Every year Bloomington rewrites its list of expensive projects: sewer mains, streets, park fields and city buildings. That list is the Capital Improvement Plan, or CIP, and it looks 10 years ahead. The council got its first look at the 2027-2036 draft on Oct. 19. City facilities are the largest category at more than $300 million. Surface transportation comes next at about $275 million, then sewer, water and storm projects at $177 million, and the South Loop at just under $100 million.
City of Bloomington@CityofBloomingtonMNStaff open the council's review of the draft 10-year plan and go through the big spending categories.10/19
The item that drew the most attention was a $45 million parking ramp tied to the proposed water park. Residents had raised concerns through a council member. Staff answered that the ramp would be paid for through Port Authority tax increment financing and that no property tax levy is planned for it. They also said the ramp gets built only if the water park does.
City of Bloomington@CityofBloomingtonMNStaff answer residents' questions about how the water park ramp would be paid for and say no property tax levy is planned.10/19
The draft also raised the estimate for replacing the animal shelter. For a long time that project was pegged at about $5 million, and it now appears at $7 million. Staff said the higher number is a cushion against uncertain costs for 2028 and that a feasibility study is underway. The police chief said the department will look for outside funding.
City of Bloomington@CityofBloomingtonMNStaff explain the jump from $5 million to $7 million for the shelter, and the police chief talks about outside funding.10/19
This happens on the same schedule every year. Each fall, staff bring a draft to the council and tie it to the city's mission statement. They did that in October 2023 with the 2024-2033 plan. Last year the council heard the 2026-2035 draft on Oct. 20, 2025, then held the public hearing on the final version on Dec. 8, 2025, and adopted it that night.
City of Bloomington@CityofBloomingtonMNLast year's final step: staff open the public hearing on the final 2026-2035 plan, which the council adopted that night.12/08
Right now the plan is still a draft. Nothing in it is approved, and the numbers can change before adoption. The Planning Commission's job comes next. It doesn't approve projects. It checks whether the list matches the city's comprehensive plan. That check comes as the commission is also working on the comprehensive plan itself: the Bloomington 2050 update is on the same agenda.
The Planning Commission meets Thursday, Oct. 29, at 6 p.m. in the Council Chambers at Civic Plaza. The plan then goes back to the council on Monday, Dec. 7, for a public hearing and a vote on adoption. That meeting runs from 6:30 p.m. and also includes the Truth in Taxation hearing on the 2027 levy and budget.
If you want to argue for or against anything on the list, from the ramp to the shelter to your own street, the Dec. 7 hearing is the formal place to do it. You can send questions before then to the city's Finance Department at 952-563-8790 or [email protected].
From the meeting: City Council Study Meeting, October 19, 2026.
