Commission Approves New Hair Salon on Miller

The Mill Valley Planning Commission unanimously approved a proposed new hair salon at 383 Miller Ave. at La Goma St. this week. The salon, dubbed Showroom 383, is set to occupy the 1,745-square-foot space late 2011.

The commission did not deliberate on the self-described "high-end" hair salon's application as it was on its consent calendar. City staff recommended thaty the commission approve the salon. 

“The proposed hair salon meets (the) requirements of the General Plan by providing a service that meets the day-to-day needs of both the immediate neighborhood and surrounding community,” according to the report.

Through their San Francisco-based contractor Paul Gisler, who applied for the required conditional use permit, the salon's owners declined to comment for this story. Gisler said the owners don't currently own any other hair salons.

According to its application, the salon would offer hair cutting and coloring and will dedicate some space for a mentoring program for recently graduated beauticians. The salon is expected to have six employees and be open Tuesday to Saturday 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday by appointment only.

The issue of the abundance of hair salons in Mill Valley rose to the fore in February, when the , a tween-focused salon at 23 Throckmorton Ave., the 2,200-square-foot space the  occupied for years before it closed in 2010. Bennis opened in late May.

At the time of Bennis' approval, several residents and at least one commissioner lamented the prevalence of hair salons in Mill Valley - the latest county from the Mill Valley Patch business directory is 37 - but the commission determined that it was not its role to reject businesses because there are too many of them in town.

“It’s not our pace to pick and choose what business comes in and rents the space,” Commissioner David Rand said at the time. “The marketplace does that, not the Planning Commission. I don’t see that we have a choice.”

A revealed that readers are evenly split about whether or not the city of Mill Valley should regulate the proliferation of certain types of businesses in town.