PARMA, Ohio — The Parma City Council extended a previously approved moratorium on new carwash builds for an additional three months, according to Cleveland.com.
In the summer of 2021, the council unanimously voted to approve a six-month moratorium.
The moratorium was put in place to give the city time to study the carwash saturation issue to prepare permanent legislation.
“In August, we put the moratorium on because there’s been an influx with these carwashes that were basically popping up everywhere,” said Ward 4 Councilwoman Kristin Saban, who co-introduced the extension ordinance. “We actually had for first reading [an ordinance] where we’re looking for different zoning options for these carwashes,” she continued. “The law department and engineering wanted an additional three months just to get the zoning right. We’re all about economic development, but we want to make sure we’re not just limiting ourselves to these carwashes that seem to be really, really popular.”
The city council is discussing limiting the number of carwash locations permitted in the city by restricting zoning districts.
“Car Wash, Conveyor” and “Car Wash, In-Bay” categories are tentatively included in these districts.
“We’re not going to just stop carwashes all together,” Saban said. “That’s not our goal here. Economic development is very important to us here in the city. We’re always looking to bring and attract new businesses, so we’re not saying no to the carwashes. We just want to take a look and see where they fit best zoning wise.”
These decisions come after the Cleveland suburb opened its seventh wash.
Parma’s Economic Development Director Erik Tollerup said the city was reaching a saturation point.
“Parma is not alone on this issue. Area communities are watching us so that they can balance carwash development in their cities.”
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