Special magistrate finds home-based business at 1720 Magnolia Street in violation, orders compliance by March 18

The special magistrate found that the property at 1720 Magnolia Street is in violation of multiple Land Development Regulation provisions and ordered the owner to achieve full compliance by 1 p.m. on March 18, 2026. The determination followed staff testimony that the site had multiple unpermitted signs, a neon 'open' sign frequently left on, evidence of commercial activity across much of the ground floor, and a tree that had been removed without a permit.

Code compliance staff told the magistrate that complaints about the property began on Sept. 8, 2025, alleging a full-service salon and spa operating in a single-family residential zone and generating sustained customer traffic. Staff read the relevant code sections into the record, citing LDR 504.02 (R2 zoning), 801.06 (home-based business rules including employee/residency limits and signage restrictions), 604.051 (tree preservation) and local business tax section 74-146. Staff said the neon sign had been ‘‘left on quite often’’ and that vehicles had at times blocked a fire hydrant.

Staff said they met with the property owner and Code Compliance Officer Jason Yates on Nov. 5, 2025, and issued courtesy compliance dates and later a formal Notice of Violation; certified mail was accepted on Jan. 15, 2026. By the Jan. 28 follow-up, signage had been reduced and was in compliance, but the tree permit had not been issued and the local business tax receipt had not been updated to reflect the full range of services staff observed.

The magistrate ordered the owner to replant a replacement tree, update the business-license tax receipt to reflect all service categories, and ensure online listings and websites do not advertise other businesses at the same address. Staff had recommended a $100-per-day fine for tree-preservation violations and a $250 one-time code enforcement fine tied to the local business tax receipt, with a maximum cumulative fine not to exceed $10,000; the magistrate issued an order that noncompliance could result in these penalties and scheduled the case to return on March 25, 2026, at 2 p.m.

"The witnesses have been sworn in," staff said at the start of testimony; later the magistrate stated for the record that the property was in violation of the cited LDR sections and issued the compliance deadline. No members of the public spoke on the item during the hearing.