This petition is to support the denial of appeal V-23-159 by Tokyo Valentino which in response to violation 23CAP-00001484 issued to Tokyo Valentino by the City of Atlanta on October 4th 2023. Those signing this petition are asking the Board of Zoning Appeals as well as the leaders of the City of Atlanta to take this opportunity and make the first step off the treadmill of a resource draining, nuisance properties in a corridor whose economic potential has been held back for too long.

We cannot establish a precedent that the zoning ordinance can be so loosely interpreted and manipulated. Granting an appeal and allowing Tokyo Valentino, or any version of it, to continue operations will set the precedent that such behavior will be allowed across the City and severely undermine the authority of current and future zoning regulations.

The legality and business’ conformance to the zoning ordinance has already been reviewed by the City, and Tokyo Valentino’s argument that the adult activity taking place at the establishment is constitutionally protected has been rejected by both the Northern District of Georgia and the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. The outcome of that lengthy process has provided the basis to deny the appeal to this zoning violation and move to cease operations all together. If you are not already familiar with the details of the Courts’ decisions, please refer to the opinions issued by District Court Judge Thrash in 2018 and 2020. In summary, based on the activities that have been proven to occur, this is no longer a discussion of a bookstore that opened before a zoning ordinance was put in place, rather a discussion that confirms the business has violated the zoning ordinance along the way and therefore should be shut down at this location.

As stated in the Court documents, there are locations in the City where the purported use of the facility can be accommodated by the zoning ordinance. The use is not complimentary and does not meet the spirit of the NC-5 zoning district. The district continues to evolve into a denser residential community, further widening the gap between what Tokyo Valentino provides and what is needed for positive economic growth. To underscore that gap, the following collateral damage should also be taken into consideration:

·         $750,000, and increasing, of City financial resources that have already been spent addressing this.

·         Over twelve hundred 911 calls since 2015, many in reference to sexual assaults. An average of 2.8 per week.

·         APS elementary school children on their bus route most mornings being exposed to loitering, sexual acts occurring in the open, erratic behavior of individuals of not sound mind wandering the sidewalks. All things not as prevalent in most other commercial districts.

We cannot start this process all over again. There is enough tangible and observational data to support the position to end this cycle.