By Alyssa Schnugg
News editor
alyssa.schnugg@hottytoddy.com
After the Oxford Board of Aldermen voted Saturday to allow close-contact businesses to open, scissors were sharpened, tanning beds were turned on and tattoo guns were disinfected ready for customers to walk through the doors come Monday morning.
However, confusion over Gov. Tate Reeve’s latest Executive Order caused tattoo parlors in Oxford to close their doors once again after local officials learned the Governor did not allow tattoo parlors to open in his latest Executive Order.
In Reeves’ Executive Order 1480 reads “Executive Order 1477 is amended to allow salons, barbershops and other personal care and personal grooming facilities (collectively, “salons”) to open subject to the following limitations…”
Oxford Mayor Robyn Tannehill said when she and the Board of Aldermen approved the city’s re-opening plan, “Serving Oxford Safely: A Recovery Plan,” the city categorized “close-contact services” in one category which included barbershops, hair salons, nail shops, massage therapy salons, aestheticians, tanning salons and tattoo parlors.
“Since only hair salons and barbershops were specified in the Governor’s plan, we interpreted that all of these types of services were allowed,” Tannehill told Hottytoddy.com Monday. “The Governor’s office let us know today that tattoo parlors are not in fact allowed to open at this time. We have personally visited with each tattoo parlor owner this afternoon and apologized for our false start information. They all understood.”
In Reeves’ previous Executive Orders, he has allowed local governments to make laws and resolutions in regard to COVID-19 that are more stringent than his, but not more lenient. Allowing tattoo parlors to open would be less restrictive than his orders so cities cannot allow them to open.
Oxford tattoo businesses expressed their confusion, disappointment and gratitude to their customers on social media on Monday.
“To say the least we are just as confused as everyone else. We apologize to everybody who was looking forward to getting in today but more than that we appreciate each and every one of you! Please remain patient as we get to the bottom of this,” stated Opus Land Tattoo & Piercing Shop off University Avenue on its Facebook page Monday.
However, the confusion was not just among Oxford’s leaders.
Southaven Mayor Darren Musselwhite interpreted Reeves’ order the same as Oxford’s Board of Aldermen and allowed tattoo parlors to open. Several news outlets reported that Reeves had opened up tattoo parlors along with the other close-contact businesses.
However, during a press conference Monday, Reeves said his intent was not to open tattoo parlors, but said little about why they weren’t included with the other close-contact businesses.
“The order we signed on Friday does not allow for tattoo parlors to reopen,” Reeves said. “That is, the remaining small businesses that are not currently open, we are currently looking at those.”
A petition was started online by a Brookhaven resident on Monday as of Tuesday morning has garnered 1,636 signatures asking Reeves to open tattoo parlors.
