Bloomington’s main homeless encampment was destroyed today. The parking lot on Oakland Ave was owned by Eastview Church and served as a homeless encampment...
Assistant Chief Wamsley, Interim-Chief Scott, and City Manager Gleason all made very clear in the way they framed the conversation that a non-co-responder model could very likely be a violation of Article 20 of the union contract. A contract with a union who the majority of its members live outside the city limits, don’t pay property taxes, and can’t even vote for the elected officials their bargaining with. If PBPA did file an Article 20 grievance against the City of Bloomington for implementing crisis teams without initial assistance from police, they would be sending the message that they--and not the tax paying residents of Bloomington--should be in charge of how the City spends and prioritizes its resources; and they should be in charge of how the community chooses to democratically address its own social problems.