Finance committee orders cease-and-desist for Good Luck Body Massage over unlicensed operation

The City of Santa Fe's finance committee voted July 28 to issue a cease-and-desist order preventing Good Luck Body Massage, 360 E. Palace Ave., from conducting business at that property until city code requirements are met. Code enforcement staff brought the case after a resident complaint led to an inspection that found unpermitted signage and window coverings and, crucially, operators present who were not licensed massage therapists and a business license that had expired July 7. Maggie Moore, code enforcement, told the committee that a person present during the inspection produced a license belonging to the business owner but that licensed therapists were not on site during operations. The hearing and vote: The finance committee followed the process set out in Santa Fe City Code 18-1.7 and 18-1.8 for show-cause hearings. Staff notified the owner and property owner and scheduled the hearing no fewer than 30 days after the notice, as required. The committee approved a motion, moved by Councilor Pilar Faulkner and seconded by Councilor Cassatt, to issue a cease-and-desist order that "prevent[s] the owner or operator of the business from conducting any business in the building, structure, or on the land until the terms of Chapter 18 of the Santa Fe code have been complied with." The roll call vote recorded Cassatt yes, Lindell yes, Faulkner yes, Lee Garcia yes and Chair Romero Worth yes. Owner response and status: Code enforcement said an agent who identified himself as Robert Alonia (identified in the record as the spouse of the owner) told staff the business had been closed; Maggie Moore told the committee, "they have closed the business," and staff said they would proceed with the enforcement action to ensure the business did not resume operations without meeting code requirements. Legal and enforcement context: City Attorney staff confirmed that show-cause hearings on cease-and-desist orders are heard by the finance committee under SFCC 18-1.8 and that an owner may appeal a finance-committee decision to the governing body within 30 days. Enforcement in this case focuses on city licensing and public-welfare provisions; state licensing for individual massage therapists is handled by the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department (the state board licenses individuals but does not license businesses), staff said. Next steps: The committee directed staff to return to the next finance meeting with formal findings of fact and conclusions of law for the committee to adopt, following the standard quasi-judicial record process.