How would feel about a "Re-sale Jeweler"/ Pawn Shop in your town? (Arlington Heights: lease, house)

[chet everett]

La Grange residents worried about incoming pawnshop -- chicagotribune.com

Personally I think these type places are a bit scammy -- for every "good deal" they might ultimately give to a buyer on an authentic used luxury wrist watch there are going to be a whole lot of low grade baubles sold at a huge mark-up, and obviously the down-on-his-luck seller of the luxury wrist watch probably could have gotten a better price on his own.

I don't think a place that specializes in jewelry will really attract the petty thefts from garages and such, but neither is anyone going to mistake this kind of place for a Cartier or Tiffany store...

[crbcrbrgv]

I'd say it's pretty obvious somebody got paid. How else can you explain such a decision? How could the village president and person in charge of bringing in businesses not know this would happen? What's next, a massage parlor?

[cubssoxfan]

Depends on where. Like how far from my house (NIMBY) and what is already there. Arlington Heights is fairly large. If they put a pawn shop on Rand Rd. north of 53, it wouldn't bother me. If it was in almost any other place in town it would bother me. Why? The area I listed as OK for a pawn shop seems to be a little more gritty already and the pawn shop won't change the immediate demographics of the area.

[chet everett]

Originally Posted by cubssoxfan

Depends on where. Like how far from my house (NIMBY) and what is already there. Arlington Heights is fairly large. If they put a pawn shop on Rand Rd. north of 53, it wouldn't bother me. If it was in almost any other place in town it would bother me. Why? The area I listed as OK for a pawn shop seems to be a little more gritty already and the pawn shop won't change the immediate demographics of the area.

I sorta agree. This guy has a lease that is right across from the town's expensive new municpal building and snazzy parking deck -- if it were in a grittier part of town nobody would care...

[crbcrbrgv]

Kind of like a massage parlor.

[cubssoxfan]

Originally Posted by crbcrbrgv

Kind of like a massage parlor.

Ok, now keep in mind we are talking about a town with zoning and most of the nicer burbs here have zoning. So were going to be more freaked out than in the "anything goes" non-zoning Houston. Now I'm not picking on Houston, I know the zoning-non-zoning is a touchy subject. Just trying to provide some perspective.

[crbcrbrgv]

Originally Posted by cubssoxfan

Ok, now keep in mind we are talking about a town with zoning and most of the nicer burbs here have zoning. So were going to be more freaked out than in the "anything goes" non-zoning Houston. Now I'm not picking on Houston, I know the zoning-non-zoning is a touchy subject. Just trying to provide some perspective.

I'm pretty sure they have massage parlors in Arlington Heights or Mt. Prospect. You'd be surprised.

[chet everett]

Soapy-soapy or "sports medicine"?

[Irishtom29]

Is this a capitalist free enterprise system or not? What business is in the store is between the business owner and his landlord, nobody else, one business is as good as another.

[mendelman]

I have extensive professional experience with zoning administration, and from the information in the story it appears that there is probably nothing the Village can do to retroactively stop the approved pawnshop from opening. The shop was issued a business license, which approves the operation. Even if the Village amends the code to expressly prohibit pawn shops that will make the approved one simply a nonconforming use. But the will be setting themselves up to be on the losing end of lawsuit if they try to then retroactively rescind the business license.

As for Arlington Heights, the zoning allows pawn shops in most of the commercial dsitricts and there are several existing ones.