Berwyn District Civic Association
Thursday, March 16, 2006
Agenda Item 1. Introductions;
roll call for officers
The meeting was called to order by BDCA president Heather
Iliff. Also present were officers and
board members Jerry Anzulovic, Bob Baca, Andrea Carpentieri, Al Cutino, Harry
Pitt, Janeen Miller, and Mark Seaton.
All meeting attendees are listed at the end of the minutes.
Agenda Item 2. Approval of minutes from January 19, 2006 and
February 16, 2006.
Minutes from both the January and February meetings were
voted into the permanent record. Ms.
Iliff reminded everyone that the minutes are available on www.myberwyn.org, and drew attention to
important information regarding disaster preparedness, as well as an update on
the playground renovation.
Agenda Item 3. Application
for Pawn Shop on
Ms. Iliff set the ground rules for this agenda item: first would be the presentation, then
question and answer, followed by discussion and vote. Citizens were reminded that, according to the
BDCA bylaws, only dues-paying members are permitted to vote.
1. Presentation from Thomas Haller,
Esq.; a zoning land use attorney who is representing Scott Cutlip, the business
owner, with his application for a Special Exception to the Prince George’s
County Zoning Ordinance. His opening
comments are summarized below:
This is the first time Mr. Haller has had to apply for a
special exemption for a pawnshop. Mr.
Cutlip owns four pawnshops in the area and wants to open one in
Mr. Cutlip is interested in opening a high-quality
business. He has agreed to commit, in
writing, that his store will not deal in firearms. He will not display merchandise outside the
store. Finally, he is concerned about
the public perception of his store; he will not call it a pawnshop, but it will
be named “Unlimited Wholesale.” A
handout of the sign design was passed around the room.
2. Presentation from Eladia Parilla, an
eight-year employee of Mr. Cutlip. Ms.
Parilla presented highlights from a handout on pawn shops obtained from The
National Pawnbrokers Association, http://www.nationalpawnbrokers.org,
whose website states, “The National Pawnbrokers Association is
your national trade association and is dedicated to serving you and
representing the best interests of the pawnbroking industry. To that end, we
provide services to our members, including the quarterly National Pawnbroker
magazine, the newsletter Pawnbroker News, the web site located at
www.nationalpawnbrokers.org, a national convention, email discussion groups and
much more.” Ms. Parilla’s comments are
summarized below:
o
Pawnshops allow customers to quickly
receive a loan of $75-$100. A customer
puts up collateral to receive the loan, and can keep the loan as long as they
like. A pawnshop provides a cash loan
without the paperwork associated with a bank loan. Pawnshops accept anything of value: jewelry,
silver, electronics, musical instruments, etc.
o
80%
of the loans are repaid, and many customers are repeat customers. A pawn business is not built to serve
“undesirable” community members, as they have nothing to pawn.
o
There
is no basis to support the claim that pawnshops negatively impact property
values.
o
Mr.
Cutlip strives to make his pawnshops not look like pawnshops; he doesn’t
want them to look like “junk” stores. He
keeps his stores orderly and neat. Mr.
Cutlip is a meticulous owner.
o
Pawnshops
are active in the community, with local charities, and politically.
3. Next was a presentation from
Detective Finn,
People who bring items to a pawnshop must give
identification and information to the shop.
Less than one-half of one percent ( > 0.5% ) of items in a pawnshop
are stolen. Pawners must have two forms
of identification; information is collected regarding name, address, physical
description (height/weight), date of birth, and social security number. All items and information is documented and
put into a database, which is available to law enforcement officers. This way, if stolen items are pawned, they
can be returned to their rightful owner.
Because of this database, if a theft occurs, you have a fighting chance
to get your stuff back, and the thief prosecuted. The database applies to shops in the
Pawnshops are more highly regulated than any other
industry. Employees must undergo
background checks, and the shops are investigated regularly. The department has had only favorable
interactions with Mr. Cutlip’s stores; he has not had offenses for which he has
been cited. Mr. Cutlip also maintains a
database of who has purchased items.
The pawnshop regulatory unit has three officers and one
civilian employee, all serving
4. Question and Answer Period: Questions were taken from the community and
answered by the presenters. These are
summarized as follows:
o
Regarding
signage, will Mr. Cutlip agree to not put signs in the window regarding
“Buy, Sell Trade” etc?
Jack Foley, who introduced himself as working with but
not for Mr. Cutlip, commented that “we want a thriving business in our
community” and advertising is part of a thriving business. Mr. Cutlip commented that if limitations on
signage are what it takes, then that’s what he’ll do; but he’s got to get
customers to go into the store. The
price of advertising is outrageous; 60% - 70% of people know a pawnshop is
there by driving past it. He has not
opened any shops in Edgewater because “Edgewater has even crazier restrictions
than PG county.”
o
Why
do we need a pawnshop in our community, since there is a Cash & Go on Route
1, and a pawnshop on
Mr. Cutlip says that the pawnshop on
Serial numbers are not needed to recover stolen merchandise;
all that is needed is a description of the items; the police try to match items
based on descriptions. Additionally,
recovering items from the information in the database is only as good as the
information entered to the database. In
o
Your
handout says your business is a subsidiary of Best Pawn. Is this a franchise operation?
Best Pawn is a small business, with four other
locations. This would be the fifth. 75% of their goods are redeemed, meaning that
the owner who pawned the items gets them back.
o
What
businesses surround your other locations?
Pizza and sushi restaurants; African market; Red Wing Shoes;
Radio Shack; a barbershop; a dollar store.
There’s even a pawn shop across from White Flint Mall, where the average
loan is $1,000. Pawnshops are needed in
every community.
o
What
percent of your income comes from retail sales versus interest on loans?
Mr. Cutlip said about 75% of his revenue comes from sales,
and 25% from service charges.
o
What
do you pay your employees?
Mr. Cutlip stated that his employees are paid very
well. He has two employees who make
$60,000 and one who makes $55,000. Less
experienced employees make $18,000 - $20,000 per year.
o
What
are your interest rates and surcharges?
Normal interest is 20% per month. The business has to earn money, as the rent
at the
o
What
do you do if pawners do not have ID? How
do you guard against fake IDs?
The police department does “reversals”, in which undercover
agents try to pawn items without proper ID.
In such an operation, if a pawn shop employee agrees to accept
merchandise without ID, that employee loses his or her pawn license. Penalties for employees who do not follow the
regulations are severe.
o
This
is not a convenient location as far as traffic.
How will traffic be handled?
There is adequate parking to meet code requirements. The parking lot is easily accessible from the
road.
o
Do
you sell firearms at your other locations?
(This author did not hear a response to this question.)
o
Will
you commit in writing that you will not sell firearms at this store?
This was answered with an emphatic “Definitely.”
o
How
often are your other stores robbed?
That depends on the shop.
Every type of business gets robbed.
It is not a reflection on the type of business. Mr. Cutlip’s stores have been robbed once in
ten years, at the
o
Have
you met with
The planning board in
o
What
are your hours of operation and security measures?
Stores have security camera systems. Some stores have digital video systems. Videotapes are kept 30 days; digital
recordings are kept for less time, but are better quality. The
Meeting
attendees:
Presenters
from Best Pawn:
Scott Cutlip Edgewater,
Detective Fin Prince
George’s County Police Department; 301-985-3674
Jack Foley
Tom Haller, Esq. Lanham,
Eladia Parilla
Taren Parilla
Jackie Pinchok Ocean
City,
From
Jerry
Anzulovic
Bob Baca
Steve
Brayman
Gordon
Breighner
Joshua
Buyon (please let me know the correct spelling – name hard to read on sign-in
sheet)
Robert
Catlin
Rose Colby
Morgan Gale
Al Cutino
Margaret
Himmelfarb
Harvey
Himmelfarb
Maria
Hutter
Eric Justh
Lori Justh
Deborah
Vanadia Mims
Bob Moss
Beth
McAllister
Janeen
Miller
Lynne
Morrison
Amy Noggle
Jack Perry
Harry Pitt
Jill Reese
Mark Seaton
Don L.
Spicer
Joseph
Theis
Mary
Catherine Theis
Forrest
Tyler
Sandy Tyler
Brenton
Walker
Larry
Wenzel
Kevin Young
Andrea
Carpentieri
Recording
Secretary, BDCA