Tomi Allison began her political career in Bloomington by serving first as a City Council member, and then as Mayor of Bloomington from 1983-1995. Mayor Allison focused on downtown revitalization, improving sidewalks and city services, and on economic and neighborhood development. Her administration emphasized public private partnership and cooperatively developed a number of local projects as a result.
Local developer CFC, Inc. undertook the renovation of the south side of the square, now called Fountain Square, after an agreement with the city in which the city built the 4th Street Parking Garage to serve the downtown project. Her administration partnered with IU and CFC to renovate the old Showers furniture factory building into city hall, an IU research facility and private offices. The city, county, Commission for Downtown Bloomington (now Downtown Bloomington, Inc.) and a holding corporation partnered to create the Bloomington Monroe County Convention Center from the old Tom O'Daniel Ford building at 3rd Street and College Avenue, with the city again providing the parking.