Bridging a generational gap with some city government officials, a North Little Rock tattoo shop earned final approval Monday night to open a business in the city's downtown.
The North Little Rock City Council approved, 7-1, a special use permit request by tattoo shop owner Scott Diffee to relocate The Parlor from 4603 E. Broadway to 112 Main St. The site is between the City Services Building and the North Little Rock Chamber of Commerce.
The city Planning Commission had unanimously granted approval July 9, but the special use permit also required approval from the City Council, whose members range in age from 55-71.
Both government bodies had rejected a tattoo parlor moving into downtown less than six years ago.
"A lot of young people are into tattoos. I'm not," said council member Linda Robinson, 65, who was speaking in support of the legislation that she sponsored to grant the permit. The location is in Robinson's Ward 2. "We've got people who are excited about a tattoo shop being here."
The Tattoo parlor's new leased space will be close to where vehicles come off the Main Street Bridge into North Little Rock's downtown Argenta area, or its "front door," as Mayor Joe Smith referred to the spot. The mayor also wanted assurance that the tattoo parlor wouldn't look tacky.
"My request is that you make it as tasteful as possible," Smith, 67, told Diffee before the council's vote was taken. "You'll be almost at our front door."
Council member Debi Ross, 65, agreed, clarifying that, "We want the classiest tattoo parlor there is."
Diffee, 47, who has had a tattoo shop for 25 years, 20 in other parts of North Little Rock, pledged that "it will not be tacky at all."
"There will be 25 years of customers who will come down to Argenta," Diffee told the council.
Diffee's tattoo parlor has been in North Little Rock's Rose City area for the past 10 years. Diffee said earlier this month that he wants to be a part of the Argenta Arts District that makes up much of downtown. The special use permit subjects the business to certain days and hours of operation.
Council member Charlie Hight, 71, said he wasn't convinced. His was the lone vote against the special use permit.
"I just don't think that business ought to be in downtown North Little Rock," Hight said.
Smith conceded that "things change," but added "I don't like scooters either," a reference to the electric Lime scooters that neighboring Little Rock allows, which are popular with millennials.
"It's a new day and a new generation," Robinson said. "A lot of people are into this being here, whether it's at the [city's] front door or the back door area."
"In Rose City, he kept it pretty nice and the community loved him and his business," Robinson said. "He was involved in the community, and the community supported him."
Council member Maurice Taylor, 55, also representing Ward 2, said Diffee had "run a respectable business" in Rose City.
"I think he'll do a good job," Taylor said, then addressed Diffee directly. "You run a very clean shop down in Rose City."
Council member Steve Baxter, 56, also spoke in support of the tattoo shop and how views about tattoo parlors aren't the same as they once were.
"It is 2019," Baxter said. "Things have changed. People are used to seeing tattoo parlors mixed in with other businesses. It's not a big deal anymore."
Metro on 07/24/2019