Ellettsville plans downtown revitalization, parks growth through ‘Envision’ initiative
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The town of Ellettsville, through a recent visioning plan, is seeking to grow outdoor experiences and revitalize its downtown amid a housing boom in the area.
After years of planning, Christa Curtis of the Greater Ellettsville Area Chamber of Commerce says the small community just northwest of Bloomington is expanding its previous planning efforts with a refined vision for new parks, trails and retail.
Their initiative, called Envision Ellettsville, emerged organically through demand from local residents.
“This is our home,” said Curtis, who works for nearby Cook Medical and also sits on the Envision Ellettsville board. “This is where we want to live. We want it to be a great place now and in the future.”
The community of about 6,770 has grown more than 9% since 2010, according to a June draft of the town’s comprehensive plan. That growth is due in part to an increase in affordable housing and the perception of a business friendly environment, Curtis said.
The town also has considerable land available for development in Monroe County, Curtis said, pointing to the recent addition of a warehouse owned by grocery specialists, KeHE Distributors.
However, with limited resources at the town-level, local business leaders took up the work of turning residents’ ideas into a concrete visioning plan for near- and long-term projects.
Working with the local chamber and not-for-profit Ellettsville Main Street, planners secured more than $50,000 to hire consultants with the Indianapolis firm Taylor Siefker Williams Design Group. The Community Foundation of Bloomington and Monroe County put forward a significant portion of the funding with their award of a $30,000 Community Impact Grant.
Through a series of community town halls and surveys, planners came away with clear priorities, including a need for more local amenities and entertainment to match the rising demand of home growth.
Town leaders have already given initial approval of the vision plan and a new land use plan is expected to come before the Ellettsville Town Council later this year. Ellettsville has, however, already taken some early steps forward in achieving its long-term vision.
The town, which previously did not have a parks and recreation department, recently hired a part-time employee to build up parks services, Curtis said.
The town also secured grant funding for a park at an important entry point to Ellettsville. The Ellettsville Heritage Center at Stewart Park is funded by nearly $230,000 in state READI Grant funding and will transform a historic barn into cultural displays for school groups and the general public, according to the Regional Opportunity Initiatives not-for-profit working with the Community Foundation of Bloomington and Monroe County.
The Indiana Department of Natural Resources has also awarded multiple Next Level Trail grants to Ellettsville-area projects — including more than $2 million to a 2.67-mile expansion of Monroe County’s Karst Farm Greenway connecting Ellettsville to Bloomington. The DNR also provided more than $1 million for a 2.11-mile extension of the town’s Heritage Trail.
Together, the two projects will create more than 10 miles of continuous trail and could grow connections to nearby Spencer and McCormick’s Creek State Park.
Town leaders say they hope to use these added connection points to drum up new business for its downtown area, which is also targeted for redevelopment. Ellettsville’s downtown has been plagued for years by flooding and has property for sale, Curtis said.
Town leaders have already developed flood mitigation plans, but Curtis said she expects downtown revitalization to be a longer-term project.
“We would love to attract more restaurants and more shops and have more of a vibrant downtown,” Curtis said.
Though the town is moving into the implementation stages of its plan, Curtis encourages the public to share their ideas through upcoming plan commission and town hall meetings.
The Envision Ellettsville board and task force groups also have an active presence on Facebook and share updates on the Envision Ellettsville website.