FRENCH LICK – Accelerate Indiana Municipalities (Aim) announced Bloomington has earned an Aim Community Placemaking Award for the development of Switchyard Park. The city was honored with this award on October 6 during the Annual Awards Luncheon – presented by Baker Tilly Municipal Advisors, LLC during the 2021 Aim Ideas Summit in French Lick. Bloomington won in the greater than 50,000 population category.
After the dismantling of the railroad running through Bloomington, the industrial area was left in ruins. Using community engagement and master planning, the future of Switchyard Park was defined and then created with a pavilion, spray plaza, dog park, community gardens, and more. The revitalization of the 65-acres into a community asset has attracted thousands of visitors and several new investors to the Switchyard area of Bloomington. Learn more about the completed project below.
Aim CEO Matt Greller noted how Bloomington’s investment in quality of place amenities spurred additional corporate interest in the community. “When a city or town invests in itself and demonstrates their potential as a talent attractor, it gives the private sector more confidence to locate or expand in the area. Projects like Prairie Creek Park exemplify place-based economic development,” said Greller.
Conference Facts:
2021 Aim Ideas Summit
October 5-7, 2021
French Lick Resort
Attendance: 1,000 (pending final registration count)
Further information: www.aimindiana.org
Since the 1890s, Aim, formerly the Indiana Association of Cities and Towns, has been an advocate for Indiana municipalities. Aim is the official voice of municipal government in Indiana, with more than 460 cities and towns as members. Our purpose is to foster, promote and advocate for the success of Hoosier municipalities as laboratories of innovation, hubs of talent and the engines driving our state’s economy.