For about five hours on Wednesday, Bloomington’s city council considered a proposed law that would prevent the displacement of houseless people from their encampments in city parks, unless certain conditions are met.

One of the alternatives provided in the proposed law is for the city to designate locations on public property with access to bathrooms and within a mile of distribution points for prepared meals.
If the city designated such locations, with adequate space for those experiencing homelessness, then encampments could be displaced from city parks without meeting the conditions.
Bloomington mayor John Hamilton’s administration is opposed to the ordinance.
The ordinance is a response to a decision by Hamilton, to clear a Seminary Park encampment in early December and again in mid-January.
During the meeting, a key question was drawn out by back-and-forth between councilmembers and city department heads: What are a city’s core services? Continue reading “Proposed law on protections for Bloomington’s houseless population prompts question: What are a city’s core services?”