ANAHEIM : City OKs Swap Meet in 3-2 Vote Split

City Council members disagreed about whether to allow an indoor swap meet to open in an industrial area but ended up voting in favor of the business.

The 3-2 vote, with Councilmen Tom Daly and Irv Pickler dissenting, granted a 10-year operating permit to Anaheim Discount Department Store. Daly and Pickler were concerned that the swap meet would not be appropriate for the corner of Anaheim Boulevard and Cerritos Avenue.

“We don’t have one smidgen of evidence this is going to be a quality operation,” Daly said about the project.

The council approved the swap meet with the condition that the project be reviewed by city officials every five years. Those members who voted for the swap meet said that clause enabled the council to close the business if it did not meet city standards.

“In my mind, I don’t think this (business) will be here 10 years from now,” Councilman William D. Ehrle said. “I don’t think it’s going to be a discount center very long.”

The operators of the swap meet estimate that it would gross about $4.5 million in annual sales tax revenues, 1% of which will go to the city.