Significant changes are moving through segments of a Bloomington-area economy that continues to be built on the steady bedrock of Indiana University, according to speakers at a yearly event Wednesday.
The Bloomington Economic Development Corp.'s fourth annual State of the Bloomington Regional Economy addressed the university's role in a county that's shown consistent growth in population, incomes and gross domestic product. But it also hit on an evolving Bloomington downtown, a rebounding real estate market and an area defense sector that's both filled with potential and dogged by chatter about military cuts.
"Downtown is transitioning," said Talisha Coppock, executive director of Downtown Bloomington Inc. "I think everybody is trying to figure it out. If you're a small business, where's the opportunity?"
A total of $45 million in private money has been invested in downtown Bloomington in 2013 and 2014, Coppock said. The area is home to about 13,000 employees and 900 businesses, with the number of businesses jumping 30 percent in the last 15 years.
Other sources of downtown's transformation include the construction of Interstate 69, Coppock added. Funneling travelers off the interstate and into downtown Bloomington will be a challenge, she said.
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