The 1970 Illinois State Constitution provided for intergovernmental cooperation and empowered local governments to enter into agreements of this nature. Had it not been for the Constitution providing for and encouraging these types of agreements, we may not have progressed to the point that we have in the Normal-Bloomington community.

Some of the things that we have done on a cooperative basis are not very flashy but they have saved both communities time and money. Such things as purchasing computer paper with the County and purchasing softballs with the City of Bloomington are not attention-getting but are effective. After all, that is the whole idea behind intergovernmental cooperation and collaboration. In collaboration one does not have to provide an agreement that equally helps each of the affected jurisdictions. In some cases, our areas of cooperation and collaboration have not equally benefitted the various parties, but in general, the benefit has been equally distributed among the various agencies.

Last September, many of us had the opportunity to attend the International City and County Management Association's 81st Annual Meeting in Denver, Colorado. There were several major educational tracts that conference participants could attend. One was Regionalism. I had the opportunity to be a presenter at one session following the Regionalism Tract concerning "Shared Expense and Revenues on a Regional Basis." The topic centered around Mitsubishi Motors Corporation and the series of intergovernmental agreements entered into by Bloomington, Normal, the county, townships, State of Illinois, school districts, Bloomington-Normal Water Reclamation District and airport authority. Specifically, the topic centered on the long range effects of sharing revenues and expenses in the metro-enterprise zone, which is the area from Route 9 to the area just north of Mitsubishi Motors, the Norfolk and Western Railroad and Mitsubishi Motor Way.

I have worked for the Town of Normal since 1965, and the areas of cooperation between Bloomington and Normal have increased markedly. At present, the Town has 76 formal intergovernmental agreements with other governments in McLean County, the majority of which are with the City of Bloomington. Some of those agreements began when the two Councils agreed to an experiment commonly called the Metro-Management Experiment. This was supposed to be a three-month project during which I served as Manager of both Bloomington and Normal. The experiment lasted 15 months. Many of the things that we tried to accomplish in those brief months have stood the test of time and are still in place. Some, in fact, have been strengthened and numerous other agreements have been added in the ensuing years.

Obviously, the motivation for intergovernmental cooperation or collaboration is that 1) it will save time;

2) it will save money; 3) it makes sense; or 4) a combination of one or two, or all of the above.

The 29 agreements that are a part of the Enterprise Zone involved everything from the master agreement, land purchase, a land disposal procedure, revenue sharing, street lighting, sewer maintenance, and the like. Other agreements include an agreement with Oak Park, Illinois and Iowa City, Iowa for data processing services. Those communities provide a backup for our computer system and likewise, we provide a backup for theirs.

One of the most recent agreements with the Community Unit Five School District is for the development of a joint park/school site, that being Normal Community West High School and an extension of Maxwell Park. The area from the intersection of College Avenue and Parkside Road, which consists of the Parkside Elementary and Junior High School, Normal Community West and Maxwell Park and its recent 50 acre addition, now is a school/park area of 225 acres. The new high school site has two baseball fields, one of which was constructed by Normal. The park site will house four softball diamonds which will be used by the high school for physical education programs and women's softball. The Town and Unit Five are currently discussing the possibility of a park/school site on Normal's north side.

Another agreement was with the City of Bloomington for the use of the police shooting range which was recently developed just off of Route 9, east of the twin

January 1996 / Illinois Municipal Review / Page 17

cities. In addition, Normal leases parking lots to Illinois State University, and places radio antennas on top of university dormitories. The Bloomington-Normal Transit System is another example of a development of intergovernmental cooperation in that the current system is a creation of the two City Councils. This certainly has been one of the success stories since the system was first taken over by the local governments in 1972.

Other formal agreements include fire suppression, ambulance and rescue services with most all county agencies and long range regional water study efforts with McLean County and Bloomington. We also have a boundary agreement with the City of Bloomington and have a formal written agreement that allows us to share legal services in the event of illness or to cover a court proceeding in case the legal personnel from Normal cannot attend. Under these circumstances, the City of Bloomington staff would cover for us and vice versa.

In the area of Parks and Recreation, we have formal agreements with Unit Five regarding facility use, joint development, development of baseball fields, use of the golf course, etc. The Public Works Department has agreements concerning solid waste management, road improvements and snow removal — not only with the City of Bloomington but also Normal Township. The Police Department has formal training agreements with Task Force Six, mutual aid agreements with ISU, the city, state and county. We have formal animal control agreements with McLean County for animal pick-up and the animal shelter. Both Police and Fire Departments have assisted with personnel and equipment in the case of major incidents in either community.

There are many other areas of cooperation that take place on a daily, weekly, monthly or perhaps an annual basis, such as sharing equipment with the City of Bloomington, the County, Airport Authority, Normal Township, Illinois State University, etc. As an example, the Town of Normal provides space for Normal Township in our semi-annual publication called Normal Now.

We also have an agreement with Ambucs in which we provide funds to purchase materials for making dwellings accessible for the physically challenged.

Ambucs provides the skilled labor necessary to construct the ramps, railings and so forth. This program is paid for by our Community Development Department.

Two of the most important agreements that Normal, Bloomington and McLean County have entered into in recent years are the McLean County Solid Waste Study and the Regional Water Study. The Solid Waste Study has established specific goals for education, recycling and for long range landfill ownership.

The Water Study, paid for by Normal, Bloomington and McLean County, will be completed in the spring of 1996. This will be the most comprehensive aquifer study ever conducted in Illinois, according to officials of the State Water and Geological Survey. Preliminary results indicate the study areas west of Bloomington-Normal is capable of producing several million gallons of water per day. In the future it is conceivable that the Bloomington-Normal area communities will cooperate on the development of a Regional Water Treatment and Distribution system for our residents and area communities.

If you would like a list of Normal's various intergovernmental agreements, contact:
David S. Anderson
City Manager
100 E. Phoenix Avenue
P.O. Box 589
Normal, IL 61761-0589
(309)454-2444 •

Page 18 / Illinois Municipal Review / January 1996