| Tattoo regulator hears zoning gripes AIKEN - The state agency that will police South Carolina tattoo parlors finalized its regulations Thursday, but it did not include rules about where such businesses can locate. The General Assembly passed legislation last year to allow tattoo parlors, but a loophole in the law allows local governments, including Aiken County, to prevent them from opening. The law requires an owner to provide a copy of zoning regulations that show where a parlor can open. Aiken County officials simply decided not to amend the zoning law, leaving parlors nowhere to go. About 30 people, mostly tattoo artists, attended the state Board of Health and Environmental Control hearing in Columbia, said Thom Berry, a spokesman for the department. Several of them voiced concerns about being blocked by local governments. "We certainly sympathize, and we understand the frustration, but those are issues that we have no authority over," Mr. Berry said. Local governments were never supposed to have the power to block parlors, said state Sen. Bill Mescher, R-Berkeley, who wrote the tattoo legislation. The senator asked state Attorney General Henry McMaster for an opinion more than a month ago, but one hasn't been issued. "If the attorney general comes back and says they (local government) can block parlors, I intend to put in language that will correct that oversight," Mr. Mescher said. The Aiken County Council voted unanimously last year not to amend its zoning ordinance, and some members say they're comfortable with the decision. "I don't see any reason to change it until I'm given a legal opinion to the contrary," Councilman Chuck Smith said. The city of Aiken has tabled the issue for now, but the city council plans to eventually make way for tattoo parlors. Councilwomen Lessie Price and Beverly Clyburn have expressed concerns about parlors locating near neighborhoods. "They should be located in places that are highly visible, preferably on primary roads," Mrs. Price said. The General Assembly still must approve the health and safety guidelines, and tattoo parlors won't open any earlier than this summer.
Reach Josh Gelinas at (803) 648-1395, ext. 113, or josh.gelinas@augustachronicle.com.
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