MONROE — A Change.org petition is circulating with the goal of stopping the Monroe School District from eventually selling a piece of open space used by sports teams. The land is known as Marshall Field, a 12.4-acre plot off of W. Columbia St.
The city is currently considering a rezone request that would allow the district to sell the field. It could result in a developer building a multi-family structure just short of 300 units, per city documents.
The district says it can’t use the parcel for a new school, and doesn’t have a pool on its priority list.
As of Aug. 8, almost 750 signatures had been collected. The population in Monroe is approximately 19,000.
The petition says: “We do not want high density housing built on Marshall Field. We do not want the Monroe School Board to sell to a developer that has this goal in mind. We do not want the City of Monroe, by board vote or planning committee, to change the zoning to accommodate high density housing.”
The petition goes on to address traffic issues, which critics say could clog an already busy Kelsey Street, a contention that city officials say will be addressed in studies before the land can ever be rezoned.
The petition is called “Stop high density housing on Marshall Field.”
The city of Monroe has not scheduled additional public hearings for Marshall Field.
The city’s planning commission was scheduled to discuss Marshall Field at a meeting this week after press time, but it was moved off the agenda. A new date for that discussion has not been determined yet, a representative for the planning commission said.
The school district has posted a frequently asked questions article at www.monroe.wednet.edu/about/news/new-page/~post/po
tential-rezone-of-marshall-field-memorial-stadium-faqs-20190807
