Legendary Tattoo Company owner Jeremy Higdon has had plans to move his business, currently located on south Frederica, to downtown Owensboro for months. He found a location in the McAtee building between Byron & Barclay and The Sturdy Hinge and signed a lease over six weeks ago.
At the time, Higdon checked with the property manager of the new space and ensured that the new location was zoned as B2 for general business. Once receiving the confirmation, Higdon signed the lease, and was ready to move forward with renovations to turn the space into a tattoo parlor.
But a letter from Owensboro Metropolitan Planning Commission (OMPC) halted Higdon’s plans. The letter cited Article 21 as grounds to prohibit Higdon’s business from relocating downtown. Article 21 regulates the types of businesses permitted within the B2 zone of the downtown overlay districts — and tattoo parlors are not on that list.
Higdon, who was under contract for two leases, began researching the downtown overlay and its restrictions. He found that early drafts of Article 21 did not permit hair, nail or tanning salons, barber shops or tattoo parlors. Subsequent drafts only outlined businesses that were permitted, which included hair and tanning salons as well as barber shops, but nail salons and tattoo parlors were not mentioned.
Higdon, who has been tattooing for 17 years, took his situation to all that would listen including Brian Howard, executive director of OMPC, City Manager Nate Pagan and city commissioners.
“In the beginning it was really confusing because no one had really dealt with this,” Higdon said. “We didn’t know the proper avenue of approach.”
Looking for answers, Higdon even took his situation to the Owensboro Historic Preservation Board. While this board cannot determine if businesses can locate downtown, it does review design changes to downtown historical buildings, which is also regulated by Article 21.
Higdon was able to present his situation, but no formal action could be taken. Howard, who attends the historic preservation board meetings, stated, at that time, the Owensboro City Commission would need to request OMPC to make a text amendment to Article 21.
Higdon continued to research the regulation and found a clause that he used to build a case for Legendary Tattoo Company to relocate. According to Howard, Higdon pointed out that Article 21 states that “substantially similar” businesses to those outlined in Article 21 could be permitted.
“Beauty salons do permanent makeup, which is tattooed eyeliner and lip liner,” Higdon said. “This is the same process and has the same regulations as what I do.”
Howard consulted the City with this new justification, which concluded in a closed session after its Dec. 4 public meeting that this was satisfactory.
“I got the call the next morning,” Higdon said. “That was all I needed to hear.”
According to Howard, the wording of the clause Higdon presented was enough to permit Legendary Tattoo Company to relocate to the McAtee building without amending Article 21.
“We worked well together to come to a solution,” Howard said.
With the approval granted earlier this week, Higdon plans to move forward with remodeling after obtaining permits from OMPC. His future shop is actually located off a lobby, which is accessed off of Daviess Street. Higdon said it is also his goal to ask the city for a permit to open up a front door directly to his shop, which will require additional permission from the historic preservation board, who will determine if this is allowed under Article 21.
