Bloomington deliberation session hears affordability, 'missing middle' and ADU concerns

The Bloomington Common Council held a deliberation session Sept. 10 to gather residents' personal experiences with housing; council leaders said the meeting was intended to collect lived experience rather than debate specific policy. “The purpose of the session this evening is not to debate specific types of housing or housing policies, but to get a better understanding of what needs are and are not being met with our current housing market,” President Stasberg said.

Participants met in seven small groups, each co‑facilitated by a city staff member and a council member, and several facilitators reported back. Jamie, a group co‑facilitator, said, “most people in our group felt that the housing was meeting their needs,” though renters in the same group described rents as “a little bit high.”

The nut graf: Across the room several recurring themes emerged — affordability, limited options for the so‑called “missing middle” (housing priced and sized between student rentals and high‑end single‑family homes), mixed views on accessory dwelling units (ADUs), and concern that short‑term rentals reduce long‑term housing stock.

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