Committee approves updates to massage‑establishment ordinance and routes appeals to Zoning Board of Appeals

The Protection Policy Committee voted Sept. 8 to approve draft ordinance updates related to massage establishments and to assign jurisdiction over initial administrative appeals to the Zoning Board of Appeals.

City attorney Wood provided a memo attached to the meeting packet that summarized a comprehensive set of changes to the ordinance; the attorney was available to answer questions. Committee members described the draft as an improvement and approved the draft by voice vote.

Separately, the committee approved a related provision (referred to in the packet as GO 22‑25) that routes administrative appeals involving massage‑establishment applications to the Zoning Board of Appeals rather than having a single body adjudicate all aspects of the ordinance. A staff explanation clarified that this bifurcation means staff will make administrative decisions on applications and the Zoning Board of Appeals will hear appeals of those administrative decisions; the Common Council retains authority to hear matters involving revocations or suspensions of licenses.

Committee members discussed whether a broader renaming of the zoning board would be appropriate; staff cautioned that changing the board’s title would require additional updates to other regulations and recommended leaving the structural change in place now and adjusting titles later if needed.

The committee’s votes were recorded as voice approvals; no numeric roll call totals were recorded in the meeting transcript. Attorney Wood’s memo and the drafts in the packet form the basis of the ordinance updates and routing change; the committee approved the changes and will forward the recommendations to the Common Council for final action.