Essay on "Land Use at Bloomington"

Essay 5 pages (1643 words) Sources: 3

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Land Use at Bloomington

Description of Bloomington's ____ subsystem in the year 2020. Write this in present tense, as if you are in the year 2020, looking around Bloomington and describing what exists. This part is worth twelve points.

In the year 2020, the majority of services offered in Bloomington include: fire, police, recreational activates and events surrounding Lake Bloomington. The various attractions of the city are continuing to bring visitors to the community from all over the country to include: the Bloomington Center for Performing Arts, the Children's Discovery Museum of Central Illinois, the David Davis Mansion, the Historic Downtown District and the Miller Park Zoo. At the same time, the expansion programs of the Central Illinois Regional Airport, has helped turned the area into one of the fastest growing communities around the country. This is because of the changing focus on addressing the needs of businesses, are helping to promote increased economic activity. At which point, the various services that are offered must be superior to other regions of the nation. ("About the City," 2010)

A good example of this focus can be seen with various redevelopment efforts in the Historic Downtown District. As various initiatives have been taking place through a host of different activities. These started with the passage of different local ordinances, giving various entities the authority to oversee such efforts to include: the Bloomington Historical Preservation Commission. Their objectives are to preserve the local heritage of downtown Bloomington, while modernizing these structures for contemporary businesses. To achieve these goals, the commission will focus on rezoning those buildings, in the areas that are of historical importance (through the S-4 distinction). This is where the zoning commission will allow changes to the interior of the structure, while the exterior must maintain a certain appearance and standards at all times. At the same time, the commission will focus on the Historic District itself and the various structures inside the area on a national level. Where, the Department of Interior will designate key structures, as historic landmarks on the National Registry of Historic place. This is important, because these kinds of distinctions will ensure that various redevelopment efforts are: subject to certain grants and are protected as place of historical significance. ("Bloomington Historic Preservation Commission," 2010)

When you put these two different elements together, this highlights how they are helping to revitalize the downtown area, by creating a unique historical setting with the most modern day amenities. Evidence of this can be seen by looking no further than the McLean County History Museum. This building was originally the site of the McLean Country Court House, which was destroyed by a fire in 1903 (along with the rest of downtown Bloomington). The redevelopment of the site was a significant step forward, as the building is considered to be the heart of Bloomington itself. The successful redevelopment of the property, is embracing the traditions of the past that are often seen in Indiana architecture to include: the Bedford limestone, the various tiles that are utilized throughout the entrances and the bronze doors throughout the structure. This is significant, because it shows how the approach of redeveloping the downtown is creating opportunities for businesses throughout the region. ("Bloomington Historic District," 2010)

In the year 2020, this will have an impact upon Bloomington itself, by helping to create a mixture of: traditional lifestyle and the most modern amentias that the world has to offer. For businesses, this will give them a competitive advantage (in area that embraces historical traditions). Over the course of time, this will have ripple effects upon the community by helping to attract larger and diverse segments of the population. At which point, wealthier and well educated individuals will relocate to the community. This will have a positive impact on the standard of living, by ensuring that high paying jobs are relocating to Bloomington. In the year 2020, this scenario will more than likely occur, as the various redevelopment efforts have been paying off.

The demographics of the population will have shifted by the year 2020. Where, increasing numbers of ethnic groups have relocated to the city to include: Asians, blacks, whites, Latinos and others. This has caused the population to increase from 168 thousand residents (in 2010) to 187 thousand people (in 2020). ("2008 Bloomington Demographic Profile," 2008) Inside these different demographics of the population, the number of males will be higher, than the number of females (with this accounting for 97,190 males and 89,896 females in the year 2020). At the same time, the age demographics of the county will remain low, as the average median age will come in at 30.3 years old. These different elements are important, because they are highlighting how various redevelopment efforts, have helped to keep the average age of the workforce young and it has increased the diversity of the community. ("2008 Bloomington Demographic Profile," 2008)

When you analyze Bloomington in the year 2020, it is clear that the various efforts to promote economic growth have helped to: improve the overall quality of life and opportunities in the community. These two factors are important because, they have increased the size of the city over the last ten years. Where, it has increased from 168 thousand residents in 2010 to 187 thousand in 2020. ("2008 Bloomington Demographic Profile," 2008)

How things got that way. Write this in past tense. In this section you will describe a) the process steps, activities, tools, initiatives and timing since 2010 to create what exists in 2020; and b) the key players and their roles in what happened.

What helped to make the city so successful in ten years was: the aggressive programs and initiatives that were introduced to spur economic development. These include various programs to help support businesses by: providing them with geographic / population demographic information and customizable solutions (that are allowing them to relocate to the area). These different initiatives are important because they are encouraging a host of employers to relocate to the area. A good example of this can be seen with efforts from the Bloomington Economic Development Corporation. This agency is responsible for helping to attract a host of different employers to the region. As they offer a number of different incentives to help lure businesses to the area to include: tax credits, grants, workforce training, loans, tax abatement and local assistance. These different elements are important, because they are helping to attract a host of employers to the region. Evidence of this can be found by looking at the top employers located in Bloomington to include: State Farm, Country Financial, Mitsubishi, Nestle USA, Verizon and Bridgestone. ("2008 Bloomington Demographic Profile," 2008) This is important, because it shows how various efforts that were taken over the last ten years are helping to provide McLean County with a foundation for future economic growth. As a result, this has played a major role in allowing Bloomington to adjust to the changes that are taking place.

At the same time, the various development efforts at the Central Illinois Regional Airport are helping to provide executives with an effective way of being able, to easily travel in and out of Bloomington. A good example of this focus can be seen with efforts to expand the runaways at the airport for Airbus A300's. These are replacing many of the DC-9's that were used by the different air freight carriers. The fact that the airport was able to: expand the runways and make modifications to the facility (to include added jet ways) are highlighting their focus on addressing the needs of business in the future. ("Midwest Airport Projects," 2001) These different factors are significant, because they would play a vital role in supporting various economic growth initiatives. ("New Leadership Board," 2010)

The key players that are… READ MORE

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