MONROE, LA--As state works to list building on National Register for Historic Places, city plans to tear it down; history to be lost!
While the state is trying to save a piece of Monroe history for generations to come the City of Monroe is on track to condemn it and tear it down next month.
The Miller-Roy building, now vacated and in disrepair is slated for condemnation by the City of Monroe at it’s October council meeting. The building has been in disrepair and vacant since the 1990’s.
While the city is preparing to tear down the historic Miller Roy building the state of Louisiana’s Division of Historic Preservation is trying to get the building placed on the national register of Historic Places.
Jessica Golebiowski and a team of preservationist from the state department were in Monroe in August to interview local residents who can attest to the Historic Significance of the building.
The building, constructed in 1929 by Dr. J.C. Roy and Dr. Miller was the center piece of a business development plan in the Negro community that resulted in a strip of DeSiard Street businesses from 5th Street (Five Points) to 14th Street.
The Miller Roy building was the hub of all operations and housed a tailoring school, barber and beauty shops, insurance companies, doctor’s offices and other businesses. It’s main attraction was the Savoy Ballroom on the third floor. Whenit was constructed it was hailed as a symbol of Negro intelligence, business acumen, and achievement in a front page article in the Monroe-News Star.
The greats of African-American History such as Louis Armstrong, Billye Holliday, and Cab Calloway all performed to Northeast Louisiana audiences in the Savoy Ballroom.
In 1935 a Negro newspaper, the Monroe Broadcast was published out of the Miller-Roy building. The building served as the central office of the 1960’s civil rights movement, hosting offices of C.O.R.E. as it integrated downtown businesses, Monroe City Schools and ULM.
State officials were unaware that the city is trying to tear down the facility. In November of 2010 the state will decide whether to recommend the structure for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places.
The city began its actions to demolish the historic structure in 2007. City records show that notices were sent to members of the local historic preservation board in 2007 notifying the board that a possible historic site is slated for condemnation.
The board could have taken action that would have stopped the process at that time, however, there was no response. Letters were sent to: Cedric Hemphill, James Potts, Carrie McKinney, Micheal Echols, Bill Warwick, Timothy Michael, and Douglas Breckenridge, all members of the board at the time.
In March of this year the city council unanimously voted to demolish the structure and council President Red Stevens signed the order.
A group of black citizens has been trying to acquire the building from its owner Willie Johnson to no avail. They hope to restore the building, but no succession has been run on the property and there are several heirs in various states. The city’s public works department is slated to demolish the building but no date has been set.
The Miller-Roy building is the last standing historic structure connecting Monroe’s African American community with its past.
Ironically, Monroe’s city government is predominately African-American.
Posted By: Siebra Muhammad
Friday, September 24th 2010 at 10:27AM
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