AgdaPkt 2003-02-10 - Laserfiche WebLink

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/a. "*z9 Mayor Richard S. Claire Vice Mayor Jeff Ira Redwood City Council Members February 3, 2003 Page 2 Article 26, section 26.1 states the purpose of the Central Business Retail District ( "CBR ") is to "strengthen the retail vitality and economic base of the downtown area, and to concentrate retail uses downtown which will serve the needs of Redwood City residents, businesses and workers". The persons, who would purchase these products, are also residents, businesses and/or workers in Redwood City. There are approximately 800 licensed cosmetologists in Redwood City. There is little question that these persons will be served by this business. It is expected that over a year's time approximately 20,000 visits will be made to the Redwood City CosmoProfg store by its customers, thus creating foot traffic along Broadway, invigorating the businesses near by, and contributing to the tax base of Redwood City. CosmoProf6 certainly qualifies as a business, which "strengthen[s) the retail vitality and economic base of the downtown area'. It will, in fact, serve the needs of many of persons living and working in Redwood City. Article 26, section 26.2 - Permitted Uses states that "The following retail uses are permitted: G. Beauty Parlors. " There are few, if any, beauty parlors or beauty salons that do not sell professional beauty products to their customers, and there are beauty salons in the CBR doing exactly that. Therefore, the sale of professional beauty products in the CBR is occurring and is apparently a permitted use. (2) The Zoning Administrator found that the proposed CosmoProft store did not "allow for members of the population at large to patronize" its establishment. Innovations could find no such requirement in the Code or in any public documents. The only applicable limitations are found Section 2.17 of the Code defines "Business, Retail' as "Any establishment for the sale directly to the consumer, of any article, substance, or commodity...." There appears to be no limitation requiring businesses located in the CBR to do business with the "population at large ". The customers of CosmoProfs are the end consumers just as much as a carpenter, who uses nails in his profession is a customer of a store wherein he purchases the nails. CosmoProf6 collects sales tax on the vast majority of the products sold to its customers, who use these products in their business as the end users of these products. The issue is whether or not the proposed CosmoProf D store falls under the broad definition of "Business, Retail" as set forth in the Code. CosmoProfto's operations certainly appear to fall under the plain meaning of this definition as stated in the Code, and fairness would dictate that the Code not be reinterpreted after the fact to reach another result.