(Sept. 28, 2017) The Berlin Town Council unanimously approved a 120-day moratorium on tattoo or microblading businesses on Monday night, while also establishing a committee, to be led by Town Administrator Laura Allen, to draft town code addressing the practices.
Acclaimed tattoo artist and Berlin resident Matthew Amey will likely be a part of the committee.
Amey and a large group of tattoo artists and enthusiasts attended the Town Council meeting to object to a prosed emergency ordinance that would have allowed tattooing and microblading, a form of permanent makeup similar to tattooing, only under the supervision of a physician or an osteopath.
Allen said Planning Director Dave Engelhart was recently approached by someone who wanted to open a microblading business in Berlin.
“The question was, what are the town’s regulations [and] how do they apply to that particular activity, and there were none … the code was silent,” Allen said.
She said Worcester County code addressed the practice, but that would not have applied to Berlin.
“The town attorney used the Worcester County ordinance as the basis … to ensure that there’s something on the town books that addresses the health and safety issues associated with these types of activities,” Allen said. “The ordinance sets the town standards to be the same as the county standards.”
Amey and others objected, saying the proposed ordinance went too far.
“I have lived in Worcester County for the better part of 25 years. I have been forced to run my tattoo business in a different state because of those [county] ordinances,” Amey said.
He offered to help draft a “more contemporary” set of standards. Amey said he assisted officials in Sussex County in developing code that ensured public safety, but did not create an unnecessary “barrier of entry for people wanting to start this type of business.”
“I have been a professional artist for 26 years. I have international acclaim for the work that I do. I would be happy to [help] form a concise and precise ordinance that would not only hold up for public scrutiny, but also allow businesses to thrive,” he said.
“There are at least half a dozen internationally recognized tattoo artists that live in Worcester County and we are forced to leave the county to apply our trade,” Amey continued. “Berlin has an opportunity to create this little area that would basically allow this industry to thrive in a region that has, effectively, governed us out.”
Amey also read into record a letter penned by his wife, Lisa Tossey, sent to the councilmembers.
“Are regulations necessary to ensure tattoo studios use proper sterilization and application techniques? Absolutely. And they are in place and successfully implemented in cities and counties throughout the country, including Sussex County right next door. I know this because that is where my husband, Matthew Amey, owns two successful studios where he works,” Tossey stated in the letter.
“Due to Worcester County’s regulations, which require a medical practitioner to be present during tattooing, he has never been able to contribute to the local economy here in Maryland in his 26-year career. Because of these prohibitive restrictions, he was forced to open his first tattoo studio just outside Ocean City, in West Fenwick Island, over 20 years ago – a shop he still runs today, along with a second shop in Lewes, Delaware. These shops have excellent reputations locally, both for the quality of the work done and their cleanliness. In fact, Delaware health officials used his original shop, Independent Tattoo, as a model when they implemented their health guidelines for tattooing in 2002.”
She said his clients, 55 percent of which come from Worcester County, regularly travel to Delaware to visit the studios.
The couple recently opened the Wooden Octopus gallery on Jefferson Street in Berlin together. Amey said tattooing would not be a part of that business, which sells fine art and jewelry, but he and his wife argued for the right to run a business in Berlin.
“This is a great opportunity to start a conversation within our community to further understand this art form, the process behind it, and develop common-sense regulation that countless other municipalities have nationwide,” Tossey stated. “You have some excellent local resources who are more than willing to be a part of that discussion.”
Mayor Gee Williams complimented Amey for his professionalism and said no one questioned his experience or reputation.
“I wish everyone was good. I wish everyone was honorable and was out for the benefit of the public,” he said. “We are ultimately responsible for public safety.”
Williams said he worried a “ne’er-do-well” would read about the lack of standards and try to take advantage of the town.
“We don’t have anything to keep them from doing, basically, exactly the opposite of what your objective is,” he said.
“I have been considered a ne’er-do-well in the past because of my chosen profession, and I have had to deal with that my entire adult career,” Amey said. “I don’t think there is as many ne’er-do-wells who are professional tattoo artists as you may think. I understand the town’s concern, and that’s why I’m here – to try to share my professional experience with the town to help integrate a policy that would be beneficial for both the public health and a thriving industry.”
Williams said, and Town Attorney David Gaskill confirmed, the emergency ordinance could be adopted to protect the town and later repealed in favor of more lenient standards. Amey, however, worried that would simply “push the can down the road.”
Many of those in attendance also spoke against the proposed ordinance, and defended tattooing as an art form and a form of self-expression.
James Coltellino said some people get tattoos to cover up scars caused by cancer and other illnesses and injuries. He said some of his tattoos cover up severe burns on 29 percent of his body.
“A lot of my scars have been covered up with tattoos, by Matthew Amey,” Coltellino said. “I think you need to look at things like that – it’s just not the hoodlums that are getting tattoos and causing problems.”
Jeremy Blackford, a Berlin resident and the general manager of Burley Inn Tavern, argued too-strict codes would only lead to dangerous, backroom practices.
“It’s happening … in hotel rooms [in Ocean City] in unsafe places. The nightmare that you’re talking about is already happening,” he said.
Blackford said asking a doctor to be present during tattooing was like requiring “a fire marshal to stand in my kitchen while the chef is cooking.”
Councilman Dean Burrell said the point was not to “discuss or give pro and con opinions about the virtue of tattooing.”
“My son’s tattooed. My wife is tattooed. My daughter is heavily tattooed, and so is my daughter-in-law. If I wasn’t chicken, I would probably be tattooed,” Burrell said. “But there are fly-by-nights in any profession. We’re here trying to protect the health and safety of the public – that’s our only intent.”
Williams inquired about setting a temporary moratorium on tattoo and microblading businesses, with the intent to develop reasonable town standards. Councilman Zack Tyndall proposed a motion to pass a 90-day moratorium and establish a committee to develop guidelines.
Burrell proposed an amendment that set a 120-day moratorium and asked Allen to lead the committee. The amendment passed unanimously.
Burrell added to Amey, “Rest assured, I would expect that Mrs. Allen will be contacting you to participate in this endeavor.”
“I would be happy to,” Amey said.
Many in attendance applauded at the outcome.
Reached for comment after the meeting, Tossey said she was pleased by what occurred.
“I’m optimistic that the council is willing to move forward with a committee that will take a realistic look at regulations that work,” she said. “It’s been so frustrating to see Matthew’s profession grouped with nuisances, litter, and junk cars in Worcester County’s municipal code. It was apparent this evening that Berlin’s council members are more progressive in their thinking and open to discussion to create regulations that are both realistic for artists to comply with and serve to protect their own health along with that of their clients.”
Acclaimed tattoo artist and Berlin resident Matthew Amey will likely be a part of the committee.
Amey and a large group of tattoo artists and enthusiasts attended the Town Council meeting to object to a prosed emergency ordinance that would have allowed tattooing and microblading, a form of permanent makeup similar to tattooing, only under the supervision of a physician or an osteopath.
Allen said Planning Director Dave Engelhart was recently approached by someone who wanted to open a microblading business in Berlin.
“The question was, what are the town’s regulations [and] how do they apply to that particular activity, and there were none … the code was silent,” Allen said.
She said Worcester County code addressed the practice, but that would not have applied to Berlin.
“The town attorney used the Worcester County ordinance as the basis … to ensure that there’s something on the town books that addresses the health and safety issues associated with these types of activities,” Allen said. “The ordinance sets the town standards to be the same as the county standards.”
Amey and others objected, saying the proposed ordinance went too far.
“I have lived in Worcester County for the better part of 25 years. I have been forced to run my tattoo business in a different state because of those [county] ordinances,” Amey said.
He offered to help draft a “more contemporary” set of standards. Amey said he assisted officials in Sussex County in developing code that ensured public safety, but did not create an unnecessary “barrier of entry for people wanting to start this type of business.”
“I have been a professional artist for 26 years. I have international acclaim for the work that I do. I would be happy to [help] form a concise and precise ordinance that would not only hold up for public scrutiny, but also allow businesses to thrive,” he said.
“There are at least half a dozen internationally recognized tattoo artists that live in Worcester County and we are forced to leave the county to apply our trade,” Amey continued. “Berlin has an opportunity to create this little area that would basically allow this industry to thrive in a region that has, effectively, governed us out.”
Amey also read into record a letter penned by his wife, Lisa Tossey, sent to the councilmembers.
“Are regulations necessary to ensure tattoo studios use proper sterilization and application techniques? Absolutely. And they are in place and successfully implemented in cities and counties throughout the country, including Sussex County right next door. I know this because that is where my husband, Matthew Amey, owns two successful studios where he works,” Tossey stated in the letter.
“Due to Worcester County’s regulations, which require a medical practitioner to be present during tattooing, he has never been able to contribute to the local economy here in Maryland in his 26-year career. Because of these prohibitive restrictions, he was forced to open his first tattoo studio just outside Ocean City, in West Fenwick Island, over 20 years ago – a shop he still runs today, along with a second shop in Lewes, Delaware. These shops have excellent reputations locally, both for the quality of the work done and their cleanliness. In fact, Delaware health officials used his original shop, Independent Tattoo, as a model when they implemented their health guidelines for tattooing in 2002.”
She said his clients, 55 percent of which come from Worcester County, regularly travel to Delaware to visit the studios.
The couple recently opened the Wooden Octopus gallery on Jefferson Street in Berlin together. Amey said tattooing would not be a part of that business, which sells fine art and jewelry, but he and his wife argued for the right to run a business in Berlin.
“This is a great opportunity to start a conversation within our community to further understand this art form, the process behind it, and develop common-sense regulation that countless other municipalities have nationwide,” Tossey stated. “You have some excellent local resources who are more than willing to be a part of that discussion.”
Mayor Gee Williams complimented Amey for his professionalism and said no one questioned his experience or reputation.
“I wish everyone was good. I wish everyone was honorable and was out for the benefit of the public,” he said. “We are ultimately responsible for public safety.”
Williams said he worried a “ne’er-do-well” would read about the lack of standards and try to take advantage of the town.
“We don’t have anything to keep them from doing, basically, exactly the opposite of what your objective is,” he said.
“I have been considered a ne’er-do-well in the past because of my chosen profession, and I have had to deal with that my entire adult career,” Amey said. “I don’t think there is as many ne’er-do-wells who are professional tattoo artists as you may think. I understand the town’s concern, and that’s why I’m here – to try to share my professional experience with the town to help integrate a policy that would be beneficial for both the public health and a thriving industry.”
Williams said, and Town Attorney David Gaskill confirmed, the emergency ordinance could be adopted to protect the town and later repealed in favor of more lenient standards. Amey, however, worried that would simply “push the can down the road.”
Many of those in attendance also spoke against the proposed ordinance, and defended tattooing as an art form and a form of self-expression.
James Coltellino said some people get tattoos to cover up scars caused by cancer and other illnesses and injuries. He said some of his tattoos cover up severe burns on 29 percent of his body.
“A lot of my scars have been covered up with tattoos, by Matthew Amey,” Coltellino said. “I think you need to look at things like that – it’s just not the hoodlums that are getting tattoos and causing problems.”
Jeremy Blackford, a Berlin resident and the general manager of Burley Inn Tavern, argued too-strict codes would only lead to dangerous, backroom practices.
“It’s happening … in hotel rooms [in Ocean City] in unsafe places. The nightmare that you’re talking about is already happening,” he said.
Blackford said asking a doctor to be present during tattooing was like requiring “a fire marshal to stand in my kitchen while the chef is cooking.”
Councilman Dean Burrell said the point was not to “discuss or give pro and con opinions about the virtue of tattooing.”
“My son’s tattooed. My wife is tattooed. My daughter is heavily tattooed, and so is my daughter-in-law. If I wasn’t chicken, I would probably be tattooed,” Burrell said. “But there are fly-by-nights in any profession. We’re here trying to protect the health and safety of the public – that’s our only intent.”
Williams inquired about setting a temporary moratorium on tattoo and microblading businesses, with the intent to develop reasonable town standards. Councilman Zack Tyndall proposed a motion to pass a 90-day moratorium and establish a committee to develop guidelines.
Burrell proposed an amendment that set a 120-day moratorium and asked Allen to lead the committee. The amendment passed unanimously.
Burrell added to Amey, “Rest assured, I would expect that Mrs. Allen will be contacting you to participate in this endeavor.”
“I would be happy to,” Amey said.
Many in attendance applauded at the outcome.
Reached for comment after the meeting, Tossey said she was pleased by what occurred.
“I’m optimistic that the council is willing to move forward with a committee that will take a realistic look at regulations that work,” she said. “It’s been so frustrating to see Matthew’s profession grouped with nuisances, litter, and junk cars in Worcester County’s municipal code. It was apparent this evening that Berlin’s council members are more progressive in their thinking and open to discussion to create regulations that are both realistic for artists to comply with and serve to protect their own health along with that of their clients.”