OCEANSIDE — Tattoo parlors — sometimes maligned
as a symbol of Oceanside’s seedier past — may soon make a comeback in the city
as a trendy attraction for tourists and locals who are out to make a fashion
statement.
City codes allow no more than three tattoo parlors in the city, but City Manager Peter Weiss said this week that he will recommend that the City Council remove the restriction.
Weiss said “a pile of people” have asked about opening new tattoo parlors. He said “at least once a week” someone calls.
“The fundamental issue is why we regulate the number of tattoo parlors if we don’t regulate the number of taco shops,” Weiss said. “Is it really the role of government to decide how many we should or shouldn’t have if there’s a demand for it? Has the public’s perception of what a tattoo parlor changed? Apparently so.”
Indeed it has, said Danielle Susalla Deery, director of exhibits at the Oceanside Museum of Art.
Fifteen or 20 years ago, tattoos were “definitely a lowbrow art,” Deery said, but that’s no longer true.
“Tattoos are being perceived more as an art form now to express a person’s identity,” Deery said. “So many people in the community use tattoos to express who they are and their interests.”
Since 2009, the museum has featured an annual exhibit of “body art” tattoos, and it’s been among the most popular shows.
“The attendance has skyrocketed every year,” Deery said.
This year, the museum even had a live demonstration of tattoo art.
“A lot of these tattoo parlors are art galleries, too,” Deery said. “A lot of fine art is created by tattoo artists. A lot of them work out their ideas and designs on paper first.”
When Oceanside’s reputation was that of a military town — and its downtown was crammed with strip clubs, bars and tattoo parlors — the city decided it wanted a cleaner image and the tattoo parlors had to go.
Inner World Gifts owner Frank Korn said he recalls the days when two tattoo parlors were right around the corner from his Coast Highway shop, within a block of City Hall. Then redevelopment cleared out the block, he said.
Inner World sells tattoo equipment but doesn’t do any actual tattooing. Korn said he’d convert part of his shop into a tattoo parlor if the city would let him.
“It’s a clean business,” Korn said. “To me, it’s like a work of art on the skin. They’re amazing.”
MainStreet Oceanside Director Rick Wright said he doesn’t have strong feelings one way or the other on the matter. His organization promotes downtown businesses and redevelopment.
“I think tattoo parlors were kind of lumped in with those businesses that people found objectionable downtown,” Wright said. “We would just have to take the temperature of the business community and see what they felt.”
Wright said, “There’s no question that attitudes about tattoos have changed over the years.”
As a former downtown gift-shop owner, Wright recalls people stopping in to ask him where they could get a tattoo.
“These young girls would come up from the Wyndham (Oceanside Pier Resort) — the first thing that came out of their mouths was ‘Where’s the tattoo parlor?’” Wright said. “A lot of visitors come to Southern California and that’s actually on their bucket list of things to do, get a tattoo.”
At About Face Tattoo on South Coast Highway, a tattoo artist who identified himself only as Blake said he’d prefer that the city keep its limit of three tattoo parlors.
“I don’t think there should be more tattoo parlors, like Pacific Beach. There’s one on every corner,” he said.
Weiss said he expects to bring the matter to the City Council for review in December or January.
City codes allow no more than three tattoo parlors in the city, but City Manager Peter Weiss said this week that he will recommend that the City Council remove the restriction.
Weiss said “a pile of people” have asked about opening new tattoo parlors. He said “at least once a week” someone calls.
“The fundamental issue is why we regulate the number of tattoo parlors if we don’t regulate the number of taco shops,” Weiss said. “Is it really the role of government to decide how many we should or shouldn’t have if there’s a demand for it? Has the public’s perception of what a tattoo parlor changed? Apparently so.”
Indeed it has, said Danielle Susalla Deery, director of exhibits at the Oceanside Museum of Art.
Fifteen or 20 years ago, tattoos were “definitely a lowbrow art,” Deery said, but that’s no longer true.
“Tattoos are being perceived more as an art form now to express a person’s identity,” Deery said. “So many people in the community use tattoos to express who they are and their interests.”
Since 2009, the museum has featured an annual exhibit of “body art” tattoos, and it’s been among the most popular shows.
“The attendance has skyrocketed every year,” Deery said.
This year, the museum even had a live demonstration of tattoo art.
“A lot of these tattoo parlors are art galleries, too,” Deery said. “A lot of fine art is created by tattoo artists. A lot of them work out their ideas and designs on paper first.”
When Oceanside’s reputation was that of a military town — and its downtown was crammed with strip clubs, bars and tattoo parlors — the city decided it wanted a cleaner image and the tattoo parlors had to go.
Inner World Gifts owner Frank Korn said he recalls the days when two tattoo parlors were right around the corner from his Coast Highway shop, within a block of City Hall. Then redevelopment cleared out the block, he said.
Inner World sells tattoo equipment but doesn’t do any actual tattooing. Korn said he’d convert part of his shop into a tattoo parlor if the city would let him.
“It’s a clean business,” Korn said. “To me, it’s like a work of art on the skin. They’re amazing.”
MainStreet Oceanside Director Rick Wright said he doesn’t have strong feelings one way or the other on the matter. His organization promotes downtown businesses and redevelopment.
“I think tattoo parlors were kind of lumped in with those businesses that people found objectionable downtown,” Wright said. “We would just have to take the temperature of the business community and see what they felt.”
Wright said, “There’s no question that attitudes about tattoos have changed over the years.”
As a former downtown gift-shop owner, Wright recalls people stopping in to ask him where they could get a tattoo.
“These young girls would come up from the Wyndham (Oceanside Pier Resort) — the first thing that came out of their mouths was ‘Where’s the tattoo parlor?’” Wright said. “A lot of visitors come to Southern California and that’s actually on their bucket list of things to do, get a tattoo.”
At About Face Tattoo on South Coast Highway, a tattoo artist who identified himself only as Blake said he’d prefer that the city keep its limit of three tattoo parlors.
“I don’t think there should be more tattoo parlors, like Pacific Beach. There’s one on every corner,” he said.
Weiss said he expects to bring the matter to the City Council for review in December or January.
