Economic Development

Democratic members of Illinois’ congressional delegation are urging the IRS to move ahead with plans for a new print and mail management facility in Bloomington. A congressional staffer told WGLT that the project was targeting downtown Bloomington and could create several hundred jobs.

You don't usually find Democrats picking up the gauntlet to weaken provisions of a law originally intended to prevent the concentration of capital into hereditary wealthy elites. But State Sen. Dave Koehler of Peoria said there's a sound economic development reason to do so.

Eight months ago, a housing coalition in Bloomington-Normal asked for help, and a share of Town of Normal and City of Bloomington pandemic relief money to support as people go through rental assistance, eviction avoidance, and affordable housing programs. But the lack of housing and affordable housing is a much broader issue than one advocate can solve.

Developers can build an $18.5 million housing development at the former Coachman Motel property, after the Bloomington City Council approved he project Monday night.

A Bloomington City Council discussion about whether to apply prevailing wage rules to a private development if there are government incentives at stake is spreading beyond the apartment project in question. That's according to deputy city manager Billy Tyus who said in a WGLT interview the ongoing dialogue is not just about wages.

Carl Teichman, a longtime fixture at Illinois Wesleyan University, is moving to a new role with the Bloomington-Normal Economic Development Council.

A bill moving through the state legislature to make the tax base larger for the Central Illinois Regional Airport also would increase the maximum tax rate that could support the facility. It has passed the Senate and cleared a House committee.

The mayor of Normal said he's had it with lengthy traffic jams caused by freight trains. Chris Koos said this has been an issue before and the Union Pacific Railroad has addressed it, but there has been backsliding.

Bloomington-Normal is poised for prolonged healthy growth. But it will need help to make those dreams real, and changes at the state level could offer a boost to the Twin Cities.

Homebuilders in Bloomington-Normal are playing catch up in meeting the growth of the last decade, the more recent expansion of the labor market, and projected future growth.