The Bloomington City Council advanced preliminary standards for co-living housing developments and received comprehensive updates on Metro Transit service improvements during its January 27 meeting.

Council members reviewed draft ordinance language that would create new zoning definitions for co-living developments, which staff described as a potential pathway to increase deeply affordable housing options. The proposed standards would allow co-living as a permitted use in high-density residential districts and require 0.5 parking spaces per unit. Planning staff will refine the ordinance with legal and environmental health input before bringing it back for public hearing in April.

"Co-living offers cities a regulatory pathway to allow for the development of affordable housing that doesn't necessitate as much deep subsidy," said Planning Manager Nick Olson during the presentation.

Metro Transit officials outlined their Network Now framework, which proposes a 35% increase in system-wide service hours by 2027. The plan includes potential micro-transit zones and improved frequency on existing routes serving Bloomington. General Manager Leslie Kanders reported that Metro Transit provided 47.5 million rides in 2024, a 6% increase over 2023, though ridership remains below pre-pandemic levels.

The council also renewed Comcast's cable television franchise for another 10 years with the same 5% franchise fee structure. The agreement strengthens financial support for public access programming while maintaining complimentary services to city facilities.