom audio and synchronization provided by Firefly Services.

The Bloomington City Council unanimously approved a $370.5 million fiscal year 2027 budget Monday night, the largest in the city's history.

The City of Bloomington and Central Illinois Regional Airport [CIRA] have both said there are no redevelopment plans at the location rumored to become a data center in southeast Bloomington.

The City of Bloomington's Downtown for Everyone project is moving through the 500 block of North Main Street as scheduled and is still expected to cost $13.2 million. Residents and business owners are continuing to adapt through sometimes inconvenient construction work.

Redevelopment of one of Bloomington’s most prominent downtown buildings will occur in phases, with the initial phase beginning in July and targeted for completion by the middle of next year.

Ten of the 11 people who spoke during the public comments portion of Monday’s Bloomington City Council meeting voiced opposition to a perceived possibility of a data center development south of Central Illinois Regional Airport.