‘People want to be here’: Monroe to see more housing as subdivisions expand

“As much as it feels like we’re losing a ‘small-town feel’ when there’s so much development, it’s the people who make the feel,” Funk said.

He said Monroe boasts a highly successful school district and easy access to I-75 and Ohio 63 and Ohio 4.

It’s important, Funk said, for Monroe to develop wisely and “not just fill up all the vacant land.”

Tom Smith, development director, echoed Funk’s thoughts, saying Monroe’s location is “pretty attractive” to potential residents. According to a 2023 study, people said they were comfortable making a 20- to 30-minute one-way commute to work, Smith said.

That means those who live in Monroe can easily commute to Dayton or Cincinnati or any city in between, he said.

The final plat for section 100A will include the construction of 86 single-family residential lots. This phase is approximately 38 acres of the 127 total acres comprising that section.

The proposed density is two units per acre, city leaders said.

Monroe Crossings II, LLC had its preliminary plat for Monroe Crossings Section 5 approved by the Planning Commission in October 2020. The preliminary plat provided the design and layout for the last phase of the Monroe Crossings subdivision.

This plat will include the construction of 21 single-family residential lots. This phase is approximately 27 acres of the 106 total acres comprising Section 5, according to city officials.

School gym to be converted

In April, Monroe Schools announced a major renovation project that will see a gymnasium transformed into two floors of classrooms to help ease the district’s overcrowded classrooms.

The $2.5 million construction project at the district’s grades 2-12 school is an unusual but necessary move to provide more learning spaces for students in the fast-growing Butler County school system.

Monroe officials said when the renovation wraps up during the second half of the 2025–2026 school year, it will have converted a 4,000-square-foot junior high auxiliary gymnasium into two floors with 8,000 square feet of new space. That includes eight new classrooms (two of which can be combined via foldable partition), two new meeting/small group rooms and a new staff office.

“This expansion will help us meet our immediate needs for additional space until the new high school is completed, and it positions us for future growth without sacrificing the quality of educational opportunities we provide our students,” said Monroe Schools Superintendent Robert Buskirk.

Credit: Nick Graham

Credit: Nick Graham

In recent years, school officials here have scrambled to accommodate classroom overcrowding through converting previously non-instructional spaces into learning areas as Monroe’s enrollment increased.

The district has seen its student population nearly double since 2004 while population growth in the city of Monroe has risen steadily.

Journal-News Writer Michael D. Clark contributed to this report.

STONYBROOK SUBDIVISION

The approved preliminary plat included the following:

• 219 single-family lots

• New public streets (proposed as Brookside Place, Brookfield Lane, Waterbend Court, Rippling Way, Clearview Court, and Stonybrook Way)

• 48.79 acres of open space with 6.43 acres developed as formal open space

• A 10 foot shared-use asphalt pathway fronting Kyles Station Road and Butler-Warren Road

• Right-of-Way dedication at the intersection of Kyles Station Road and Butler-Warren Road for a proposed future roundabout

MONROE CROSSINGS SUBDIVISION

The approved preliminary plat included the following:

• 183 single-family lots

• New public streets (proposed as Shyla Court, Braylon Drive, David Lee Court, Samuel Drive, Shawn Drive, Shane Court, and Bray Court)

• The extension of Blue Springs Drive, Gabrielle Drive, and Morgan Drive

• 17.93 acres of open space

• Two ponds that will be connected to an eight-foot-wide walking path

• A neighborhood park

SOURCE: City of Monroe