The Decatur City Council approved two resolutions to vacate portions of Grove Street Northwest and Sycamore Street Northwest, actions that would transfer portions of city right-of-way to private interests while reserving specific easements, city planners and council members said during the meeting.

What was proposed: Tommy Woods of the planning department told the council the Grove Street request sought vacating 0.6 acres of Grove Street located between Market Street and Warner Street; the city would reserve a portion for public drainage, utilities and telecommunications easement. Woods said the application had come before the planning commission in November 2024 and that the applicants had long been using the fenced area.

Public record and council debate
A council member questioned the practice of vacating city property that private parties had fenced and used, asking rhetorically, “If a person in our city just fences off some property, then we should just is that what we’re gonna do from this point on?” That member said they would not support the Grove Street vacation that evening.

Council members and staff noted the city would reserve portions of the vacated areas for public ingress, egress, and utility use in at least one of the vacates; staff said the city would not vacate the entire corridor in the Sycamore request and would retain a 0.7-acre public ingress-and-egress reservation.

Council action
The council approved Resolution 25-1-43 (Grove Street vacation) by a 4-1 vote. Resolution 25-1-44 (Sycamore Street vacation) was approved by the same margin. One council member voted no on each measure and stated opposition on record.

Why it matters
Vacating public right-of-way transfers control or ownership to private parties and can affect access, utilities and long-term public planning. Council members asked whether long-standing informal private use of city land should govern formal transfers and said they would consider, in future cases, whether sale rather than an outright vacation would be appropriate.

Follow-up
Staff indicated the city will retain specified easements as part of the vacations. The council did not set further conditions or a repurchase process during the meeting.