Renner reflects on time in office with the election less than two weeks away

Posted on March 25, 2021
Bloomington Mayor Tari Renner. (Photo courtesy: WJBC/File)

By Blake Haas

BLOOMINGTON – After announcing he won’t seek a third term earlier this year, Bloomington’s Mayor reflects on his time in office less than two weeks before election day.

Bloomington Mayor Tari Renner, who has been the Mayor since 2013, told WJBC’s Scott Miller, he’s proud of his accomplishments.

“I think we’ve certainly have had in spite of COVID, in spite of other up’s and downs, we’ve maintained very strong city finance. We’re one of the few metro cities in the country that have been able to provide extra assistance to our small businesses and individuals in terms of grants. We didn’t have to lay people off; we didn’t have to do many of the things that other cities are doing.”

Renner added he’s also proud of economic development and collaboration across the town.

“The word on the street was, you could get away with anything in Bloomington; you can’t get away with anything in Normal. That’s not the case anymore. And of course, redirecting much of our growth, economic development, away from subsidizing sprawl to energizing and working with what I call our underperforming areas. Whether it be our shopping areas, shopping centers, or older neighborhoods downtown, our cultural, historic core, I think we made a lot of progress on a lot of different fronts.”

Bloomington voters will see three mayoral candidates on the ballot, include Mboka Mwilambwe, who has represented Ward 3 since 2011, Jackie Gunderson, and Mike Straza.

LISTEN: Bloomington Mayor Renner spoke with WJBC’s Scott Miller. 

Municipal elections for the office of the Mayor and odd-numbered wards will be on April 6.

Blake Haas can be reached at [email protected].

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