ZIP Code 47403

Bloomington is the county seat of Monroe County in the central region of the U.S. state of Indiana. The city was established in 1818 by a group of settlers from Kentucky, Tennessee, the Carolinas, and Virginia who were so impressed with "a haven of blooms" that they called it Bloomington. The population was 79,168 at the 2020 census. It is the home to Indiana University Bloomington, the flagship campus of the IU System. Bloomington was also the location of the Academy Awardwinning 1979 movie Breaking Away, featuring a reenactment of Indiana University's annual Little 500 bicycle race. According to the 2010 census, Bloomington has a total area of 23.359 square miles (60.50 km²), of which 23.16 square miles. (59.98 km²) (or 99.15%) is land and 0.199 sq miles (0.52 km²%) (or 0.85%) is water. The area in which Bloomington is situated was previously inhabited by the Delaware, Potawatomi, Miami, and Eel River Miami. The largest stream within the city is Clear Creek, with its eastern branch known on the Indiana University campus as "The Campus River". The city is on comparatively high ground, the summit of the divide between the basins of the West Fork and East Fork of Indiana's White River. Southern Indiana receives an abundance of rain, with a yearly average of nearly 50 inches.

History

Bloomington is the primary city name, but also Woodbridge are acceptable city names or spellings, Blmgtn on the other hand no longer accepted or obsolete and are no longer used as a designation. Bloomington was platted in 1818. A post office has been in operation at Bloomington since 1825. Bloomington was incorporated in 1827. The current city logo was adopted on January 6, 1986, by the Bloomington Common Council. It was a combination of peony and trout lily, inspired by both quilt patterns used by regional folk artists in 19th century and the shape of Downtown Square. The Elias Abel House, Blair-Dunning House, Bloomington City Hall, and Monroe Carnegie Library are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Old Crescent, Princess Theatre, Prospect Hill Historic District, Second Baptist Church, Seminary Square Park, and Steele Dunning Historic District are also listed. The Wicks Building, Woolery Stone Company, and Andrew Wylie House are listed in the city's historic district. The Bloomington Public Library is located on the second floor of the Monroe County Courthouse, and is open to the public on weekdays. The city's public library is open from 9am to 5pm on the weekdays, and from 8am to 11pm on weekends. The town's library is located in the historic district of Monroe County, which was once home to the Delaware, Potawatomi, Miami, and Eel River Miami. The area in which Bloomington is situated was previously inhabited by the Delaware, Potaw atomi, and Miami. It is now part of the city of Monroe, Illinois, and the county seat is Monroe County.

Geography

According to the 2010 census, Bloomington has a total area of 23.359 square miles (60.50 km²), of which 99.15% is land and 0.199 sq miles (0.52 km²) (or 0.85%) is water. Bloomington is on comparatively high ground, the summit of the divide between the basins of the West Fork and East Fork of Indiana's White River. There are no major watercourses within the city, nor is much groundwater available for wells. The city is supplied with drinking water from Lake Monroe, via the Monroe Water Treatment Plant on S Shields Ridge Rd. A number of sites, in particular, Bennett's Dump and Lemon Lane Landfill at the northwestern edge of the city and Neal's Landfill in the county, were listed as Superfund sites. Clean-up operations at the Bennett Quarry site, started in 1983, were largely completed by 2000., while cleanups at the other sites were completed in 2012. Southern Indiana receives an abundance of rain, with a yearly average of nearly 50 inches. The largest stream within theCity is Clear Creek, with its eastern branch known on the Indiana University campus as "The Campus River". The city's relatively varied topography is a sharp contrast to the flatter terrain more typical of central to northern portions of Indiana. It is in the rolling hills of southern Indiana, resting on the intersection of the Norman Uplands and the Mitchell Plain. In the 1950s, two much larger reservoirs, Lake Lemon and Lake Monroe were created in the northeastern and southeastern parts of Monroe County.

Demographics

Bloomington is the principal city of the Bloomington Metropolitan Statistical Area, a metropolitan area that covers Greene, Monroe, and Owen counties. As of the 2010 census, there were 80,405 people, 31,425 households, and 11,267 families residing in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 87.03% White, 4.24% African American, 0.29% Native American, 5.26% Asian,0.07% Pacific Islander, 1.10% from other races, and 2.01% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.49% of the population. According to Census 2000, 89.3% of residents spoke English, 2.9% Spanish and 1.1% German or Mandarin as their first language. The median income for a city household was $25377, and the median income. for a family was $50,054. The per capita income was $16.481, compared to $26,100 for the city as a whole. The city is home to the University of Illinois at Bloomington, which has an enrollment of more than 20,000 students. The university has one of the highest concentrations of African-American students in the United States, with more than half of its students of African descent. The school district has a population of 8,000, making it the second-largest in the state. It is the largest school district in the U.S. behind Chicago.

Economy

Bloomington is a regional economic center anchored by Indiana University. Bloomington's concentration of employment in the life sciences is six times greater than the U.S. average. Employment in the technology sector has grown by over 80 percent in recent years. Companies based in Bloomington include Cook Group, Author Solutions, OneWorld Enterprises, BloomingFoods, Bloomington Tutors, and Singota Solutions. Bloomington has been recognized by Inc. Magazine as one of "America's Best Cities for Doing Business" and as one. of Entrepreneur Magazine's Top 50 "Hottest Small Cities for Entrepreneurs" Forbes Magazine ranked Bloomington No. 3 in its "Best Places for Business Careers" feature. The Bloomington and Monroe County region is home to major employers representing a diverse collection of fields, including education, the life Sciences, advanced manufacturing and technology. It is also home to a diverse business community involved in pharmaceuticals, medical devices, technology, health care, and the arts. It has been named one of America's Best cities for doing business by Entrepreneur magazine, Inc. magazine, and Forbes Magazine's "Best places for business careers" in the United States. The city has been ranked No. 1 in Indiana by Forbes Magazine and No. 2 in the Midwest region by CNN.com's "Cities to Watch" list. It was named No. 4 in the nation by CNN's "Top 50 Small Cities" list in 2012, and was No. 5 in the world in 2013.

Education

Bloomington has a public library, a branch of the Monroe County Public Library. Bloomington has two high schools, two middle schools, and two elementary schools. The town has a post-secondary school, a college, a high school, and a middle school. It also has a school for pre-school, an elementary school, an intermediate school and a primary school. The city is home to Bloomington Montessori School, a public school for children in kindergarten through eighth grade, and the Academy of Science and Entrepreneurship, a private school for high school students in ninth through 12th grade. It has a community college, Ivy Tech Community College, an adult education center, and an adult high school.

Transportation

Bloomington is a gold-rated bicycle-friendly community by the League of American Bicyclists. There are several significant bike trails in and around the city, most notably the B-Line Trail which runs north to south for almost four miles. Bloomington and Indiana University briefly ran a dockless bikeshare program called Pace, launched in June 2018. Local bus service is provided by Bloomington Transit. services to the Indianapolis International Airport is provided through shuttle services such as GO Express. The nearest commercial airport is Bloomington's Monroe County Airport (no scheduled commercial flights), 50 miles (80 km) away. The last section of I-69 between Martinsville and Indianapolis is scheduled for completion in 2024. The city is home to the Indiana State Fair, which runs through the end of the year. It is also the home of the Indiana Pacers, who play the Indiana Fever and Indiana Fever in the NBA. The Bloomington High School football team is known as the Bloomington Hoosiers. The team was founded by former Indiana Gov. Mike DeWine in the 1970s. The Hoosier State Fair is held in Bloomington every year in September and October. The high school football team also holds the Indiana All-Star game in October and November each year. The game is held at the Indiana High School Football Field, which is located on the north side of the city. The state high school baseball team also plays in the Indiana state championship game, which takes place in November.

Points of interest

Bloomington, Indiana is the birthplace of fictional Captain Kathryn Janeway, from the show Star Trek: Voyager. Lake Lemon is located approximately 10 miles northeast of Bloomington. Upland Brewing Company is the largest microbrewery in the state of Indiana. The Bloomington Playwrights Project produces only new plays by American playwrights. The Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction is located at Bloomington's Kinsey College of Arts and Sciences. The University of Indiana Bloomington offers a bachelor's degree in history and a masters degree in political science. It is the home of the Indiana University Bloomington Women's Studies Program, which offers a master's degree program in women's studies. It also offers a doctorate program in the history of women's health and human development. It has a symphony hall, a theater, a dance hall, and a bowling alley. The town is also home to the U.S. Army's Bloomington Field House, which is a training ground for the Indiana Army National Guard and the Indiana Air National Guard. The city is home to a number of museums, including the Indiana History Museum, the Indiana State Museum, and the Bloomington Museum of Art and Science, which houses a bronze statue of Captain Janeway. The Indiana State Library is located in Bloomington and has a collection of more than 2,000 books. The state's largest museum is the Indiana Historical Society, which has a library that houses more than 1,000 volumes of historical material.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Bloomington, Monroe County, Indiana = 82. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 27. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 40. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Bloomington = 3.8 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 79,168 individuals with a median age of 23.4 age the population grows by 2.41% in Bloomington, Monroe County, Indiana population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 3,405.08 residents per square mile of area (1,314.72/km²). There are average 2.06 people per household in the 14,311 households with an average household income of $23,431 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 5.30% of the available work force and has dropped -5.11% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 23.88%. The number of physicians in Bloomington per 100,000 population = 228.6.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Bloomington = 44.8 inches and the annual snowfall = 14.9 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 112. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 187. 88 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 21 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 41, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Bloomington, Monroe County, Indiana which are owned by the occupant = 28.48%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 35 years with median home cost = $121,870 and home appreciation of 6.76%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $8.70 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $4,793 per student. There are 16.5 students for each teacher in the school, 578 students for each Librarian and 660 students for each Counselor. 4.13% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 24.69% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 27.30% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).