By Kurt Christian 812-331-4350 | kchristian@heraldt.com | Jul 27, 2018
When Lafayette-based development company decided to do more than plop their plans in the laps of Bloomington residents, those community members responded in kind and did more than spout their opinions and leave.
The last formal workshop discussing the approach by Trinitas Ventures to redeveloping the former east side Kmart property at 3216 E. Third St. concluded Thursday night. The preferred layout for the project's mix of hospitality, residential, office and natural space now moves on to more traditional review methods after having sought community input beyond what's typical of developers.
"What the process has is, it's not a plan that’s developed in an office or on an architect's drafting table," said Travis Vencel, a Bloomington resident and executive vice president of development for Trinitas Ventures. "It’s a plan that was drafted in the community, by the community."
Vencel said the workshop process influenced and improved his team's ideas on green spaces, public spaces and the diversity of residential space within the project. He added there was much more consensus among the 200 people that volunteered to be a part of the process than he had expected.
"This definitely is not going to be a recreation of something we already have in Bloomington," Vencel said. "It’s going to be its own special place. Just like Kirkwood is a special place, the courthouse square is a special place, Fourth Street is a special place, now we have the foundation and the framework to make Latimer a special place."
City council member Allison Chopra represents Bloomington's third district, where the 12-acre Kmart property is located. Chopra met with Vencel and other members of the team about three weeks ago to find out more about the proposal.
Chopra said Trinitas Ventures has been open and available, and she would encourage any business that's able to replicate this week's public input sessions to do so. The team has met with community members and heard their suggestions, she added, and there's no reason why they wouldn't want to build something that will work and be successful in the community.
"Obviously, something needs to happen there," Chopra said. "We need to see some economic development, it’s going to be good for our tax base and the residents in that area."
Both Chopra and Vencel said they weren't surprised by the plans that came out of the public input sessions. Vencel said some aspects, such as the potential for eight-story buildings, got more support than expected.
"When you start talking about all the things we want there, including the green space and streets, there’s got to be some higher buildings to fit those needs," Vencel said.
Chopra said the east side may prove to be the appropriate context for taller buildings, so long as they're responsibly designed.
"It’s going to be a fairly dense project, but because it’s going to be dense, I don’t think a little bit of height is going to feel weird in this space," Chopra said. "Height can work if you do it right. If you use the height correctly, it’s an opportunity to get the economic benefit the developers want and the features the community wants."
The project's next steps include a series of meetings with property owners in the Hoosier Acres, Park Ridge East, Bloomington Court and other adjacent neighborhoods. As the project heads to the city this fall, Vencel said Trinitas Ventures will host additional strategic focus groups that consult students and other segmented populations on specific attributes of the developing plan.
"I’m just really excited," Chopra said. "If we don’t know exactly what it’s going to be, why not be optimistic?"
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