Screen Shot 2013-08-02 at 7.42.03 AM

As the moratorium on all check cashing uses established last year comes near an end, the City Council approved an ordinance that not only limits the proliferation of check cashing businesses but also asked Planning staff to look into even furthering limiting new check cashing businesses within neighborhoods.

The one-year moratorium, originally brought to the Council on October 2 of last year, was described by one resident a “good step forward to hold off on allowing any more new [check cashing businesses so] the council can and should do what it can to protect neighborhoods.”

In other words, many residents felt that these establishments were blights in their neighborhoods while simultaneously attracting other less desirable businesses. It is much akin to the proliferation and concentration of liquor stores, as noted by Councilmember Gerrie Schipske, which the council has also been addressing.

Amy Bodek, Director of Long Beach Development Services, noted the research that has been done over the past year. She felt the Planning Commission had “determined that there are number of changes needed to the municipal code” in regard to these establishments that offer various financial services, including a reorganization of definitions of what precisely constitutes “check cashing.”

According to Bodek, the payment of utilities, the issuance of bus tokens, as well as the sale of phone cards and money orders were all lumped under the definition of “check cashing”; these uses have now been removed, paving the way to focus on other uses including payday, consumer, commercial, auto title, and signature loans. If the establishment has the ability to cash checks but it is not their primary form of business, such as a Ralphs or Stater Bros., they do not fall under what could be the future municipal definition of a check cashing business.

The ordinance brought forth from the Planning Commission wanted to prohibit these businesses from building in certain zones. 53 different businesses throughout Long Beach—35 check cashing businesses, 15 payday lending businesses, and 3 consumer lending businesses—will now be grandfathered in should they choose to not alter their business and continue to operate as is. There will also be a quarter-mile minimum distance that a new check cashing business must maintain from an existing check cashing location.

A motion was put forth to specify that these businesses not be within 500ft of neighborhoods; however, Assistant City Attorney Mike Mais noted that a specific definition of neighborhood would be required. The Council then approved for the Planning Commission to examine this and return back to Council with possible solutions.

Click here to read our policies covering city council. 

Editor’s note: This article originally stated that Councilmember O’Donnell brought forth the moratorium; in actuality, Councilmembers Gerrie Schipske, Al Austin, Steve Neal and Vice Mayor Robert Garcia were responsible for bringing it forth. Councilmember O’Donnell made the substitute motion that exempted the CUP applications already in the pipeline.