Aiken residents looking to purchase make-up at Flawless Glow Cosmetic Studio, a sweet treat at Vampire Penguin or clothes at Ginger Bee Boutique don't have to worry anymore: the businesses will be staying where they are for the next four years.
The Aiken City Council voted 6-1 Monday evening to approve the second and final reading of ordinances approving four-year lease extensions for Flawless Glow, Vampire Penguin and Ginger Bee.
Flawless Glow, Ginger Bee and Vampire Penguin have separate storefronts and addresses but are located within the same building, which is known as the Beckman Building.
The city acquired the Beckman building when the city council voted to dissolve the Aiken Municipal Development Commission last year. The AMDC acquired the building Nov. 10, 2021 for the since-failed Project Pascalis.
The leases for Flawless Glow, Vampire Penguin expired Jan. 31, Councilwoman Lessie Price said Monday evening. She added the extensions would add four more years to the leases, moving the expiration date to Jan. 31, 2028.
The rent rates would remain the same for the first year. Those rates are $1,650 per month (Flawless Glow), $1,600 per month (Vampire Penguin) and $1,500 per month (Ginger Bee).
After the first year, the monthly rates would increase by $100 each year.
The extensions also contain a provision allowing owners Jeannette Moseley (Vampire Penguin and Flawless Glow) and Brooke Thomas (Ginger Bee) to extend the leases for a fifth year.
If Moseley and Thomas choose to exercise their options, the leases would expire Jan. 31, 2029, Price added.
Councilman Ed Woltz voted against approving the ordinances.
He said he was concerned about the effect the lease extensions would have on the value and attractiveness of the Hotel Aiken to developers.
Though it is on a separate tax parcel and the buildings have different histories, the second floor of the Beckman building is connected to Hotel Aiken. It served as offices for the Shah family who previously owned the hotel.
Mayor Pro Tempore Ed Girardeau and Council members Andrea Gregory and Lessie Price said they were not concerned about the effect of the leases on the value and attractiveness of the Hotel Aiken.
Gregory said the leases would be a guaranteed income source for a developer planning to invest millions into the hotel.
Councilwoman Gail Diggs said she liked having small businesses downtown. She also said there's something for everyone downtown and at surprisingly good prices.
When city council approved the first readings of the ordinances Jan. 8, the lease agreements contained a provision, Item 19, giving Moseley and Thomas the right of first refusal to purchase the building or at least their parts of it.
That provision was removed and the length of the leases were extended for second reading.
