Alderwoman Pursues Zoning Changes
BOBBY ARDOIN
St. Landry Now.com Editor
Opelousas alderwoman Chasity Davis-Warren is continuing her assault on citywide zoning restrictions which she says inhibit the ability of businesses and homeless shelters to locate inside areas now designated strictly for residential use.
The issue is scheduled to be discussed at length on May 26 during a General Services Committee meeting at 5 pm, following a presentation by Warren during a Tuesday night Board of Aldermen meeting.
In 2024 the Board voted 3-2 to deny a request by Davis-Warren to open a one-stop automotive business at 671 Emmett Street located in the northeastern section of Opelousas.
After that vote nearly two years ago, Davis-Warren emotionally addressed the other five members of the Board and promised she wanted to revisit the city zoning ordinances.
Davis-Warren owns several Opelousas businesses that include a daycare facility and grocery that sells alcohol, in addition to operating a non-profit women’s shelter.
Homeless shelters, Davis-Warren said, have difficulty receiving Board approval, since the shelters normally attempt to locate in residential areas.
“(The shelters) represent a real need in the community,” Davis-Warren said. Part of her initiative for women’s homelessness, also provides furnished homes and jobs as part of her shelter initiative, which she added is “not about politics, but about real life.”
During her address to the Board, Davis-Warren added that potential entrepreneurs can’t create businesses due to the current zoning ordinances.
Davis-Warren said she wants to examine changing some residentially-zoned areas to mixed-use areas that would be more open to accommodating businesses that would operate alongside some residences.
Her desire to continue seeking a city without inhibited residential zoning will continue despite opposition, Davis-Warren said.
“I’m not stopping. This city will not stop businesses from opening,” Davis-Warren said.
Mayor Julius Alsandor cautioned about tampering with current municipal zoning regulations which were set in place in 2007.
“You will change the livelihood of those around you while you create the opportunity for any type of business to locate there.
“We need to have ordinances that are fair to everyone. There are already ordinances that have been set up by our predecessors. You will affect all the neighborhoods inside the city,” Alsandor said.
