An agreement outlining a plan for the Monroe Convention Center expansion project is one step closer to becoming official now that the county commissioners have approved it.
The three commissioners unanimously accepted a draft interlocal agreement between the City of Bloomington and Monroe County on Wednesday — a little more than a week after county council members did so.
The document requires signatures from the mayor, city council members, county council members, and the county commissioners to go into effect.
Read more: Commissioners OK creation of CIB for convention center expansion
The current draft has been altered since former mayor John Hamilton and city council members signed it last year. It must now go back to Mayor Kerry Thomson and the current council members, who took office in January.
Julie Thomas, the president of the board of commissioners, said this is a major sign of progress for the project, which is years in the making.
“This is reflective of sort of turning the page, and really, progress being made,” Thomas said. “Our communications with the new administration, new city council members — everything is going very well, and I think the community should take heart to see this.”
Late last year, county officials expressed concerns about how the previous version of the agreement outlined appointments to the Convention Visitors Commission, which oversees expenditures of Inkeeper’s Tax revenues.
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Under the previous draft, one of the county council appointees would have been selected from a list of four candidates nominated by the city council. County officials felt that limited their choices.
The version approved by the county council and commissioners removes this language.
Thomson told WFIU/WTIU News she finds the latest revisions agreeable.
“We’ve had some discussion about the wording of things and how to work some of these intricacies — and I think they’re all important,” Thomson said. “A good contract is worth its weight in gold, so we want to get it right, but I think we’re all ready to see this move forward.”
City council members could decide whether to approve the document as soon as their next regular session on Feb. 28.
