AIKEN --- As a co-owner of 1st Amendment Tattoo in downtown Augusta, Jeff "Fro" Smith is well aware of the lack of tattoo parlors in Aiken County.

After all, it helps his business.

"We see a load of North Augusta people," he said, and a lot from Aiken.

Five years ago, some worried that when state law was changed to allow tattoo parlors to operate in South Carolina, such businesses would quickly sprout up throughout Aiken County. But until recently, the county hasn't had a single tattoo parlor set up shop.

Bob Pietsch plans to open a tattoo parlor called Carolina Ink Tattooing in Windsor in about a month. His will be the first in the county, said county planning official Stephen Strohminger.

The parlor will be in Windsor's jurisdiction and not the county, which Mr. Strohminger said still doesn't permit tattoo parlors despite the change in state law.

"We did not adopt any regulations on tattoo parlors," he said. "In fact, our ordinance doesn't address them at all. So as per the previous county attorney, that means we do not permit them ... They are specifically left out of the permitted use list."

The same goes for the city of Aiken, said city attorney Gary Smith. He explained that the state law allowing tattoo parlors "left an out" to cities. He said a tattoo parlor must show proof of a local ordinance that allows such a business before it can be licensed to open by the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.

"Some of the municipalities in the state of South Carolina have interpreted that language to mean the Legislature gave the cities the right to make a decision whether they wanted to allow tattoo parlors within the cities or not," he said. "And so the city of Aiken has said we're not going to do it."

Mr. Smith said there has been only one recent inquiry about a tattoo parlor in Aiken, and there have been no challenges to the city's restriction.

Mr. Strohminger said that when the state law was relaxed, the county received many calls from those interested in opening a tattoo parlor. But now, there is only about one query a year.

Mr. Pietsch said he's gone through an extensive process of filing paperwork with the state and hopes to soon open the business off South Carolina Highway 78. He said he's already seeing a high demand in the Windsor area.

"I bought 1,000 (business) cards two months ago," Mr. Pietsch said. "I have about 150 left."

He said he knows his business will be a rarity in the county, noting how many drive across the river into Augusta to get a tattoo.

Mr. Pietsch and "Fro" Smith agree that more tattoo parlors have opened in Augusta partly because it's so much easier there, with tattoo parlors being zoned general business.

According to Augusta's Licensing and Inspection Department, the city has about 16 parlors.

Mr. Pietsch said another disadvantage tattoo parlors face in South Carolina is that, unlike in Georgia, they can't allow both tattoos and piercings, which he said often go hand in hand.

Mr. Pietsch said he chose to open in Windsor because it's close to his home and he knows many people in the area would like a tattoo parlor nearby.

Reach Preston Sparks at (803) 648-1395, ext. 110, or preston.sparks@augustachronicle.com.