Since 2021, hundreds of community members and City staff have worked together to create a five-year strategic plan, a mission to guide the City in cultivating an enduring and remarkable community where people want to be.
Addressing Bloomington’s aging resources became a key objective, and three projects emerged as top priorities to be renewed, upgraded or replaced. They include:
Nine Mile Creek Corridor renewal
- Need: The City’s 2022 Natural Resources Prioritization and Management Strategies ranked Nine Mile Creek and Moir/Central Park as the highest priority for restoration.
- Benefits: This major natural resource would be restored and year-round recreational opportunities would be increased.
Bloomington Ice Garden upgrade
- Need: This popular facility needs modernization and major updates to mechanical systems, including refrigeration for all three ice sheets.
- Benefits: The upgrade would improve guest experience and make it possible to continue ice rental and hosting dozens of tournaments and figure skating events annually.
Public Health and Creekside Community Center building replacement
- Need: These obsolete buildings do not meet the needs of the communities they serve.
- Benefits: Combining them into one facility would provide a more effective environment to deliver vital health, fitness and recreational services as well as social activities.
Potential funding for identified projects
Sales and property taxes are two primary ways to pay for community improvements. The estimated cost for all three projects is $155 million. Here’s the estimated cost for each funding option:
- Sales tax option, mentioned above, would cost $70 - $105 annually for each of Bloomington’s 42,000 households.
- Property tax option would cost $230 annually for each property owner of a median value home in Bloomington.
For more information about these projects, visit blm.mn/invest.
