PLACENTIA : Acupressure, Tattoo, Massage Centers OKd

Massage, tattoo and acupressure businesses will be permitted to open in Placentia’s town center areas, the City Council decided Tuesday.

On a 3-2 vote, the council approved an ordinance that will allow those businesses to operate in the city’s most visible business corridor. The council also approved a separate ordinance that requires such businesses to receive a conditional use permit and submit to police and health department scrutiny.

Council members Michael L. Maertzweiler and Maria Moreno opposed the ordinance, saying tattoo parlors and massage and acupressure establishments don’t belong in the Town Center.

“I really believe (adopting the ordinance) is opening a Pandora’s box,” Moreno said. “Just go down Harbor Boulevard in Garden Grove or Stanton,” she said, referring to areas with adult-oriented businesses.

The ordinance came about in reaction to the opening of a tattoo parlor in a shopping center on Placentia Avenue. At the time, the city did not have any ordinances or regulations covering tattoo parlors, so the county health department refused to inspect the business.

With passage of the ordinance, health officials will now inspect any tattoo parlor at the city’s request.

Massage and acupressure therapists also will be regulated in an attempt to screen out establishments that are covers for prostitution rings, city officials said. Each employee must be fingerprinted and undergo a background check by police.