NEDERLAND — The Nederland City Council will decide the short-term fate of the building’s occupancy at 2826 Avenue H on Monday. At their last meeting, councilmembers voted unanimously to allow tattoo parlors in C-2 zoning with special-use permits.

Now, Cole Beck will find out if councilmembers will grant him and his father-in-law Brian Little a special-use permit and allow him to open his own tattoo parlor at the building his that Little owns. Three people, who live within 200 feet of the building, spoke in favor of the business during a public forum on the subject at the March 11 meeting. No one spoke against it.

“It’s basically just an action item,” City Manager Chris Duque said. “The Planning and Zoning Commission had their meeting on the request Tuesday. The recommendation was unanimous to approve. They’ll just come on Monday and probably approve the steps.”

The issue has seen some drama. During a City Council meeting in late February, Ward 2 Councilmember Billy Neal voted against the council holding a public forum to hear residents, or the would-be tattoo parlor owners’ case, saying he could not vote for anything having to do with tattoos. However, Neal experienced an apparent change of heart after hearing none of those who attended opposing the parlor.

The City Council waited to see how Planning and Zoning ruled before making a decision.

In other matters, councilmembers will recognize retiring Police Sgt. Nicky Matt for for his 37 years of service to the city. Matt was named Mr. Nederland for the Nederland Heritage Festival in 2018.

The council will also authorize submittal of a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grant application to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The grant application will be for four positions on the Nederland Fire Department, Duque said.

“The grant has been around for over a decade,” he said. “It’s a federal program where they provide financial assistance to help either create new firefighter positions or maintain current ones.”

Duque said NFD has applied for the three-year grant in previous years.

If granted, the federal money would cover 75 percent of the benefits and wages for the first two years and then 30 percent in the final year.

The meeting is scheduled for 4 p.m. Monday at City Hall.