Wyandotte Shower-Massage Issue Remains Unsolved

The owners of will have to take to the city's Downtown Development Authority.

When , a city ordinance required businesses wanting to perform massages to have a tub or shower. City officials recently rescinded that ordinance, causing the three women who own Total Health Foods to demand that the $10,000 it cost to have a shower installed at their facility be refunded to them.

City Attorney William Look said city officials are within their right to amend city ordinances from time to time. In a letter to city officials, he recommended that the request for reimbursement be denied.

"I am not aware of any legal authority which would permit the city, through the use of its general funds, to reimburse a business for work done to their property even if said work was a requirement to obtain a license," he wrote.

Instead, Look recommended that the business owners approach the city's Downtown Development Authority to see if they are interested in repaying the money as a way to "improve the viability of businesses within the district."

City Council members agreed, voting Monday night to refer the matter to the DDA.

Councilman James DeSana said it would be financially dangerous for the city to reimburse business owners who spent money to comply with a city ordinance.

“I have a very difficult time reimbursing anyone because there is an ordinance change," he said. "We cannot set that precedence."

Councilman Leonard Sabuda agreed.

"This ordinance was in effect at that time," he said. "They fell within the framework of that ordinance.”

DDA Director Natalie Rankine said she was unsure how her board would handle the matter, but said it would be discussed at their next meeting, which is set for 5:30 p.m. April 10 on the second floor of

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