Mayor to deliver State of the City Address Thursday

By Kurt Christian from the Herald Times

Bloomington Mayor John Hamilton will deliver the final State of the City Address of his first term on Thursday against a backdrop of music, poetry and more.

This year’s State of the City Address is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater. The evening’s agenda includes a poetry reading by Emily Bobo, department chair of Fine Arts and Humanities at Bloomington’s Ivy Tech Community College and founder of Bobo Books. Generation Jam, a group of around 50 beginning musicians ages 7 to 84, will also put on an interactive performance.

Those who can’t make it to 114 E. Kirkwood Ave. will be able to watch the mayor’s remarks live on Community Access TV Services (CATS), on Comcast channel 12.

Last year, the State of the City Address was interrupted by protesters alleging the city’s purchase of a $225,000 armored vehicle was an act of militarization that would disproportionately affect people of color. City officials adjourned the evening’s meeting early, and Hamilton gave a full reading of his remarks behind locked doors the next day.