The development known as Monarch Villas, built at the corner of Popps Ferry Road and Motsie Road, stands today as a direct contradiction to the very land use regulations designed to protect the integrity, livability, and sustainability of our city. Though presented as a “creative” residential project, the truth is far less flattering: Monarch Villas was approved under a Planned Development – Commercial (PD-C) zoning designation—one that, while flexible in certain design elements, still contains clear and non-negotiable requirements. It is, in many ways, an even more blatantly unlawful counterpart to the currently proposed Beauvoir Villas—another Elliott Homes project that seeks to stretch, bend, and bypass zoning standards. This pattern of disregard for established regulations has gone unchecked for too long. Monarch Villas should never have been approved, and Beauvoir Villas should not be approved either.

There are three critical areas of noncompliance for Monarch Villas:

1. The Property Does Not Meet Size Requirements: The ordinance is explicit: a minimum of five acres (equivalent to 217,800 square feet) is required for any property to qualify for a Planned Development – Commercial (PD-C) zoning district. Monarch Villas occupies just 65,716 square feet—less than one-third of the minimum required area. This property does not qualify for PD-C zoning, and its approval defies one of the basic rules meant to uphold responsible development and zoning integrity: meet or exceed the minimums. See Requirement Here. Part 2 of this article, titled "Monarch Villas: the Illegal Variance that Started It All" dives deeper into this specific topic.
2. Single-Family Detached Homes Are Prohibited in PD-C Districts: While Planned Development – Commercial (PD-C) zoning in Biloxi does allow for certain residential uses—such as townhouses, apartments, and condominiums—detached single-family homes are explicitly prohibited. Though they are not permitted outright—nor even as a conditional use—Monarch Villas is comprised entirely of 25 detached, single-family dwellings. There are no townhomes, no mixed-use buildings, and no commercial activity—just a purely residential subdivision made up entirely of the very type of housing this zoning forbids. See Prohibition Here
3. The Open Space Requirement Was Ignored—and the Math Doesn’t Lie: Because the Monarch Villas property is base-zoned Regional Business (RB), it is subject to the open space set-aside requirements that apply within that district. Those requirements mandate that 20% of the total property must be preserved as qualifying open space. With a total site size of 65,716 square feet, that means Monarch Villas is required to set aside at least 13,143 square feet of open space. According to the property’s plat book, only 8,651 square feet of open space exists on the property—and that includes all areas outside the parking lot and sidewalks, regardless of whether they truly qualify. Even under the most generous assumptions, the project falls short by over 4,400 square feet—and if any of that space includes disqualified areas, the deficit only grows. See Requirement Here

The Public Deserves Better

The approval of Monarch Villas set a dangerous precedent by disregarding the minimum size requirement for the Planned Development, violating clear prohibitions against single-family detached homes in that district, and failing—by thousands of square feet—to meet the open space set-aside requirements of its base zoning. Each of these issues on its own would be cause for denial, but together they represent a complete breakdown in enforcement, oversight, and accountability.

Zoning laws are not suggestions; they are commitments to the public, to neighborhoods, and to the future of Biloxi. When those commitments are broken for the benefit of a single developer, the credibility of the entire system is undermined. Monarch Villas should never have been approved, and as the City now considers the proposed Beauvoir Villas—another Elliott Homes project with similar legal and planning deficiencies—it must decide whether to double down on error or begin restoring integrity to the process.

A Troubling Sign: The Market Has Already Responded

Even as Elliott Homes continues to market the Monarch Villas homes for sale, the project has virtually disappeared from public view. The neighborhood has been scrubbed from Elliott Homes’ official website and is absent from major real estate platforms like Zillow. According to Harrison County property records, only 3 of the 25 homes have sold in the eight months since the project was approved—a strikingly low figure for new construction. Despite this, Elliott Homes representatives have confirmed that the homes are still for sale at $194,000 each. For context, the average home listing in Biloxi, according to Rocket Homes, is currently $148 per square foot—placing Monarch Villas significantly above others at $194 per square foot.

Many Monarch Villas units remain vacant with little indication of strong market demand, and yet the City is now being asked to approve Beauvoir Villas, a project proposing 213 similar homes. If the public is not buying the first 25, why would we approve the construction of over 200 more—especially when it violates ordinances? The lack of sales should not only raise economic red flags—it should reinforce what occurs when City’s fail to follow their ordinances.

Ready to read part 2 of this series? Monarch Villas: the Illegal Variance that Started It All