A major redevelopment plan for Downtown Bloomington's south end would create more housing and parking and finally remove a rundown eyesore that's vexed city leaders for years. The plan, announced Friday night, would give the City of Bloomington control over prime underperforming real estate.

There are two redevelopment agreements in motion. Both go in front of the Bloomington City Council on Monday.

One agreement relates to the Front N Center building, the adjacent DUI Countermeasures building, and the former Elks building across Madison Street. Bloomington-based Catalyst Construction plans to buy all three buildings, demolish them, turn them into 140 new parking spaces, and sell the properties to the City of Bloomington. The $3.93 million cost would include the demolish and construction of the parking, city officials said Friday.

The second agreement would lead to the donation of the former Commerce Bank building at 120 N. Center St. to the city for a potential future housing development. City officials said Friday they're "actively working with potential developers to transform the property into housing using tax credits."

"This is a prime downtown location, and securing site control allows us to address our immediate parking needs while laying the groundwork for future redevelopment," City Manager Jeff Jurgens said in a statement. "Looking ahead, we hope to develop a parking garage on the site, which would open up surrounding parcels for additional investment and growth."

The agreements, if approved, would be a major step toward redeveloping downtown blocks that have languished despite nearby anchors such as the city-owned arena and county courthouse and jail.

City leaders have tried for years to address the Front N Center building, a former Montgomery Ward department store building that's been deteriorating for decades. The city began condemnation proceedings a year ago, only to put them on pause last fall after the building's owners - the Huff family from Peoria - finally agreed to negotiate a deal.

As part of the agreement announced Friday, the city said it would "drop its legal action against (the Huffs) related to the Front N Center and Elks buildings and waive any associated fines."

"Unfortunately, after exploring multiple redevelopment options, none proved financially feasible given the conditions of the buildings," Jurgens said. "The best path forward is for the city to take control of these properties and start fresh."

All work would be required to be completed at prevailing wage, city officials said. After the demolition, new parking would be put in the buildings' place. The city said a "portion of the Elks property will be preserved to honor its historical significance as part of the lot design."

The city would also get control of the former Commerce Bank building. It's also owned by the Huff family, through its Consolidated Property LLC company.

If they come to fruition, the redevelopments would be among the most significant in Downtown Bloomington since construction of the arena and renovation of the Bloomington Center of the Performing Arts.

It comes as Connect Transit continues work on a planned $18 million transfer center downtown. The Market Street parking deck would be demolished to make way for that, meaning more parking would be needed to replace it. Downtown also recently saw the former CII East building rehabbed and turned into the Northwestern Mutual Building, along with a long-awaited expansion of the Bloomington Public Library.