Next Event Closing
• 6:30-8:30 p.m. June 26
• Monroe Main Street Concert on the Square featuring Stateline Playboys
• Main Street Director Barb Nelson is pleased with the number of businesses offering extended hours Thursday evening for early concert goers. Many businesses are staying open beyond normal closing times, some up to the start of the concert at 6:30 p.m.
Rufs, The Green Door, Nancy's, das Baumhaus, Children's Outlet Center, JoAnne's, Schultz Pharmacy and The Dilly Bean will be open. Other business owners are still considering the option.
The Garden Deli, Chocolate Temptation, Ruf Confectionary, Cafe Claudeen and Uptown Girl will remain open after the concert Nelson said.
Cafe Claudeen, Fox Feathercreek Bakery, the Garden Deli and Turner Hall are each offering menus for lunchbox meals, ranging from $5 to $9, to take to the concert. Lunch box meals come with various fruits, salads or desert combinations. Special Olympic kids will be raising funds during the concert by selling small bags of popcorn, provided by Ruf Confectionary.
MONROE - Downtown business owners are much happier with the way the Square is being blocked off for special events than they have been with past closings.
The intersections of the Square were blocked diagonally, leaving access to side streets, during the Taste of Monroe, arts and craft show and antique car show June 14-15.
"Excellent idea," said Kim Lee, owner of the Garden Deli on 11th Street. "I think it gave people access to drop people off and pick them up, especially the elderly and handicapped."
In past years, intersections around the Square had been closed off, leaving "dead-end" spots with no place to turn around.
Sherrill Kelly, president of Business Improvement District (BID), credited Patty James, director of Monroe Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), for considering the needs of downtown customers.
"We were trying to be very conscious of getting people onto the Square this year," James said of the new closure arrangement. "There were also safety concerns. We wanted our tourists and shoppers safe, (so) we spoke to police and business owners."
BID had requested the city notify business owners of requests to restrict Square traffic for special events, and give members an opportunity to voice opposition at Monroe City Council meetings if they determined events shut down more streets than necessary.
Some downtown business owners had objected to Square closings because of the difficulty customers had getting to their businesses, Kelly told the committee. Saturday events on the Square, "particularly in the summer," interfere with customers' shopping, she said.
But the Monroe Public Safety Committee, which approves event permits, took no action on the request June 2, saying BID and the organizations most responsible for setting up special events, such as the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Monroe Main Street, needed to work together to settle their conflicting interests.
"We have to be fair to businesses, ... (but) these activities are to draw people to their businesses," PSC Chairman Chuck Koch said.
A new eight-page "special event manual" approved June 3 by the City Council does not make suggestions about street closures. Police Chief Fred Kelley said he speaks directly to event coordinators about such matters.
Kelly, owner of Uptown Girl on 10th Street, said she wanted to make sure regular customers could get to the stores. She said she has not heard any negative comments about last weekend from business owners.
"It did make a big difference," Kelly said. "They didn't block 16th Avenue (from Ninth to 10th Street). People could come down and turn right to get into the parking ramp.
"A couple (of my customers) said they parked in the parking lot, and one said she was even able to get a spot along the side of the building here," Kelly said.
The municipal parking ramp is located between 15th and 16th avenues just behind the stores on the west block of the Square. The ramp was well used, but still not full on the top level around noon June 14.
The Spring Square parking lot at 16th Avenue and 12 Street was almost full. Vehicles were parked along the streets for at least two blocks in all directions from the Square.
To make more room for parking, James said MCCI convinced the car show to move most of its 109 vehicles onto the Square instead of using the Spring Square lot. To accommodate that, James said the arts and craft show booths were placed closer to the Taste of Monroe vendors.
Monroe Main Street Director Barb Nelson said the diagonal street closures were "just about perfect."
"The farmers' market, which normally is on the Square on Saturdays, was moved to the Library parking lot, but were glad to make that move for them," Nelson said.
Lee said his business last weekend was very good.
"I think the nice weather helped," he said.
James said the proceeds from the weekend were more than last year.
Not only did the warm weather with a gentle breeze help, but the mix of events and vendors was just right, she said.
"This was the first time we had this mix," which included the famous Historic Cheesemaker's cream puffs, James said.
Next year MCCI wants find a better way to get the farmers' market in the mix, by moving them closer to the Square or directing more customers their way.
The intersections of the Square were blocked diagonally, leaving access to side streets, during the Taste of Monroe, arts and craft show and antique car show June 14-15.
"Excellent idea," said Kim Lee, owner of the Garden Deli on 11th Street. "I think it gave people access to drop people off and pick them up, especially the elderly and handicapped."
In past years, intersections around the Square had been closed off, leaving "dead-end" spots with no place to turn around.
Sherrill Kelly, president of Business Improvement District (BID), credited Patty James, director of Monroe Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), for considering the needs of downtown customers.
"We were trying to be very conscious of getting people onto the Square this year," James said of the new closure arrangement. "There were also safety concerns. We wanted our tourists and shoppers safe, (so) we spoke to police and business owners."
BID had requested the city notify business owners of requests to restrict Square traffic for special events, and give members an opportunity to voice opposition at Monroe City Council meetings if they determined events shut down more streets than necessary.
Some downtown business owners had objected to Square closings because of the difficulty customers had getting to their businesses, Kelly told the committee. Saturday events on the Square, "particularly in the summer," interfere with customers' shopping, she said.
But the Monroe Public Safety Committee, which approves event permits, took no action on the request June 2, saying BID and the organizations most responsible for setting up special events, such as the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Monroe Main Street, needed to work together to settle their conflicting interests.
"We have to be fair to businesses, ... (but) these activities are to draw people to their businesses," PSC Chairman Chuck Koch said.
A new eight-page "special event manual" approved June 3 by the City Council does not make suggestions about street closures. Police Chief Fred Kelley said he speaks directly to event coordinators about such matters.
Kelly, owner of Uptown Girl on 10th Street, said she wanted to make sure regular customers could get to the stores. She said she has not heard any negative comments about last weekend from business owners.
"It did make a big difference," Kelly said. "They didn't block 16th Avenue (from Ninth to 10th Street). People could come down and turn right to get into the parking ramp.
"A couple (of my customers) said they parked in the parking lot, and one said she was even able to get a spot along the side of the building here," Kelly said.
The municipal parking ramp is located between 15th and 16th avenues just behind the stores on the west block of the Square. The ramp was well used, but still not full on the top level around noon June 14.
The Spring Square parking lot at 16th Avenue and 12 Street was almost full. Vehicles were parked along the streets for at least two blocks in all directions from the Square.
To make more room for parking, James said MCCI convinced the car show to move most of its 109 vehicles onto the Square instead of using the Spring Square lot. To accommodate that, James said the arts and craft show booths were placed closer to the Taste of Monroe vendors.
Monroe Main Street Director Barb Nelson said the diagonal street closures were "just about perfect."
"The farmers' market, which normally is on the Square on Saturdays, was moved to the Library parking lot, but were glad to make that move for them," Nelson said.
Lee said his business last weekend was very good.
"I think the nice weather helped," he said.
James said the proceeds from the weekend were more than last year.
Not only did the warm weather with a gentle breeze help, but the mix of events and vendors was just right, she said.
"This was the first time we had this mix," which included the famous Historic Cheesemaker's cream puffs, James said.
Next year MCCI wants find a better way to get the farmers' market in the mix, by moving them closer to the Square or directing more customers their way.