Early risers rejoice! The village board unanimously passed an update to an existing ordinance that will now allow businesses along Silver Spring to open as early as 5:00 a.m., down from the current 6:00 a.m. limit. The catch? They’ll need a conditional use permit from the plan commission first.
The permit approach gives the village flexibility to weigh concerns like noise or activity on a case-by-case basis, and to deny requests that could negatively affect the neighborhood. Permits are business-specific, and the ordinance only covers operating hours.
This isn’t entirely new ground. Exercise facilities already had an early-hours exception, and the village indicated it’s open to similar requests from other businesses down the road, as long as the broader community isn’t impacted.
The Starbucks located at the corner of Silver Spring and Santa Monica requested the change, so we expect them to follow through with applying for a permit first, though it would be surprising if Stone Creek or others didn’t follow suit as well.
We can only hope that this change will finally bring a new bank or two to that stretch of Silver Spring.
What do you think, Bay Neighbor?