This is the WFHB Local News for Thursday, August 13th, 2026.

In today’s newscast, a complaint filed by Monroe County Assessor Judy Sharp against independent challenger Jeneé Trimble is now before the county Election Board. WFHB Correspondent Jaimmie Ford has more in your daily headlines.

Also coming up in the next half hour, “Medical Students triumph over United Health Group” on Prescription for Healthcare – a podcast collaboration between WFHB and Medicare for All Indiana.

Featured Segments:

A dispute between two candidates for Monroe County assessor is heading back to the county Election Board. WFHB News Correspondent Jaimmie Ford speaks with both candidates, reporting on the two complaints and allegations surrounding the race. We turn now to that story on the WFHB Local News.

Up next, we have Prescription for Healthcare – a monthly podcast collaboration between WFHB and Medicare for All Indiana. In today’s episode, hosts Dr. Rob Stone and Karen Green Stone speak with Caeden Windschitl – a second-year medical student at the University of Minneapolis. This episode is titled “Medical Students triumph over United Health Group.” That’s coming up next on the local news.

Credits:

This is the WFHB Local News for Tuesday, August 11th, 2026.

In today’s newscast, Dave Askins of the B Square Bulletin reports on the latest developments of the Hopewell project in the city’s plan commission yesterday. More in today’s headlines.

Also coming up in the next half hour, find out four ways you can get involved in your community on the latest edition of Volunteer Connection, in partnership with the City of Bloomington Volunteer Network.

Hopewell South plat wins 8–1 Bloomington plan commission OK after waiver request dropped

By Dave Askins

Bloomington’s   plan commission voted 8–1 on Monday (Aug. 10) to approve the primary plat for Hopewell South, after the city’s redevelopment commission withdrew a request to waive a tree-plot requirement along 1st Street.

Monday’s meeting showed continued friction between the city council and the mayor over Hopewell South, even after the city council approved the planned unit development (PUD) in early May. Bloomington mayor Kerry Thomson attended the meeting in person, and defended the plat against a total of four city councilmembers who weighed in against it.

As the owner of the Hopewell South real estate, it was the Bloomington redevelopment commission (RDC), a part of city government, that was the petitioner for the PUD and the plat.

Monday’s approval moves the city closer to construction on about 6.3-acres at and around the former IU Health Bloomington hospital site. The Hopewell South planned unit development (PUD) allows up to 98 homes. A plat is just the technical term for a map showing how a piece of land is divided into individual lots, streets, rights-of-way and other designated areas.

Of the 65 lots created by the plat, 62 of them are residential, two are common-area lots and one containing the former Bloomington Convalescent Center building at 714 S. Rogers St. It also folds three lots from an old subdivision (Dixie Highway) into the new subdivision.

Monday’s split vote marks the latest step in a Hopewell South approval process that has stretched through most of 2026 so far. The plan commission unanimously recommended the PUD in February, and the Bloomington city council ultimately approved it 9–0 on May 6 after months of debate over affordability, accessibility, street design and other conditions. The council’s approval requires at least 35% of the homes to be permanently affordable, with a goal of 50%.

Speaking on Monday from the remote public mic with its initially proposed waiver of a tree-plot requirement, were three city councilmembers—Kate Rosenbarger, Isabel Piedmont-Smith, and Matt Flaherty. They said the waiver contradicted one of the conditions of approval imposed by the council on the Hopewell South PUD. And the city’s legal department eventually agreed that they were right. It’s what led to the withdrawal of the waiver request by the administration.

It was Hopi Stosberg, who serves as the city council’s appointee to the plan commission, who cast the sole vote against the plat. Her objections included the fact that the plan commissioner meeting information packet did not include written documentation that City of Bloomington Utilities (CBU) had approved the project’s approach to drainage.

Stosberg said: “If this was a private petitioner, we would not be trusting right now that they have that signed off on,” Stosberg said. “I am entirely sick of this petition getting special treatment simply because they are an arm of the city and not a petitioner like any other.” Stosberg added: “We’re eight months into this right now, and I’m honestly not interested in continuing to give them special treatment.”

Development services manager Eric Greulich responded by saying that in the wording of the plat approval, it says that final acceptance and approval from CBU is required before issuance of any permits. He pointed out that the wording is “standard language that we have on every single petition.” Greulich also said he had emails from the CBU, including one from director Kat Zaiger indicating CBU’s acceptance and approval of the plat moving forward.

Voting with the plan commission majority was Chris Smith, who said:  “We need housing.” He said, “This whole process has been micromanaged and taken way too long. We have a great plan before us.”

That was the latest edition of B Square Bites – a collaboration between B Square Bulletin and WFHB. To read the full article, you can visit B Square Bulletin and look for the headline: “Hopewell South plat wins 8–1 Bloomington plan commission OK after waiver request dropped.”

County Election Board tables hearing on complaint against candidate Jeneé Trimble

By Jaimmie Ford

The Monroe County Election Board met on Thursday, August 6th. The board engaged in lengthy discussions about a complaint filed against a candidate running for office.

Earlier this year, Monroe County Assessor and Democrat incumbent Judy Sharp filed a complaint against Independent candidate Jeneé Trimble.

Clerk Nicole Browne stated that no law was violated so the complaint should be dismissed.

“We do not have a law that makes it illegal…to offer property in exchange for signing a petition,” said Browne. “I do not see why we should have a hearing on this matter.”

The Board ultimately voted in favor of tabling a decision until County Assessor Judy Sharp could present evidence to support her complaint. Until that meeting happens, the board will also be seeking further clarification about definitions in Indiana Code and election law.

Members of the public in the gallery expressed their opinions, which led to Republican board member Danny Shields to say that he will have people removed for speaking out of turn.

“We’re having a hearing. This is not a football game. I don’t need your opinions until you get to the microphone,” said Shields.

The board set tentative dates for a hearing about Sharp’s complaint. Before adjourning the meeting, the board allowed time for public comments. Jenee Trimble commented that there’s no evidence against her.

“There will not be one piece of evidence presented because I didn’t receive a sheet of signatures, one signature, not $1, nothing for the help and advice that I offered the taxpayers to tell them the public information that’s on the Department of Local Government Finances website that they are allowed to access,” said Trimble.

Danny Shields expressed his disagreement with Trimble’s comment.

“If that’s attending your signing, if that’s attending your signing, you do have quite an imagination,” said Shields.

The next Monroe County Election Board meeting, which will be a hearing regarding the complaints against candidate Joe Davis, is tentatively set for Wednesday, August 12th at 9 a.m.

Featured Segments:

The Beverly apartments are opening up this month – located at the intersection of Dunn and 7th Streets. According to local media coverage, rents at the apartment complex range from $1,200 to $2,400 per month. In today’s feature report, WFHB News went to the location and asked residents how they feel about the new student apartments downtown. We turn to that segment on the WFHB Local News.

Up next, we have Volunteer Connection on the WFHB Local News in collaboration with the City of Bloomington Volunteer Network, highlighting four ways you can get involved in Bloomington. We turn to hosts Aubrey Seader and Suzanne Allen, the Director of IU Corps, for more.

Credits:

This is the WFHB Local News for Monday, August 10th, 2026.

In today’s newscast, Correspondent Elena Bai speaks with the owner of a new boba shop that opened up on Kirkwood Avenue – Window 85. More in today’s feature report.

You’ll also hear local writer Brittany Talissa King, from Bloomington’s Doctor Martin Luther King Junior Birthday Celebration Commission. Learn how this small group of dedicated volunteers work year-round to build what Doctor King called the “beloved community” later in the show on a new episode of Activate!

Monroe County election board sets hearing on Davis write-in bid, delays on Trimble complaint

By Dave Askins

The  Monroe County election board will hold a hearing next Wednesday (Aug. 12) on the question: Is Joe Davis legally eligible to remain a declared write-in candidate on Nov. 3 for county clerk?

The issue arose after five people challenged his candidacy under Indiana’s so-called “sore loser” law. Davis lost the Democratic Party primary race for clerk.

The decision to set a hearing on the challenges to Davis for this coming Wednesday, Aug. 12 at 9 a.m. was made at the board’s regular meeting last Thursday (Aug. 6).

Also on Thursday, the board delayed until its Sept. 3 meeting a decision about whether to hold a separate hearing on an election-law complaint against independent county assessor candidate Lisa Jeneé Trimble.

The two proceedings have different stakes and timelines. The challenges to Davis could disqualify his write-in candidacy and have to be resolved by Aug. 14, according to county attorney Molly Turner-King. If Davis is determined not to be eligible, no blank line would appear on the ballot for a voter to fill in.

The complaint against Trimble would not remove her name from the ballot and does not face the same short-term deadline.

Davis has previously acknowledged the so-called “sore-loser ” statute, but said he wants to challenge its constitutionality. He has referred to the provision as the “sore winner” law rather than the “sore loser” law.

During Thursday’s election board meeting, Shields said the label Davis uses for the statute is beside the point.

“He can call this law whatever he wants to call it,” Shields said. “Is he eligible? The question is: Is he eligible to run as a write-in under that law?”

That was the latest edition of B Square Bites – a collaboration between B Square Bulletin and WFHB. To read the full article, you can visit B Square Bulletin and look for the headline: “Monroe County election board sets hearing on Davis write-in bid, delays on Trimble complaint.”

Bloomington City Council criticizes community survey for leaving out student voices

By Kade Young

The city’s latest community survey drew criticism from the Bloomington City Council during its regular meeting on August 5th.

Several council members and local residents say the survey intentionally excluded Indiana University students in an effort to focus on year-round residents.

Jeff Andreasen, president of aQuity Research who conducted the survey, says they purposely designed it to reflect the views of what she calls “permanent residents” rather than the city’s student population.

“We were designing our sample to be more representative of year-round residents outside of the significant IU population, since those residents are obviously taxpayers, and are probably more engaged in the community, more familiar with city services and city issues than the IU population,” said Andreasen.

Councilmember Hopi Stosberg says the decision to exclude students overlooks a substantial population in Bloomington.

“As somebody who represents District Three, which is a huge part of campus and is represents a lot of students, I find that pretty disappointing,” said Stosberg. ”

Councilmember Sydney Zulich echoed those concerns, calling the reasoning behind the exclusion of students offensive to the thousands of students she represents.

“As someone who was very recently a student herself, but also represents 10,000 plus young people. That is a stunningly insulting answer,” she said.

Zulich asked how the firm was selected. Communications Director Desiree DeMolina says the city changed its approach after receiving backlash from the 2023 survey.

“The questionnaire had some critiques with residents feeling that the questions were lengthy and maybe did not capture some of the concerns and considerations for the larger community,” said DeMolina.

Zulich maintained the city left out about half of its population in the survey – questioning the use of taxpayer dollars to fund it.

“This community has a crisis in workforce retention, and yet we have just eliminated 40,000 potential future long-term residents from participating in shaping the future of our city. I don’t know why any young person would want to stay here when we’re so blatantly disrespectful towards them,” said Zulich.

During public comment, local resident Paul Rousseau questioned whether excluding students’ perspective weakens the usefulness of the survey. He recalled the tragedy of Nathaniel Stratton, an IU student who was killed by a drunk driver in a scooter accident in 2022.

“Nathan and his family and friends were obviously negatively impacted by 1) the public safety failure to intercept impaired drivers; 2) the condition of sidewalks that Nathan chose not to use that night, and 3) the safety of bicycle lanes that are protected by nothing more than a painted white line,” said Rousseau. 

Council members took no action on the survey during their Wednesday meeting. However, several signaled they would continue discussing how future community surveys can better capture the voices of all Bloomington residents.

Starting next week, the city council begins its 2027 budget hearings. The council’s next regular session is September 2nd.

Featured Segments:

WFHB News Correspondent Elena Bai visits Window 85, a new boba shop on Kirkwood Avenue. Bai speaks with the shop’s owner about her decision to open a business in Bloomington, her experiences as a recent IU graduate and her hopes for building connections with the community through the shop.

The annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. birthday celebration happens in January, but in Bloomington a small group of dedicated volunteers work year-round to build what King called the “beloved community.” The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Celebration Commission is an official City of Bloomington board promoting justice, racial harmony, and equal opportunity. Brittany Talissa King is a writer who is passionate about exploring American racial issues – you can read her latest piece in yesterday’s Sunday edition of The Herald-Times. As a King Commission member Brittany is now working with the Monroe County NAACP to launch a education project to cultivate understanding and leadership among local students, inspired by the Freedom Schools of the 1960s. Brittany invites you to support the board’s work on a new episode of Activate!, coming your way right now on the WFHB Local News.

Credits:

Today’s headlines were written by Kade Young, in partnership with Cats – Community Access Television Services.

This is the WFHB Local News for Thursday, August 6th, 2026.

In today’s newscast, the Bloomington City Council criticized a recent city survey for sidelining college students. More in today’s edition of B Square Bites – in partnership with the B Square Bulletin.

Also coming up in the next half hour, we start a new segment covering housing and homelessness issues in partnership with Heading Home of South Central Indiana. More in the bottom half of our broadcast.

Council rips Bloomington survey for sidelining college students

By Dave Askins

What population does this survey actually represent?” Bloomington city council president Isak Asare asked at the council’s regular meeting on Wednesday night (Aug. 5).

The answer was that the city’s latest community survey, by design, mostly reflected older, longer-term, year-round residents and under-emphasized Indiana University students.

That fact shifted the council’s focus on Wednesday from at least some favorable findings to sharp criticism of the administration’s choices about whose views should count when Bloomington asks what residents think.

Several councilmembers questioned whether the results of such a survey should guide city policy or spending decisions. Hopi Stosberg called the treatment of students “pretty appalling.” Sydney Zulich called the consultant’s explanation for the de-emphasis of students “a stunningly insulting answer.”

The criticism came despite at least some findings that reflected favorably on much of life in Bloomington. About 80% of respondents were satisfied with the city’s overall quality of life, and 72% said they would be at least somewhat likely to recommend Bloomington as a place to live. But even the item asking about recommending Bloomington came under scrutiny as councilmember Andy Ruff called it an “odd question.”

About 76% were dissatisfied with the availability of affordable housing, while streets, sidewalks and homelessness also emerged as prominent concerns. And except for fire, police, and fire protection, satisfaction with public services in the city was below 60%.

The city paid aQity Research & Insights Inc. $37,900 to conduct the survey. The firm received 561 responses between Feb. 18 and April 10. No council action was requested Wednesday.

But it was not clear what the answer to Asare’s basic question was for the consultant and city staff, as the council heads into the 2027 budget review season:

Audio: “What I’m trying to get at in all of my questioning is what’s the ‘So what?’ for council and the city? … What are the things that we’re claiming that should inform our behaviors, actions, decisions, especially as we’re going into budget here?”

That was the latest edition of B Square Bites – a collaboration between B Square Bulletin and WFHB. To read the full article, you can visit B Square Bulletin dot com and look for the headline: “Council rips Bloomington survey for sidelining college students.”

Featured Segments:

Townie summer is coming to a close. In a few short weeks, thousands of IU students will flood the streets of Bloomington. On July 29th, WFHB News Correspondents Ben Sharpe and Elena Bai went around town, asking residents how they feel about the students coming back. Today, we rebroadcast that segment on the WFHB Local News.

Heading Home of South Central Indiana has launched a new podcast highlighting the realities of homelessness. In the first episode, street outreach case manager Mandy New shares her journey from addiction and living in her vehicle to finding stable housing, while offering insight into the challenges many people experiencing homelessness face every day. WFHB News brings you this excerpt from the “Heading Home” podcast. We turn to host Mary Morgan for more.

Credits:

This is the WFHB Local News for Wednesday, August 5th, 2026.

In today’s newscast, Mayor Kerry Thomson outlines budget challenges and city priorities at a Traveling Town hall on Monday night.

Also coming up in the next half hour, “Don’t Let Crooks Captcha You” on Better Beware – your weekly consumer-watchdog segment on the WFHB Local News. We turn to host and producer Richard Fish for more.

Two teams pitch competing visions for Bloomington’s College Square development

By Ben Sharpe

Two development teams pitched their plans Monday for the future of Bloomington’s College Square site, a key parcel connecting the new convention center with downtown.

The first proposal, from Concord, TWG, Ratio and Shield Sexton, would build a 160-room hotel alongside mixed-income housing. The team proposed a four-million-dollar land swap with the Capital Improvement Board and estimated the project would require about twelve million dollars in public subsidy.

Ratio Design’s Adam Thies said the proposal would include affordable housing along the B-Line Trail.

“We think that there are 27 units that would be low-to-moderate income units that would be included in this development, and it would be right along the B-Line Trail,” said Thies.

The competing proposal, submitted by Dora and Partners, calls for a 135-room hotel, 80 to 100 market-rate housing units, retail space and a pedestrian promenade linking College Avenue to the B-Line Trail.

Unlike the first proposal, Dora and Partners said they would purchase the property for one million dollars and seek a five-million-dollar Tax Increment Financing incentive, with no additional public subsidy.

Developer Travis Spencel said the housing would be aimed at residents rather than students.

“We’re just not going to be able to meet the affordability definition of a for-sale product from a market standpoint, if we’re leasing these units,” said Spencel. “We’re going to be designing them to that scale, and so we believe that they would be leasing also market rate, which is slightly above the affordable rate.”

Spencel also said downtown Bloomington lacks market-rate housing that’s not geared toward students.

“We think there’s a real need for that in Bloomington’s downtown. We don’t have a whole lot of market-rate apartments that aren’t associated with student properties,” he said.

Dora and Partners also hinted at plans outside the College Square proposal, saying they’re exploring affordable housing on the city’s south side to replace units that will be lost through upcoming demolitions.

During public comment, Bloomington resident Audrey Smith questioned whether downtown needs another hotel at all.

“How many hotels do we need? That’s my question. And who are we making space for in downtown Bloomington?” asked Smith.

The commission took no action on either proposal Monday.

Commissioners will evaluate both submissions before selecting a development team for the College Square project.

Thomson outlines budget challenges, city priorities at Traveling Town hall

By Kade Young

Mayor Kerry Thomson said the city faces a new financial reality as declining revenues force city officials to rethink how they fund services and future projects.

During a town hall at the Banneker Center on Monday night, Thomson acknowledged the city’s budgetary challenges, saying Bloomington expects to lose roughly 30 million dollars annually over the next several year due to state tax changes.

“We are really focused on essential city services. What can can the municipal government uniquely do?” said Thomson. “We are committed to doing things like keeping our streets up and running, making sure your water is clean and your trash gets picked up, and that we’re seeking balance in all of those things.”

Even with financial constraints, the mayor highlighted several accomplishments, which included accreditation for the public works department, police recertification and a 7 million dollar grant supporting affordable artist studios.

“We’re really proud of them,” said Thomson.

Thomson also defended her position to keep Kirkwood Avenue open after vetoing the city council’s effort to close the corridor to vehicle traffic.

“We’re just not ready yet,” she said. “That doesn’t mean that we’re not going to close it in the future. It means that if we do it and when we do it, we need to put some some significant investments into doing it right so it’s safe for everyone.”

Thomson maintains housing and homelessness remain a top priority. She announced the launch of Streets to Stability, a new initiative that pairs enforcement with housing resources.

“The plan is month by month to increase that that area of downtown where sleeping is not allowed, and to get people who are sleeping outside inside,” said the mayor.

Another major topic centered around the city’s development process. Interim Planning and Transportation Director Lynn Coyne says one of his first priorities is making permitting faster.

“What we’re going to do is we’re moving toward what we call concurrent processing, and with the help of our consultant, the engineering firm, and the help of information technology services at the city who are terrific, we have a software in place,” said Coyne.

Coyne says this new system should be operating by November. Later in the evening, Thomson said future investments, including improvements on Kirkwood, will be evaluated on more than just their upfront costs.

“I envision working not only with the council but importantly with the public on how on getting input for that corridor plan, and then trying to find a best-case scenario for Kirkwood – whatever that may be – for all of the people who live here and want to live here,” said Thomson.

The Thomson administration’s budget proposal moves forward to the city council for a series of public budget hearings later this month.

Meanwhile, Thomson says traveling town halls will continue every other month, with one-on-one traveling office hours scheduled in between.

Featured Segments:

Now it’s time for “What the Health?!” – a segment from Youth Radio where host Winnie Dong explores the realities of working in healthcare. This episode features licensed clinical social worker Lindsay Potts, who reflects on nearly 20 years in behavioral health. She discusses her work on Senate Bill 1 in 2023, which established the 988 crisis response system and expanded mobile crisis teams to 90% of counties in Indiana. Potts also talks about the transition of Community Clinic Behavioral Health Centers (CCBHCs) from grant-funded to self-sustaining models through federal demonstration participation.

Up next, “Don’t Let Crooks Captcha You” on Better Beware – your weekly consumer-watchdog segment on the WFHB Local News. We turn to host and producer Richard Fish for more.

Credits:

This is the WFHB Local News for Tuesday, August 4th, 2026.

In today’s broadcast, a longtime Bloomington gathering place has officially closed its doors. The Orbit Room has become known for live music, community events and its unique atmosphere downtown. WFHB News brings you a special feature report on why the venue is closing and what its loss means for Bloomington.

Also coming up in the next half hour, find out four ways you can get involved in your community on the latest edition of “Volunteer Connection” in partnership with the Bloomington Volunteer Network.

Dora, Concord pitch rival College Square projects; Bloomington RDC mulls decision

By Dave Askins

Bloomington’s  redevelopment commission (RDC) heard competing plans Monday (Aug. 3) for redevelopment of College Square, at the corner of College Avenue and 4th Street. But no decision was made on Monday.

A decision won’t come any sooner than the RDC’s Sept. 7 meeting. That’s because the next regular meeting for the RDC, on Aug. 17,  falls inside a 30-day window that starts after the opening of bids, which took place on July 20. Inside of that 30-day window, the RDC can’t accept an offer that is less than the average of two appraisals of the real estate, which was $7.59 million.

Something the two proposals have in common is the price the respective developers are willing to pay for the property, which is $4 million.

But the presentations underscored a big difference between the proposals. Concord Hospitality’s plan for mixed-income housing on CIB-controlled property south of the convention center and a hotel at College Square, depends on cooperation from the Monroe County capital improvement board (CIB).

And that would mean backtracking by the CIB on a choice it has already made for development of a host hotel with Dora Hospitality south of the existing convention center. The host hotel is meant to support the convention center expansion which is well underway between College Avenue and Walnut Street on the south side of 3rd Street.

In contrast, Dora Hospitality described its College Square development as a stand-alone project that does not require any further coordination with the CIB. But Dora sees its proposed College Square hotel as complementing the convention center host hotel it is now negotiating with the CIB to build south of the existing convention center.

Still, the Concord team, which includes RATIO Design, made an undaunted pitch. Speaking for the team, RATIO Design’s Adam Thies, a former CIB member, said, “This site is basically the gap in the smile of that downtown. And filling that gap, I think, with a really strong sense of arrival and a really strong sense of a compelling hotel product, really helps to bridge those visitors that will be at the convention center, getting them to come up into the courthouse square, which I think is really the kind of crown jewel of the downtown.” 

After the meeting, RDC executive director Anna Killion-Hanson told The B Square the RDC would consider both proposals in good faith.

That was the latest edition of B Square Bites – a collaboration between B Square Bulletin and WFHB. To read the full article, you can visit B Square Bulletin and look for the headline: “Dora, Concord pitch rival College Square projects; Bloomington RDC mulls decision.”

Featured Segments:

For nearly a decade, the Orbit Room has been more than a bar. It’s been a music venue, a gathering place and a home for Bloomington arts. Last Sunday, the Orbit Room shut its doors. In today’s feature report, WFHB News Director Kade Young chronicles the Orbit Room’s final days – what made the venue special, why it’s closing and what comes next. That’s coming up in a special feature on the WFHB Local News.

Up next, we have Volunteer Connection on the WFHB Local News in collaboration with the City of Bloomington Volunteer Network, highlighting four ways you can get involved in Bloomington. We turn to hosts Aubrey Seader and Claire Zeyen for more.

Credits:

This is the WFHB Local News for Monday, August 3rd, 2026.

In today’s broadcast, WFHB News speaks with attendees at Taste of Bloomington – which drew thousands to Kirkwood Avenue this weekend. More in today’s feature report.

You’ll also hear Alissa Weiss from our local Head Start program, currently accepting applications for the upcoming school year. Learn how Head Start provides free early learning for low-income households later in the show on a new episode of Activate!

County council discusses Justice Building closure, paid leave during jail sewage backup

By Jaimmie Ford

The Monroe County Council heard about the recent closure of the justice building due to a sewage backup in the jail at its recent meeting held July 28th.

Councilmember Marty Hawk asked why employees in the Voter Registration Office were given paid days off when the office itself was not affected by the recent closure of the Monroe County Justice Building.

“Do you have an answer as to who gave them the order to stay home?” asked Hawk.

Deputy Clerk Tanner Branham, who was at the meeting to request approval for hiring a part-time Voter Registration Clerk during the county’s hiring freeze, stated that the decision was made by Monroe County Clerk Nicole Brown.

“That was because we had a few voter registration people who were going to be out on vacation anyway this week,” said Branham. “We just decided to go ahead and close.”

Judge Mary Ellen Diekhoff, who was also requesting to fill vacancies, elaborated on how the Justice Building offices were affected by the recent jail plumbing problem.

This was awful. There was water just by the gallon full, just spreading everywhere, and it was toilet water. I was there. They were there. There was others who were there, and we were trying our best,” said Diekhoff.

She said that judges and other employees were working so that operations would be back up and running as quickly as possible. After this meeting, the justice building reopened on Friday, July 31st.

“Yesterday, there were these folks and other court reporters and other office staff and me and other judges who were in there, taking everything off of bookshelves, desks, etc. because they are ripping out carpeting, they are ripping out baseboards, they are trying to put us back together,” she said.

Council members asked questions about preventing future plumbing issues in the jail during discussion of the county commissioners’ Bond Projects presentation. Councilor Peter Iverson asked how they can prevent the same situation from happening again.

“I’m not a plumber. I don’t pretend to be one. Is there a way to plumb this so that the situation we’re experiencing now doesn’t happen again?” asked Iversen.

Commissioners’ Administrator Angie Purdie said it was unpreventable because the problem was intentionally caused.

“The current situation was entirely intentional by inmates,” said Purdie. “This is just the result of of bad actions and bad actions in a bad design.”

Purdie brought up that new jail designs are built in ways that can prevent intentionally caused plumbing issues. Whether those new designs will be incorporated into a new jail remains to be seen because a final decision on how to move forward in building a new jail has not been made.

The next Monroe County Council meeting is scheduled at 5 p.m on August 11th.

Featured Segments:

Even with shaky weather throughout the day, Taste of Bloomington drew thousands to Kirkwood Avenue on Saturday. WFHB News attended the festival to ask attendees about their experience, their favorite food, and how events like this help connect them to the community. We turn to News Director Kade Young for more.

South Central Community Action Program, or “skap,” helps low-income families struggling with poverty. Their Head Start program provides free pre-K childcare with a focus on families that need that support so that the parents can go to work. Family advocates provide wraparound services to support client families and can connect them to other SCCAP services. Head Start engagement coordinator Alissa Weiss says fall registration for Head Start is now open, and she also needs volunteers to help with fall programs. Find out how you can utilize SCCAP programming or help keep it going, on a new episode of Activate!, coming your way right now on the WFHB Local News.

Credits:

Even with shaky weather throughout the day, Taste of Bloomington drew thousands to Kirkwood Avenue on Saturday. WFHB News attended the festival to ask attendees about their experience, their favorite food and how events like this help connect them to the community. WFHB News Director Kade Young has the story.

CREDIT:

Interviews by Kade Young. Photos by Jessie Grubb.

This is the WFHB Local News for Thursday, July 30th, 2026.

In today’s newscast, the Monroe County justice building will be closed until at least Friday due to a sewage leak. County officials are pointing to the mishap as a reason to not spend any more money into a building that was described as “dying.” Find out more in the latest edition of B Square Bites.

Also coming up – for over half a century beep baseball has opened America’s pastime to athletes who are blind or visually impaired. Now, the defending champion Indy Thunder is preparing for the National Beep Baseball World Series. WFHB Sports Correspondent Aidan Verde brings us the story later in the show in a feature report.

Sewage backup in Monroe County justice center spurs scrutiny of future spending on ‘dying’ building”

By Dave Askins

A Monroe County circuit court judge and county councilors on Tuesday (July 28) filled in graphic details about the sewage backup that forced the closure of the Charlotte Zietlow Justice Center last Friday.

The closure of the building is supposed to last at least through Friday.

Councilors wrestled with the idea of pouring millions more into a building that was described as “dying.”

The discussion came at Tuesday’s regular meeting of the Monroe County council, four days after a bag of e‑cigarettes flushed down a jail toilet sent wastewater cascading through ceilings and into court offices below. The jail is located on the upper two stories of the building.

Also surfacing at Tuesday’s meeting were significant concerns from councilors about a decision by the county clerk’s office to also close election division offices in the North Showers building, based on the closure of the justice building, which is a block away.

The incident has also sharpened long‑standing tension about continuing to invest in the aging justice building while planning for a new jail and possible justice complex remains incomplete. A draft list of general obligation bond projects fueled that discussion on Tuesday.

Also on Tuesday, Mary Ellen Diekhoff, who is presiding judge of Monroe County’s unified court, delivered the most vivid public account yet of the July 24 plumbing fiasco. She was in front of the council to request the filling of some vacancies during the county’s hiring freeze.

“I have been around a long time. I have seen a lot of things. This was awful,” Diekhoff told the council. “There was water just by the gallon … just spreading everywhere—and it was toilet water.” She compared the events of Friday inside the building to watching the movie “The Blob.”

That was the latest edition of B Square Bites – a collaboration between B Square Bulletin and WFHB. To read the full article, you can visit B Square Bulletin and look for the headline: “Sewage backup in Monroe County justice center spurs scrutiny of future spending on ‘dying’ building.”

Featured Segments:

Secretly Group is celebrating 30 years this summer. But the story of the internationally recognized indie record label begins right here in Bloomington – with basement shows, college radio, record stores and four friends who decided to start a label instead of a band. WFHB Music Director Abby Noroozi traces that history in a new hour-long documentary. Here’s an excerpt.

The crack of the bat is familiar. But in beep baseball, players rely on sound instead of sight. The adaptive sport has grown into a national competition, and this week the defending champion Indy Thunder will look to add another title at the National Beep Baseball Association World Series in Illinois. Sports Correspondent Aidan Verde has more in a feature report coming your way right now on the WFHB Local News.

Credits:

This is the WFHB Local News for Wednesday, July 29th, 2026.

In today’s newscast, Correspondents Elena Bai and Ben Sharpe took to the streets of Bloomington to ask residents about how they feel about students coming back to the city in a few weeks. More in today’s feature report.

Also coming up in the next half hour, “Real Estate or Fake Estate” on Better Beware – your weekly consumer watchdog segment hosted and produced by Richard Fish. More following today’s feature.

Featured Segments:

During public comment at the Bloomington City Council meeting last Wednesday, county commissioner Jody Madeira urged the council to reconsider the Hopewell neighborhood as a potential new site for the jail and justice center.

“The county considered the Hopewell property in 2022-23, although at the time we had a design that was limited to only a jail,” said Madeira. “The council declined to support the request at that time. We recently reviewed our scoring matrix from years ago, and Hopewell came up as a preferred site.”

Commissioner Julie Thomas continued to make the case that Hopewell could be an adequate space for the new jail.

“Because the city has expressed an interest in assisting us. We are returning now to repeat our request for consideration,” said Thomas.

Meanwhile, City Councilmember Isabel Piedmont-Smith wrote a letter to Commissioners Madeira and Thomas, saying the Hopewell neighborhood should be reserved for affordable housing purposes. WFHB News spoke with Piedmont-Smith earlier today by phone about that letter. We turn to News Director Kade Young for more.

Townie summer is coming to a close. In a few short weeks, IU students will come back to Bloomington. This afternoon around 2 p.m., WFHB News Correspondents Ben Sharpe and Elena Bai took to the streets, asking residents how they feel about the students coming back to town. That voxpop is coming up next on the WFHB Local News.

Up next, “Real Estate or Fake Estate” on Better Beware – your weekly consumer-watchdog segment on the WFHB Local News. We turn to host and producer Richard Fish for more.

Credits: