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player ready...The Norridge Zoning Board of Appeals on May 1 recommended against a request from a group of businessmen looking to open a tattoo parlor in a storefront on the 7600 block of Montrose Avenue.
The vote split the zoning board, with three members voting to deny the request and two voting in favor of the proposal by Bloodline Tattoo Inc. The vote is a recommendation, and the Norridge Village Board would make the ultimate decision about whether to allow the special-use request.
The space, in a Montrose Avenue plaza, is near a tutoring center and dentist office. A handful of residents gathered at Village Hall on May 1 in opposition to the proposal.
Roman Siemionka, a Chicago tattoo artist and one of Bloodline’s owners, said the business would also provide laser tattoo removal and permanent makeup, such as eyebrows.
“My passion and love was always the arts, so I became an artist. … I’ve been pretty successful with that,” Siemionka said at the hearing. “…But I feel like, you know, it’s my time to move on, provide for my family and … establish my own business.”
Siemionka and his attorney, Paul Kolpak, were careful to emphasize Bloodline would follow every regulation, such as hours of operation and ensuring safe needle disposal, and would be respectful of the surrounding neighbors.
“We don’t want to interrupt the community around [the site],” Siemionka said.
Those who opposed the request pointed out that there are several schools and churches nearby, as well as an ice cream shop, popular with neighborhood kids. Traffic safety concerns and the parlor’s potential negative influence on passersby were among the top concerns.
Zoning board members who voted against the request cited the impact on other nearby businesses.
“Their business could drop off, because families come in maybe and say, ‘We don’t want our kids here; we’re gonna go somewhere else to get ice cream,’ ” zoning board member Andrew Ronstadt said. “That could be the adverse effect …”
Board member Christopher Miroslaw and Ronstadt peppered Siemionka with questions about checking IDs of potential customers, hours of operation and possible signage in the windows of the proposed parlor. Miroslaw also asked about possible measures, such as a Breathalyzer device, to ensure no one is inside the parlor while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Board member Wayne Jarosz voted to recommend granting the petition.
“Times are changing; my kids have tattoos. … It is a different kind of world today,” Jarosz said. “It’s not just bikers and gangbangers coming in to get tattoos anymore.”
Board member Richard Thompson said he was concerned about hours of operation and parking, given that the property is in a primarily residential area. But he did give his support, saying the petition, for a B-3 general business special use, was within the village code.
“Tattoos are a common thing today …,” Thompson said. “… Is there any real reason not to allow it? So, right now, I can’t seem to find it.”
Thomas Vogel is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.