Shaw Pottery on tue 31 jul 12
Warning... If you have, or participate in a group=3D20
Studio Tour or Open Studio, be darn sure you have=3D20
each and every permit demanded by the city or=3D20
county where you live. We just got socked with a=3D20
demand that we pay the county for a Land Use=3D20
Permit, a Building Permit (although absolutely=3D20
nothing needs to be done, not even a tack put=3D20
into a wall), and a Home Occupation Permit.
And you have to prove (even with the permits)=3D20
that there is no indication from outside that you=3D20
have your studio at your home, that includes=3D20
keeping doors shut and windows covered so no one=3D20
can see it from the sidewalk. No noise, no=3D20
customers, no deliveries, no nothing - no how! We=3D20
sell only at the Santa Barbara Beach Show and=3D20
local functions held by... yes, the City, and the=3D20
local artist guild. We also donate to all worthy=3D20
functions. Never sell at home.
Since our studio in in our garage, we have to get=3D20
all 3 (yes, three) permits at a cost of $1617=3D20
which we don't have. And the owners (we rent) are=3D20
so upset they want to sell the home now. They=3D20
said we can stay one more year IF WE PAY FOR THE=3D20
PERMITS which stay with the home and make it more=3D20
valuable when they sell. If we had our studio in=3D20
a bedroom (imagine the carpet), we would still=3D20
have to get two of the permits.
Ironically, the owners already had a pottery=3D20
studio, kiln and all, when they lived here. They=3D20
didn't know they needed permits either. We've=3D20
already paid over $2000 in the last year to help=3D20
to upgrade the electrical box from fuses to=3D20
breakers (we couldn't get in to see it before we=3D20
moved), and to rewire the studio for the kiln,=3D20
since it was also done incorrectly.
So check first, without giving your name or=3D20
address, and make sure your neighbors are happy=3D20
you are working from your home. And don't open a=3D20
door... we had our garage door open for some=3D20
fresh air, bird songs, and to smile at the kids=3D20
on their bikes. That's why we were turned in by=3D20
an anonymous caller. OR, GET ALL PERMITS FIRST!
We can't afford to move, either financially or=3D20
physically (I am a paraplegic, makes it a bit=3D20
harder). As a result, we are having a "Help Save=3D20
Our Studio" raffle on the Contact page of our=3D20
website. We have great friends & potters as=3D20
friends, we have raised 2/3's of the permit costs=3D20
so far, and have only 200 of the 810 tickets left=3D20
to sell to raise the remaining $400.....
Wish us luck! Otherwise we are out on our=3D20
respective ears! But, hopefully, with the raffle,=3D20
we are buying a year to save for moving and get=3D20
rid of every single thing we don't need! LOL!
Joe and Rita
Shaw Pottery
472 Ferndale Drive
Santa Maria, CA 93455
805=3DB7354=3DB74499 studio
At 2:33 PM -0400 7/31/12, Robert Harris wrote:
>On Tue, Jul 31, 2012 at 1:42 PM, KATHI LESUEUR=3D20
>wrote:
> I take a different approach. I assume that most people who come to a sho=
w
>want to buy something. They come into my booth and see something they may
>want.
>
>
>Five years ago I would have agreed with you, but here in Florida (with
>admittedly a particular demographic make-up, especially in the fall) I hav=
e
>noticed that shows now seem to be an endless shuffle of people with blank
>stares, going from one booth to the next, essentially looking for a cheap
>day's entertainment. Nothing wrong with that frankly, and I sympathise wit=
h
>them. However, I suspect that fewer and fewer people actually come out wit=
h
>money in their pocket actually looking to buy something.
>
>I think that this is one of the reasons that a lot of people are moving to
>"Open Studios" etc., rather than fairs (at least I hear a lot more people
>talking about this sort of selling - Mr. Jacobson has, of course, been
>doing it (and pushing it!) for years). If they make an effort to come to
>your place, you can be damned sure they're pretty intent on buying
>something.
--
KATHI LESUEUR on tue 31 jul 12
On Jul 31, 2012, at 3:49 PM, Shaw Pottery wrote:
> Warning... If you have, or participate in a group Studio Tour or Open =3D
Studio, be darn sure you have each and every permit demanded by the city =
=3D
or county where you live. We just got socked with a demand that we pay =3D
the county for a Land Use Permit, a Building Permit (although absolutely =
=3D
nothing needs to be done, not even a tack put into a wall), and a Home =3D
Occupation Permit.
I've always advocated that people do things legally. Don't lie to your =3D
insurance company. Don't hide from the governing entity where you live. =3D
Different communities have different rules and regulations. Find out =3D
before you set up that studio. You may want to live somewhere else.=3D20
Here in Ann Arbor, it is easy to set up a studio. The city is very =3D
friendly to home based businesses. They allow up to three employees. =3D
They do not allow a sign or constant selling from the property. The =3D
occasional sale to a customer dropping by or a yearly studio sale is =3D
fine. When I converted my garage to a studio the only requirement was =3D
that I meet building codes. As for my gas kiln, no permit was required. =3D
"You people know more than we do about it." When I built my first kiln =3D
they advised me to visit JT Abernathy and I learned about safety. Now, =3D
they send people to me.=3D20
But I know that Ann Arbor is unique in this respect. However, when a =3D
friend started having a problem in another city with a studio that had =3D
been there for twenty years, I suggested she contact the Ann Arbor =3D
building department for a list of their rules. She went before her city =3D
government and argued for changes that would allow home based business =3D
and studios based on the Ann Arbor requirements. She won. It helped that =
=3D
she had a letter stating that there were many kilns in Ann Arbor and =3D
that the city knew of no problem that any of them ever caused.=3D20
So, know your city's requirements before you set up. And, if they seem =3D
unreasonable try to get them changed. Most of those rules are not meant =3D
for the small studio like Shaw, but they are impacted by them.
KATHI LESUEUR
http://www.lesueurclaywork.com
=3D20
>=3D20
| |
|
