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Council approves $16.53 million joint funding agreement for Hamilton Road construction
Summary
The Bloomington City Council approved a federal joint funding agreement to construct Hamilton Road from Bunn Street to Commerce Park Parkway, committing $16,531,082 in federally funded construction for a multi-phase arterial project long planned by the city.
The Bloomington City Council on March 17 approved a resolution authorizing a joint funding agreement for federally funded construction of Hamilton Road (Bunn Street to Commerce Park Parkway) in the amount of $16,531,082, moving a long‑planned arterial project toward a June or April bid letting.
Interim Director of Engineering Jim Karch described the work as part of a multi-phase, 1.77-mile section of a larger 7.2-mile arterial alignment in southern Bloomington. “This is a project that has been around for 25 years. It is a 1.77 mile multi phase 4 lane road,” Karch said, and identified this phase as a high-cost segment that, combined with an earlier approved phase, brings the program total toward $30 million.
Karch and staff said the project’s complexity stemmed chiefly from negotiating an at‑grade railroad crossing with Norfolk Southern, including relocation of a siding to accommodate track storage. Karch said those railroad negotiations have been finalized and described the resolution as a critical step to meet the bid letting this spring.
The funding package includes federal Surface Transportation (STU) dollars, congressional earmarks and other sources, and Karch said council action would allow the city to proceed to bid and construction sequencing that also ties into planned multimodal connections to the Constitution Trail and the Fox Creek Road improvement project.
Council Member Ward moved approval; another council member seconded. The motion passed with no nays announced.
Karch noted the project design will eliminate a hazardous connection at Rhodes Lane and Morrissey, improving safety by routing traffic from the State Farm research facility onto Hamilton Road instead of Morrissey. He said the city expects to reach required federal and railroad milestones before letting and that the negotiated railroad work includes siding relocation to maintain Norfolk Southern’s operational needs.
The council did not adopt construction contracts at the meeting; it authorized the joint funding agreement needed to accept federal funds and advance procurement. Staff said further council approvals will be required to award construction contracts following the bid process.
