Councilors and city staff on July 3 discussed repeated illegal dumping, litter and other code violations at the Dollar Tree store on Island and Isle of Monroe and examined enforcement options after staff reported multiple citations and outstanding fines.

"This is a health issue," the meeting chair said as photos of piled mattresses, tires and other bulk refuse were presented to the subcommittee. Code enforcement staff and the police-affiliated liaison recounted repeated inspections and citations but said the store has continued to accumulate violations.

Keith (Zoning/Ordinance staff) told the committee the store has not come into compliance under the inspection schedule and that inspectors moved monitoring from a 30-day to a weekly cycle. "They're getting tickets weekly every time we go out there," Keith said. He added that code-enforcement citations from the zoning/housing side total about $250 in unpaid tickets on the city side, while police-issued citations at the site, he said, had been "north of 3,000" in aggregate on previous summaries provided to staff.

Sue Arce, SPD liaison, provided a detailed accounting during the meeting: "Altogether, there is a balance of $3,050. There have been 13 citations issued within the last 3 years. The most recent, in 02/2025, we've had 3. In 02/2024, there has been 9. In 02/2023, there was 2. ... Right now, it's 1,700 that's still owed to the city out of the 3,000 within the last 3 years." The subcommittee asked staff to circulate the citation history to council members.

Members discussed enforcement tools beyond repeating civil citations. Attorney Tom Moore and others noted state law caps on noncriminal-disposition fines and suggested that the council could pursue special-state legislation to expand local penalty authority. Moore said some communities compile and publish lists of properties with outstanding municipal fines after due process; he cited examples where special legislation allowed publication of finalized unpaid municipal fines as an enforcement tool.

Councilors asked whether licensing or permitting could be withheld. Staff said the city does not issue permits to entities that owe fines; outstanding debts are certified through the collector's office and can block permits and certain renewals. The group discussed whether a "common victualer" or other routine retail license is renewed annually and whether the licensing process might be used to withhold or condition renewal for persistent violators. Moore said he would research whether the Board of License Commissioners or an existing licensing process could be used to withhold renewal in cases of repeated unpaid fines.

The subcommittee discussed other operational steps that could increase compliance: stepped inspection cycles, public campaigns against illegal dumping, and coordination with corporate representatives. Several councilors expressed frustration that paying fines appears cheaper than full compliance and called for creative solutions. The subcommittee scheduled a follow-up meeting in the week of July 14 and asked city attorney staff to research legal options, including whether license renewal or publication of finalized unpaid fines could be used and what state action would be required to increase local penalties.

No new legislation was enacted at the July 3 meeting; the subcommittee directed staff and the city attorney to report back with options and legal analysis.