Two men have been living in this shelter for at least a month. They bathe in the tap, cook on the grill, and sleep in the shelter on the picnic tables. Their exclusionary use means no one else can use the shelter. They seem nice, but the shelter is not for long-term camping.
There are three downed trees blocking the forested trail between upper Olcott and the Jackson Creek playground (by Rogers Family Park), plus a couple very large branches. Another tree has fallen over the new southern trail extension (leading to Rhorer from the Jackson Creek playground), squashing the wooden rail fence between the trail and the nearby homeowner's gravel drive. There is also a large branch blocking the forested walking path on the east side of Olcott's football field.
There are 2 trees that have been knocked down by the wind and are leaning over the rail trail. They are held up only by branches of other nearby trees and it doesn't look like they are very stable. Area is on the southern end of the Bloomington Rail Trail, in an area of limestone embankments, prior to where it intersects with the Clear Creek Trail. I'm worried about the safety hazards these trees present to people using the trail if they fall. Thank you, Tony Watkins
I would like to highlight what I believe to be one remaining safety concern along that B-Line bike path. It has to do with the bridge on Allen that crosses over the open drainage (right by the Traffic Division's garage). When approaching the bridge from either direction, there are significant gaps on either side where there is no barrier between the road and the drainage culvert. I am concerned that a cyclist -- perhaps one pulling over to allow a car to pass -- could misjudge their stopping distance and ride into the culvert. Additionally, there is no easy way for someone who does fall in to climb back out. I believe that the expense to fix this would be low. It appears that an attempt may have been made to create a curb at one point, but the work appears to be incomplete and not sufficient to stop a bicycle. However, something like a length of guardrail seems like it would be more than sufficient. Thank you for taking time to read my concern.
I have observed that a couple of the interpretative signs around City Hall are too high. Most of the signs along the B-Line are about 34" high. But two of them, one next to the Hopewell jar fountain and the other on the B-Line across from the Bloomington Banquet sculpture, are 45" and 43" high respectively. Small children and people in wheelchairs would not be able to read these signs. Those two signs, unlike many of the others, are not mounted in a footer. So it would probably be easy to cut a portion of the pole off and lower them so they are more accessible. I am sure both of these signs are out of compliance with the ADA. Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Lights 153 and 148 are out. There is a child's bicycle that is on the side of the trail near light 153, too.
The Rail Trail south of Country Club has some issues. There are large divots/depressions in the trail from the trees that fell in the June storms and the clean up. These depressions are difficult to see on the trail and are big enough and deep enough to be quite jarring on a bicycle. I imagine a runner or walker could get injured stepping into an unexpected hole as well. There are at least 3 or 4 of these depressions on the Rail Trail. Can the city get these leveled out? Please use a filler or fine gravel that matches the trail, not some large gravel sizes as have been done in the past on the Rail Trail repairs that create other issues.
Someone has smeared what looks and smells like dog feces into both of the water spouts on the drinking fountain. I am not carrying sanitizer to clean it or paper to mark it, but it is clearly a public health hazard.
Near the workout equipment on the northwest corner of the Bryan Park there is a hole (see picture). Someone put a metal "donut" over it to warn passersby. Seen Monday morning around 8. Your map location feature is harder to use it used to be.
Tried to register online but was unable to "search" for event to register. I kept getting the same page--search. I will register by mail but thought you should know. (A family member at a different address had a similar problem.) Thank you and Happy New Year