BLOOMINGTON MASTER PLAN & FORM-BASED CODE

Farr Associates developed the master plan for downtown Bloomington, Illinois. The city is regionally known for its preserved historic downtown, so the plan balances the importance of preservation with the downtown’s development pressures. The City was especially interested in infill redevelopment scenarios for several catalytic sites, which the plan illustrates with multiple options that respect the area’s historic fabric. As a favorite destination for the area’s student population from Illinois State University, the plan also tackles how the bar and entertainment uses downtown can co-mingle with other retail and residential uses.

Like many other Midwestern cities, Bloomington’s downtown is crisscrossed by heavy traffic volume one-way state routes that make traveling through downtown easy, but make it confusing to stop, park, walk, and enjoy the area. The plan presented multiple options to the city for changing with the transportation network that ranged from removal of the one-way streets to tactical interventions that make walking and biking safer and less complicated.

Client: City of Bloomington & Downtown Bloomington Association

Location: Bloomington, IL

Year: 2009