Utilities and Public Works Update City Council on Winston Thomas Site

Bloomington, Indiana–During Wednesday night's City Council meeting, City of Bloomington Utilities (CBU) Director Vic Kelson and Department of Public Works (DPW) Director Adam Wason updated council members on the recommended move of CBU to the Winston Thomas site and centralizing DPW at the current Miller Drive campus. 

The Winston Thomas site offers many benefits as CBU envisions its operations for future generations. As the community continues to grow in population and activity, more residents and facilities will need access to water, wastewater, and stormwater services resulting in an increase in infrastructure. Since CBU has already outgrown its current service center and storage facilities, this move satisfies current and future needs.

Kelson explained during his presentation that CBU is “bursting at the seams'' at their current Miller Drive site. CBU does not have the capacity to hold enough inventory, which has been a particular growing problem in recent years due to supply chain issues. Ideally, they would like to have enough stock on hand so that a lack of inventory would not delay projects. Utilizing the Winston Thomas site would allow for a covered storage yard and garage facilities with ample space for expansion as demand grows. 

“Over the last few years, we have focused on service modernization,” said Vic Kelson. “This move  would allow for facility modernization and the uniting of services and storage that protects and maintains equipment and materials under one roof.” 

Wason explained that DPW is spread throughout Bloomington, and their goal is to purchase the Miller Drive location from CBU and centrally locate DPW in that location. Wason described this type of facility reuse as something the City of Bloomington does well, and the current CBU Service Center is in excellent condition. DPW’s street and fleet divisions are already located at the Miller Drive campus. 

“Over the last several years, we have focused on the modernization of services in Public Works, such as a full overhaul and upgrade of the sanitation services,” said DPW Director Adam Wason. “Relocating to the Miller Drive campus would allow us to modernize our facilities, bring the rest of the department under one roof to streamline operations, and further improve service to residents.” 

CBU hired a financial analyst in 2022 for the bonding analysis and will ask the Utilities Service Board to approve a contract with an engineering firm at their March 27 meeting for demolition and restoration plans. Funding for the project will include the issuance and sale of revenue bonds and may include grant funding. At the March 27 meeting, CBU staff will also take a bond request before the Utilities Service Board and then the Common Council on April 12. If USB and Council approve, any bonds will require the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) approval. If the IURC approves and plans continue, construction may begin by the end of the calendar year.   

“We’re moving facilities and reusing land and buildings in order to improve services and plan for future growth,” said Mayor John Hamilton. “Thanks to both CBU and Public Works for their collaboration and forward thinking.” 

PCBs were found at the Winston-Thomas wastewater plant site in the 1970s, and the facility was eventually administered under the Superfund law. Remediation of the site is complete, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has informed CBU management that there are no restrictions for redevelopment. A master plan for the site was completed in August 2020 with preliminary information and a general plan for a new Service Center. The master plan report is available online at: https://bton.in/PgsAB

The administration and departments look forward to working with the City Council and furthering robust discussion throughout this process. Read the previous release about the reuse of the Winston Thomas site here: https://bton.in/n7PXM

The full video presentation to Council is available at: https://bton.in/Ws74T

Slides used during the presentation are available at: https://bton.in/GwTIR