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Bloomington City Council does not legislate homeless encampments
Bloomington City Council voted to not designate legal locations for the region’s homeless to set up camp, in a 4-4 tie earlier this week. Councilmember Sims was unable to attend the vote due to a family emergency, and because the measure did not receive a majority approval, it ultimately failed. There was speculation that while the intent is noble, that the proposal was just not well presented, including not publicizing the reality that this would cost the City Parks and Recreation Department around a half a million dollars annually to upkeep such an encampment. Moving forward, any councilmember wishing to further pursue the matter will need to propose new legislation, considering this vote was rejected.
Mayor Hamilton Announces Don Griffin, Jr. to be Next Deputy Mayor
Bloomington Mayor John Hamilton has announced that he will appoint lifelong Bloomingtonian Donald Griffin, Jr. as Deputy Mayor, succeeding Mick Renneisen, who has announced his retirement effective April 23. Griffin, the owner of Griffin Realty Holdings, is a Bloomington native with decades of community service and leadership. As Deputy Mayor, he will coordinate and oversee 16 City departments and 850 employees working to implement the Hamilton administration’s policies and goals. Griffin will assume the office upon Renneisen’s departure and earn an annual salary of $112,073.
Local economic status still shaky
According to Indiana University economics professor, Andrew Butters, Indiana has fared better than other parts of the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic as Indiana’s reliance on manufacturing makes it a little easier to rebound from a pandemic-caused recession. However, unlike the Great Recession more than a decade ago, people are more likely to be unemployed long-term. Last year, Indiana’s average unemployment rate was just more than 7-percent, an increase nearly 4 percentage points compared to 2019. States more dependent on tourism and entertainment like Hawaii and Nevada have experienced some of the worst job losses. Butters says as more people are vaccinated, it remains to be seen how job recovery will be impacted moving forward.