MILFORD The town cant rewrite the rules to prevent a tattoo parlor from opening on the Oval, officials told residents during a standing-room-only meeting of the selectmen Monday night.
The owner of a gift shop was there to ask selectmen to prevent LA East Tattoos and Body Piercing from opening next door, in the PC Carr Realty building.
I know its important to fill empty storefronts, but at what cost? asked June Costa, saying the new business would undermine the good work we started 20 years ago.
She read from the towns 2007 Master Plan update that said the town must be vigilant in protecting its rural character and sense of place and must steer against a negative direction and maintain a unified image.
But selectmen and other officials said the tattoo parlor has a right to be there and meets all town requirements.
We consider it in the same category as beauty parlors, said Bill Parker, community development director. They have met all code and health requirements.
An unsigned ad in last weeks edition of The Cabinet asked people to join us at the Nov. 24 selectmens meeting . . . to help stop tattoos on the Oval and to go to the town Web site and express your feelings.
Resident Janice Bartolomucci said she was outraged at the idea of a tattoo parlor on the Oval, but those who supported the business were more vocal than those opposed.
One man, who called himself, an ordinary Joe with six kids who moved here because of the good schools, said he did not like references to the type of people a tattoo parlor would attract.
I have two tattoos. My brother had tattoos in the service. Why does he not have the right to open? he said.
Michelle Knowles, a 34-year resident with two children, said she supports the tattoo parlor and said its not fair to target one business.
Carolyn Crooker, who owns the Hair Cottage beauty salon, agreed.
This is his dream and its not up to us to crush it, whether we like it or not, she said.
Costa showed photos of the Sweet Spot, the sports card shop the tattoo parlor is replacing, and nacken tattoos said the space is dirty.
If Precision Body Art in Nashua was moving in, I wouldnt be opposed, she said, referring to a business in Nashua.
But Selectman Jim Finan called her opposition intensely unfair.
LA East owner Wilfred Lamontagne has every right to open a business. I have four children and have gotten a lot of phone calls and e-mails, and I have to try to explain to them why someone would not want a tattoo parlor, said Finan.
What makes us unique is our diversity, he said. This is not Hollis or Amherst. Its a working-class community with a lot of diversity.
He has done nothing wrong and we are making judgments because someone looked in a window? he said, referring to a letter from Costa in last weeks Cabinet in which she implied that the storefront space is dirty.
Selectman Kathy Bauer said she agreed completely with Finan, and asiatische tattoos Chairman Gary Daniels said the town would be open to a lawsuit if it violated the landlords right to rent to anyone with a legal business.
Its not our job to set rules about what is allowed and not allowed, said Selectman Jim Dannis. The board has no role in the process.
Lamontagne, who was not at the meeting, has said he closed his shop in Laconia and salamander tattoo decided to move south because of the declining economy in the Lakes Region. He plans to open the Milford shop in December.
Bill McKinney, Milfords commercial building code enforcement officer, said his research showed that LA East had no violations in Laconia during the 30 years it was there, and that the owner is a licensed practitioner and there were no complaints to the state Health and Human Services department.
He also noted that Manchester once had an ordinance forbidding body art that was repealed as an unfair restriction.
Near the end of the nearly 45-minute discussion Justin Atwood, the videographer who was recording the meeting for cable TV, spoke up to say he thought tattooing is a great art form and would be great to have on the Oval.
Although a tattoo parlor may be undesirable to some people, said town administrator Guy Scaife, its really important for the citizenry to understand that this board cannot discriminate. It would be unlawful to retroactively stop a process thats already in motion, he said.
Costa did not seem convinced.
Where theres a will, theres a way,obviously theres not a will, she said before leaving the meeting.
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