SAUGUS — A proposal to open a tattoo parlor in a vacant lot on Hamilton Street seemed like a no-brainer when it first came before the Board of Selectmen last month. But, when one selectman signaled he would not back the proposal, it began a debate about Saugus’ often hostile dealings with local businesses.
Antonio Moura De Jesus first came before the Board of Selectmen on Feb. 21 seeking an S-2 permit to operate Moura Tattoo Studio, Inc. at 28 Hamilton St., across from the town’s public safety building. Only four of the five members of the board attended that meeting. With De Jesus needing four votes to earn the permit, members opted to continue the hearing to the next meeting, when all five members would be present. Should De Jesus’ proposal be shot down, he would be unable to reapply for two years.
Then, the proposal hit a speed bump.
Last week, Michael Serino, the board member absent from the Feb. 21 meeting, indicated he would not vote for De Jesus’s proposal because he had concerns about the location being just blocks away from Saugus Center. Serino said he believed the business could have a negative influence on children in the area.
While Serino said he was not against tattoos, the only way he could support the proposal would be if De Jesus changed his proposed location to Route 1.
“I believe it could influence the kids in the neighborhoods [to] wanting to get one at an earlier age and regretting that they got it at the early age,” Serino said during the board’s March 21 meeting.
His comments sparked frustration from both board Chairman Anthony Cogliano and fellow Selectman Jeff Cicolini, both of whom were vocal supporters of the proposal.
Cicolini said he believed Serino was entitled to his opinion, but said he could not understand a scenario in which the tattoo parlor would spark kids who otherwise would not get tattoos to get them.
Cogliano concurred.
“I don’t think just a place being there entices a kid to go in there,” he said, adding that tattoo parlors have stringent procedures in place to check identification.
Much of the discussion of De Jesus’s proposal is colored by Saugus’ checkered past with similar applications.
In 2017, a different board (albeit one with current members Cicolini and Debra Panetta) voted 3-2 to deny a request from Sopath Phing to open a tattoo parlor at 314 Central St., just a third of a mile from the site of De Jesus’ proposed location. At the time, members, including Panetta, cited concerns about the location in Saugus Center.
Cicolini added that the town could further a reputation that it is anti-business by rejecting the proposal.
“Saugus needs more businesses, Saugus needs people to take a risk,” he said. “I really implore this board to support this application.”
Next to speak was member Corinne Riley, who signaled her support for the proposal. She noted that across the two public hearings held by the board, not a single resident came forward to speak against the proposal. And, she said, aside from a lone Town Meeting member expressing concern about the amount of parking at the site, board members had not heard any concerns from abutters.
“I don’t think it’s out of the realm of the town to have a business like this,” she said.
Ultimately, Serino said his opposition came down to a “difference of opinion” on the character of the community and what allowing a tattoo parlor to open outside of Route 1 in Saugus would mean.
Panetta — who voted against the 2017 proposal — said she intended to abstain from the vote, as she may have a conflict of interest that could sway her decision. But, after hearing Serino’s opposition, Panetta said she would contact the state ethics commission for a final decision on a conflict.
That said, she said she would not vote on the proposal without a decision.
After De Jesus, speaking through an interpreter, explained that he had been paying $5,000 a month to lease the building for months pending the board’s decision, Cogliano grew increasingly frustrated.
“Sometimes the actions of this board shock the hell out of me,” he said. “Why anyone would want to come here and do business is beyond me.”
“This is the most anti-business town I’ve ever seen,” Cogliano added. “You can’t get permits, everything takes forever. It’s absolutely sickening the way people get treated when they come here.”
Serino interjected to say that he objected, to which Cogliano replied, “I don’t care.”
“You’re in 1975,” Cogliano said.
The board initially opted to continue the hearing to its April 4 meeting before moving the hearing up a week to March 27. When asked if he thought the proposal would pass, Cogliano said, “I would hope so. There’s no valid reason for denial.”
In the ensuing days, residents have rallied around De Jesus’ proposal, with hundreds signing their names to petitions circulated by Town Meeting member Joe Vecchione that call on the board to approve the proposal. On Saturday morning alone, Vecchione gathered 200 signatures while at Anna Parker Playground. Petitions were also placed at a pair of local businesses, where Vecchione said they racked up another roughly 200 signatures.
The petition was his mother Diane’s idea, Vecchione said, and represented the most straightforward, traditional way to communicate the will of the residents — the board’s constituents — to the selectmen.
Vecchione said he was surprised the proposal engendered the controversy it did.
“In 2023 I didn’t know tattoo stigma was a thing,” he said. “I thought it was a no-brainer.”
As the chair of the Cliftondale Revitalization Committee and a former member of the Planning Board, Vecchione said throughout his political career he has tried to be an ardent supporter of small, local businesses in town.
Saugus needs businesses not just along Route 1 but throughout the town, whether it be in Cliftondale Square, Saugus Center, or anywhere else if it is to craft a sustainable path forward, he said.
“That was really what got me behind this,” Vecchione said. “I don’t think the reasons that the particular Selectmen had were really valid or backed by any sort of fact. I don’t think tattoo parlors in neighborhood, commercial districts will adversely affect kids to get a tattoo at a young age.”
Counter to Serino’s concern about the character of the neighborhood or the town, it is Vecchione’s belief that taking the vacant lot adjacent to Hamilton Plaza and turning it into a commercial business could enliven the area.
And clearly, it’s not just Vecchione, with hundreds signing off in support.
“The constituency has spoken,” he said, adding that opposition to the proposal represents a “fundamental misunderstanding” of what type of people get tattoos in 2023. “It just seemed like an issue that doesn’t need to be an issue and people are just puzzled by the fact that this may not pass because of a personal preference.”
