City presents housing-rehabilitation plan, flags nearly 1,000 estimated abandoned properties

Melissa Hahn, a Community Impact and Enhancement staff member, presented a proposed set of housing rehabilitation programs to the Bloomington City Council on Feb. 17, saying the proposals respond to priorities the council set in a July resolution to address housing affordability, availability and quality.

Hahn described a three-part approach of city investment, community investment and outreach and education and said the city has already invested federal and local funds in rehabilitation. "One of those key priorities you identified was for city staff to develop a housing rehabilitation program, and that's what I'll be talking to you about tonight," Hahn said.

Under the staff proposal, the City would offer an Exterior Repair and Improvement program for owner-occupied units in the designated regeneration area. Staff recommended income eligibility at or below 80% of area median income (AMI) — Hahn gave examples of AMI: $61,250 for an individual and $115,500 for a family of eight — a project minimum of $5,000 and a project maximum of $20,000, and an annual program budget between $160,000 and $200,000. A second proposed Minor Home Repair and Improvement program would cover items such as water heaters, HVAC, mobile-home roof repair, accessibility ramps and radon testing, with the same 80% AMI eligibility, project minimum of $5,000, project maximum of $10,000 and an annual budget recommendation of $40,000–$50,000.

Hahn said the city is proposing a Community Impact Week of volunteer-driven repairs to supplement funded programs. The week would prioritize residents at or below 50% AMI and give preference to veterans and residents with disabilities; staff would recruit volunteers from local trades and labor unions and seek materials donations from local businesses. Projects suited to volunteers would be limited to an estimated materials cap of $5,000 per project and tasks not requiring specialized certification, such as mailbox or door repair, porch painting and yard cleanup. "We would look to recruit volunteers from trades and labor unions, which we've already started those conversations, and they're very willing and onboard," Hahn said.

Steve Scudder, the township assessor, described the homestead-improvement-exemption program and how it can delay assessment increases for structural additions, saying the exemption can hold an improvement's assessed value at the pre-improvement level for four years before the added value is included.

Council members asked staff about expected reach and verification of need. Hahn said program capacity would depend on funding levels; if the city funded the exterior program at $200,000 and each project received the maximum, the program could serve roughly 100 homes in a year, though many projects will likely be smaller. She also said the city has invested over $1 million from CDBG funds and over $1 million in local (Bridal) funding for housing rehabilitation since fiscal year 2020, and that ARPA funds previously allocated to the program have been committed to projects that should finish by the end of the coming construction season.

Council member Ward pressed staff to address a larger stock of vacant or neglected properties, citing the U.S. Census American Community Survey (ACS) 2023 estimate that Hahn relayed: 929 abandoned properties in the city. "I don't wanna see us wasting time fooling around with 9 properties at a time when we've got 900 properties that we can do something about," Ward said, urging staff to pursue incentives or regulatory options to bring those parcels back into productive use.

Hahn said the number came from ACS estimate data and has not been verified at the parcel level; she said the city currently has nine condemned properties on its administrative list (five single-family homes and one mobile home among them) and that verifying the ACS estimate would likely require either staff time or a third-party, block-by-block study. Staff agreed to request additional county datasets — including delinquent-tax rosters — to narrow the list and to follow up with Council; Council member Kern formally asked staff to request the county data.

Council members also discussed potential tools for addressing abandoned properties. Jeff Jurgens, city manager, noted that State law currently limits the city’s authority to impose certain vacancy taxes, but said state-level conversations are ongoing; he suggested the city could also pursue incentive packages with other local taxing bodies to encourage redevelopment if state law changes.

The department announced an upcoming housing resource fair on March 19 at Eastland Mall (10 a.m.–2 p.m.) and listed other outreach events planned for spring and summer, including the Mira Housing Fair in April, City-County Health Fair, Juneteenth, PrideFest and farmers markets. Hahn said staff would continue outreach and that a veteran service officer would be on site at 200 W. Front Street in about 90 days to assist with claims and benefits.

Why it matters: Council members said stabilizing existing housing and returning vacant properties to use are central to preventing displacement, preserving neighborhood quality and increasing affordable housing supply. Council directed staff to pursue additional data from county sources and to return with more details on program scope and funding options.

Next steps: Staff will request county property-tax/delinquent-tax data and other datasets to verify the ACS estimate, continue outreach and refine cost and program design for council review, and return to council with further details in coming meetings.