Fairview Street

Fairview Street is a north-south street on Bloomington's west side. It exists in a series of disconnected segments from its southern terminus at Patterson Drive to its northern terminus at 15th Street. Throughout its course, it parallels Rogers Street, which lies a short distance to the east.

Fairview begins in the commercial area along Patterson Drive on the city's southwest side, but as it heads northward, it quickly becomes a residential street; for much of its length, this segment is one-way southbound. This segment terminates about 0.4 miles to the north at 1st Street, which marks the southern boundary of the Bloomington Hospital property. The next segment begins at Howe Street in the newer portion of Prospect Hill; this intersection is the location of the First Church of the Nazarene and of Building and Trades Park. After forcing drivers through a series of dogleg turns, it becomes a virtual alley before reaching 7th Street in the Near West Side. Here, one must travel a substantial distance to the west to resume Fairview, which continues northward until joining 11th Street to go under a railroad bridge; after the bridge, Fairview resumes its northward course and continues until ending at 15th Street.

Because of its location primarily in neighborhoods of small residences, few important places are located along Fairview; some of these include the Elias Abel House, the rear of the new Fairview Elementary, and the Rev. Ernest D. Butler Park. In the neighborhood between the Abel House and the school, the street climbs its namesake hill: here, someone looking eastward has a "fair view" of much of the rest of the city. Part of this neighborhood comprises the city's Fairview Historic District.