Mayor Kerry Thomson

Page last updated on February 26, 2025 at 1:17 pm

About

Isabel Piedmont-Smith

Council District I Representative

1108 S. Rogers

Bloomington, IN 47403

(o:) 812.349.3409

piedmoni@bloomington.in.gov

 

Isabel Piedmont-Smith is a Bloomington native and first-generation American born to German immigrants. She is a graduate of Bloomington High School South and received a BA in History from Oberlin College and an MAT in Social Studies Education from Boston University. She served over two decades as fiscal officer and department administrator in the Department of French & Italian at Indiana University-Bloomington. She lives in the McDoel Gardens neighborhood in a 1925 bungalow with her husband and two cats.

 

Isabel became interested in Bloomington city government in 2002, when she gave input into the City's Growth Policies Plan, focusing on environmental protection and compact urban form. Since then, she has served on the board of the South Central Community Action Program, on the IU-Bloomington Professional Staff Council (one year as president), and on the Bloomington Environmental Commission (one year as chair). In 2007, she was elected to the City Council to represent District 5. From her first term of service, she counts the Green Building Ordinance, which she co-authored with Dave Rollo, as a major success, and she is also proud of her work on the Plan Commission to ensure pedestrian-friendly development downtown and limits to growth on the city's edges.

 

In 2011, Isabel decided not to run for re-election to the City Council due to family obligations. Elected again in 2015, she worked during her second term to increase wages for all city employees and to increase City Council oversight of high-dollar expenditures by the mayor’s administration. She authored dozens of amendments to the Comprehensive Plan, the Transportation Plan, and the Unified Development Ordinance to help produce documents to guide development in Bloomington in a sustainable way.

 

Isabel was elected to her third term in 2019. During this term of office, she focused on improving the lives of underrepresented communities in Bloomington, co-sponsoring the creation of the Community Advisory of Public Safety Commission and legislation to legalize sleeping outside (the latter was not adopted). She also worked toward greater sustainability in land use decisions and the reduction of waste going to the landfill. 

 

After the Council district maps were redrawn in 2022, Isabel's address is now in District 1 instead of District 5. She ran for the District 1 seat and was re-elected in 2023. Isabel continues to host monthly constituent meetings, as she has done since her first term, and to advocate on behalf of underserved residents. In this term, she is particularly focused on improving local government systems in order to make them more equitable and inclusive. 

 

Appointments and Committee Assignments:

Appointments

 

Council Committees

 

Constituent Meetings:

2025 District I Monthly Constituent Meetings are scheduled for 11:00 am on the following dates, which are generally the second Saturday of the month:

  • January 11 - Online only
  • February 8 - Online only
  • March 8 - Online only 
  • April 12 - Online and in person in the McCloskey Room (City Hall)
  • May 10 - Online and in person in the McCloskey Room (City Hall)
  • June - NO MEETING
  • July 5 - Online and in person at City Hall (room TBA) - 1st Saturday this month
  • August 9 - Online and in person at City Hall (room TBA)
  • September 13 - Online and in person at City Hall (room TBA)
  • October 11 - Online and in person at City Hall (room TBA)
  • November 08 - Online only 
  • December 13 - Online only

 

Online meetings may be accessed at the following link: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUkc-mupzMqH90r9hX_0GNKH6rhP3VfiC9a

A one-time registration is required for those who have not attended Councilmember Piedmont-Smith's Zoom constituent meetings before.

 

Relevant Legislation sponsored by Cm. Piedmont-Smith:

  • Ordinance 09-04 -- This ordinance is sponsored by Cm. Piedmont-Smith and Rollo and adds Chapter 2.29 “Green Building Program” to Title 2 “Administration and Personnel” of the Bloomington Municipal Code. The Green Building Program requires that all new construction and major renovation of occupiable City buildings be designed, contracted, and built to achieve, at minimum, the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED® Silver level of certification. The ordinance also calls for a two-part evaluation of the City’s existing building stock, calls for this evaluation to be complete by 2020, and requires the City to both register eligible buildings with the U.S. Green Building Councils and implement improvements necessary to obtain LEED certification by 2022. (Vote 9-0)

 

  • Resolution 16-03 -- This resolution is sponsored unanimously by the Council. The measure opposes Governor Pence’s actions to withhold support from Syrian refugees and welcomes Syrian refugees to our State and our community. The resolution documents the widespread suffering of Syrians, the unconstitutional nature of the Governor’s actions, the rigorous process through which prospective Syrian refugees are vetted, and the systemic rhetoric that confuses Syrians and Muslims with terrorists. Asserting that such rhetoric is irresponsible, the resolution points out that Bloomington is a welcoming community with a long history of responding to hate with an unwavering commitment to diversity and human rights. The resolution maintains that the City of Bloomington is committed to the alleviation of human suffering and to meaningful dialogue among and between residents. The measure calls upon members of the community to express their opposition to Governor Pence’s actions and for the City Clerk to send a copy of the Governor of Indiana, Speaker of the House, President Pro-Tempore of the Senate, and Assembly members representing districts touching the City, the President of Indiana University, and leaders of other municipalities around the State as deemed appropriate. (Vote 8-0)

 

  • Ordinance 18-10 -- This ordinance is sponsored by Cms. Granger and Piedmont-Smith and would amend Chapter 26 (Controller’s Office) of Title 2 (Administration and Personnel) of the Bloomington Municipal Code (BMC) by adding three sections. The first is Section 2.26.200, which would require additional Council review of certain intra-category transfers within certain appropriated funds. The second is Section 2.26.205, which would require submittal and approval by the Council of capital plans for the applicable year associated with above-mentioned appropriated funds. The third is Section 2.26.210, which would require that certain expenditures of at least $100,000 be identified to the Council as part of an appropriation ordinance and that the Council review certain of those not previously-identified expenditures in advance of their payment. (Vote 9-0)

 

  • Resolution 18-19 -- This resolution is sponsored by Cm. Piedmont-Smith and cites the City of Bloomington’s Comprehensive Plan’s reference to the development of a broad plan for community sustainability and documents the Common Council’s long history of initiating sustainability related legislation. The resolution accepts the 2018 Sustainability Action Plan as an advisory document, one that is intended to guide City activities and funding priorities. (Vote 8-0)

 

  • Resolution 18-28 -- This resolution is sponsored by Cms. Ruff and Piedmont-Smith and expresses the preference of the Bloomington Common Council for the repair of the 4th Street Parking Garage at this time over the construction of a new parking facility. (Vote 9-0)

 

  • Resolution 19-07 -- This resolution is sponsored by Cms. Piedmont-Smith and Granger and is in opposition to Indiana Senate Bill 613. The resolution documents the predatory and exploitative nature of the bill and its impact on low-income communities. The resolution calls for the Indiana General Assembly to first engage in a study of the credit access and leading practice needs of low-income communities before making such a wide-sweeping law change. The resolution also calls for the Bloomington City Clerk to send a copy of this resolution to members of the Indiana General Assembly representing Bloomington, to the Chair of the Committee on Financial Institutions in the Indiana House, and to the Governor of Indiana. (Vote 8-0 with 1 abstention)

 

  • Resolution 19-17 -- This resolution is sponsored by Cms. Chopra, Granger, and Piedmont-Smith and declares the second Monday of October as Indigenous Peoples' Day in the City of Bloomington and offers this day as an opportunity to celebrate the cultures and values that Indigenous Peoples of our region add to the communities in Bloomington, throughout Indiana, and globally. (Vote 8-0)

 

  • Ordinance 19-28 -- This ordinance is sponsored by Cms. Granger and Piedmont-Smith and amends Chapter 2.28 of the Bloomington Municipal Code (BMC), entitled "Bloomington Living Wage Ordinance," to broaden the class of employees of the City of Bloomington who receive a Living Wage by removing the exclusion for certain seasonal employees in the Parks and Recreation department. (Vote 8-0 with 1 abstention)

 

  • Ordinance 20-20 -- This ordinance is authored by Councilmembers Piedmont-Smith, Rosenbarger, and Flaherty and amends Title 2 of the Bloomington Municipal Code (Administration and Personnel) to create an 11-member Community Advisory on Public Safety Commission. This Commission would, among other duties, research and make recommendations to the Common Council and the Mayor on matters of public safety. Note: At the November 18th Regular Session, the Council adopted Amendment 01, which added Section 4 to the ordinance and renumbered subsequent sections. (Vote 6-3)

 

  • Ordinance 21-06 -- This ordinance is sponsored by Councilmember Flaherty, Councilmember Rosenbarger, and Councilmember Piedmont-Smith, and amends the Bloomington Municipal Code to add a new Chapter 2.87 entitled “Protections for People Experiencing Homelessness.” The new chapter includes procedures to be followed by the city before displacing individuals experiencing homelessness from certain public spaces. The procedures applicable to the city would include a notice requirement, collaboration with relevant service providers, a prohibition on displacing individuals if there is insufficient available housing, storage of personal property, and the ability to designate certain limited areas where these procedures would apply. (Failed with vote 4-4)

 

  • Ordinance 21-45 --This ordinance is sponsored by Councilmember Sandberg, Councilmember Piedmont-Smith and Councilmember Rollo and serves to prohibit the sale of dogs and cats by pet shops in the City of Bloomington while adding a penalty of $500 for each violation. (Vote 8-0)

 

  • Ordinance 2024-16 -- This ordinance is sponsored by Councilmember Piedmont-Smith and would set limits on the number and length of speeches during debate of legislation in order to make Council regular session meetings more efficient. It would limit each councilmember' s comment in the first round to five (5) minutes and allow councilmembers a second round of comments limited to two (2) minutes each. (Vote 5-4)

 

  • Resolution 2024-25 -- This resolution, sponsored by Councilmember Piedmont-Smith, directs the Plan Commission to prepare amendments to the Unified Development Ordinance to add Single-Room Occupancy buildings as a permitted use in the City, with further guidance as to what should be considered regarding the definition, location, and use of such structures. (Vote 9-0)