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Mayor Kerry details Hopewell South plan, says Seminary Point loss is county decision and city lacks capacity to intervene
Summary
At a Traveling Town Hall Mayor Kerry outlined Hopewell South—a proposed 98-unit redevelopment with starter prices cited around $83,000—explained Seminary Point sits on county land slated for transfer to the Capital Improvement Board, and said the city lacks the funds and capacity to acquire and rehabilitate the site.
Mayor Kerry told residents at a traveling town hall that the city is prioritizing housing and homelessness and highlighted the Hopewell South redevelopment, which she said is proposed as roughly 98 homes on the old hospital site and is currently before council.
She said planners and the development team anticipate starter owner-occupied prices "around $83,000" for some small homes and that units could escalate in price up to "about $600,000" for larger four-bedroom houses. "We're really proud of what we've proposed there," she said, and added that council and administration are working through remaining details.
On Seminary Point, the mayor said the units in question are on county-owned property and that the Capital Improvement Board (CIB) — not the city — is the party receiving the land as part of the convention center project. "That is a county land deal," she said, and she urged residents to raise concerns with county commissioners because the city does not control the parcel.
Residents asked whether the city could acquire Seminary Point to preserve about 29 affordable units. Mayor Kerry said the city has not performed a detailed assessment of the building but that, "from talking to others... it is prohibitively expensive to get those apartments even up to code." She added the city currently lacks capacity and resources to take on additional development projects, citing revenue losses tied to state actions and federal funding changes.
The mayor encouraged tenants and concerned neighbors to contact county officials for timelines and stressed the city’s ongoing outreach for people living outdoors and other housing interventions.
The town hall closed with residents naming community assets such as the Bloomington Speedway and Griffy Reservoir; Mayor Kerry remained afterward for one-on-one conversations.
