New tattoo shop to open in Lake Worth

Not all members of the city commission are happy about it, though.

LAKE WORTH — There’s a new type of business opening in downtown Lake Worth on Friday — a tattoo shop.

Solid Image Tattoo Co. will be moving into the 603 Lake Ave. space.

“Lake Worth has been so welcoming,” said Shirley Harris, the shop’s 74-year-old administrator and creator. “We needed a larger place than in Delray, where we only had 425 square feet. Now we’re in 1,000 square feet.”

But not everyone is happy about the move.

Lake Worth Commissioner Scott Maxwell, at the May 15 city commission meeting, said there should be a moratorium on tattoo shops in Lake Worth.

“We do not need, in my humble opinion, a tattoo shop downtown when we’re trying to attract a new hotel, we’re trying to encourage tourism,” Maxwell said. “We’re 7 1/2 square miles ... and every inch of this city needs to be maximized for its best and highest use.”

He said the city has been talking about a new Lake Worth and then opens a tattoo shop.

“Isn’t this what we were trying to get away from?” he asked. “Some of the images from our past.”

Harris said Maxwell’s comments are nothing she hasn’t heard before.

“I hear that so often,” she said. “But we do have doctors, lawyers, bankers, businessmen, nurses as clients. If you’re concerned, come and visit our shop.”

Vice Mayor Andy Amoroso, who owns Studio 205, the gift and novelty shop off Lake Avenue, said the city needs a vision for downtown.

“I don’t know if we have that,” he said at the commission meeting. “Years ago we have a lot of antique shops downtown ... but if you don’t like antique shops, you weren’t coming downtown. We need a clear vision on what our downtown looks like.”

Mayor Pam Triolo said this isn’t 1950.

“Is this the Dark Ages?” she asked. “A majority of millennials have tattoos, piercings or whatever. I’m happy to see storefronts filled and people coming to Lake Worth.”

Harris said the store, which opened in 1996, will have five artists. She said she expects to grow the business about 50 percent the first few months.

She said the tattoo business has changed dramatically in 20 years.

“The restrictions are immense,” she said. “We’re highly, highly regulated by the state of Florida and the health department. In 1996, probably one-third of tattoo artists in Florida were tattooing out of their house. That is no more.”

The types of tattoo has also changed over the years, Harris said.

“Do you remember the old skull and roses,” she asks. “Well, that has long past. It’s varying into yin and yang and a lot of spiritual tattoos. Young people design their own tattoos so we do a lot of custom work.”

The new site is owned by Peters Development, the company that owns more than 40 properties in Lake Worth. “They have been excellent and did background checks on us,” Harris said.

She declined, however, to detail her lease terms.

“But we hope we’re here 20 years because we fully intend to be successful,” she said.