Monroe City Council adopts multiple demolition orders, denies Steele Street rezoning and approves paid-parking reconsideration

Monroe City Council took a series of formal actions at its July 8 meeting, adopting minimum-housing ordinances to declare multiple vacant houses dilapidated and unfit for human habitation, voting to deny a rezoning request for 1913 Steele Street, and directing staff to revisit a paid parking pilot for a downtown lot.

Council adopted ordinances ordering demolition or repair for properties at 601 South College Street; 3613 U.S. Highway 74; and 3701–3705 U.S. Highway 74 following code-enforcement inspections that found structural failures, missing utilities and debris in each dwelling. Planning and code-enforcement staff told council repair estimates for the properties exceed 50 percent of each structure’s tax-assessed value, a threshold cited in the city’s minimum housing ordinance and state statute as a trigger for demolition authority. Property owners were notified and heard before council at the meeting; one owner, Burrell Raper, told council he purchased his house in 1998 and intends to demolish it.

On a separate land-use matter, council denied a zoning map amendment request to rezone 1913 Steele Street from General Industrial to Residential Low Density. Planning staff presented background including prior consideration in September 2024 and varying recommendations from planning staff and the planning board. The applicant’s representative described family ownership and interest in making the parcel more marketable; council discussed topography, utility access and potential future public-enterprise needs before voting to deny the rezoning and related land-use plan compliance.

Council also voted to reconsider the downtown paid-parking pilot for the lot at East Crowell and North Haines streets. Staff summarized the pilot (18 spaces, initially $1,000 per space for a six-month pilot that began Nov. 1, 2024), its low take-up (five spaces leased to three applicants), and feedback that price and hours affected interest. Council directed staff to bring back a revised program with a reduced fee ($500 annually was discussed), business-hours enforcement (suggested 7 a.m.–6 p.m. Monday–Friday) and first-come, first-served allocation; council members said revenue could support downtown events but some expressed concern about charging for city-owned parking.

Separately, council asked staff to study whether Morgan/Windsor Alley could be used as a rental event venue and to return with a report addressing public-safety and fire-code constraints.

The meeting concluded with a 30-minute public-comment period that featured numerous speakers addressing council conduct, the recently enacted HB 3 (referenced by commenters), and support for or opposition to specific council members. A closed session followed the public comments.