The Capital Improvement Board created to oversee the proposed Monroe County Convention Center expansion project took a small step forward Wednesday.
The board selected officers to serve until the end of the current term in January, when they will re-elect the same officers or select new ones.
Former Ivy Tech chancellor John Whikehart was named the board’s chairman and local businessman Doug Bruce the vice-chairman.
“This is an important step and an important day for us,” said Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce president Eric Spoonmore, who was named the board’s treasurer. “And I think it's important for the community to see that we have a chair and leadership in charge here.”
Members of the board were selected by the Monroe County Commissioners, Monroe County Council, Bloomington City Council and Bloomington Mayor John Hamilton.
The seventh and final member of the board will be chosen by the six members of the CIB. They are expected to meet in November to review applicants, then vote on a new member at their December meeting.
Some members have been on one committee or another since a decision to expand the convention center was made seven years ago.
After delays and disagreements between the mayor’s office and the city and county councils on what kind of entity should oversee the expansion and running of the convention center, the Monroe County Board of Commissioners enacted the CIB in July.
“We want to do the best job we can, not simply for the constituencies, who appointed us and whom we represent, but for the citizens of Bloomington, in Monroe County and moving this project forward,” Whikehart said.
Industrial development committee member Joyce Poling was named the board’s secretary. The other members of the board are former Parks and Recreation Director Mick Renneisen and Associate Vice President for Capital Planning at IU Adam Thies.
