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The Luverne Planning Commission approved a conditional use permit Monday night for an in-home salon at 603 E. Dodge Street.
Paula Gonnerman is starting a business, Salon Moleah, named for her three children — Morgan, Levi and McKaya.
The salon will be located in her home on East Dodge Street in the neighborhood east of Blue Mound Avenue.
In order to operate a business in a residential neighborhood, she had to request a conditional use permit from the Planning Commission, which hosted a public hearing on the matter Monday night in City Hall.
No member of the public attended the meeting, and the city received no written correspondence objecting to Gonnerman’s plans to open a salon in the neighborhood.
Building official Chad McClure told the commission that Gonnerman’s business plan doesn’t present problems that would affect the integrity of the area.
“It’s a salon inside a house,” he said. “There isn’t going to be noise or offensive odors.”
By city code, a home occupation may not exceed 15 percent of the floor area of the primary structure. Gonnerman’s salon will occupy a 124-square-foot room in her home’s 1,550 square feet on the main floor.
She doesn’t plan to sell retail, and there will be no exterior display of goods on the premises. She’ll schedule one client at a time, likely between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. daily with one night per week with later hours.
Customers will park in the driveway of her double garage. A small sign that matches the color of the house siding will indicate the salon is located inside. The business will have a separate entrance.
Gonnerman has 12 years of salon experience and most recently worked with Remedez, which is closing its operation at Main Street and Highway 75.
The Luverne Planning Commission ruled in favor of Gonnerman’s business request Monday with the added condition that she maintain proper licensure with the Minnesota Board of Cosmetology, which oversees salon operations in the state.
The commission’s action Monday serves as a recommendation to the City Council, which will take formal action on it at an upcoming meeting.
“Thank you, Paula. We’re happy to have you branch out in our community,” said commission chairperson Caroline Thorson.