It’s hard to say just how many unlicensed, commercial businesses are being run out of homes in Prince George’s County, Maryland, but every month, the county gets hundreds of complaints about them.
This month, the county’s Department of Permitting, Inspections and Enforcement (DPIE) is spreading the word that it’s investigating and willing to help get those businesses on the up-and-up when they can be — or shut down if they can’t.
The types of businesses can widely vary. In some cases, it’s someone running a restaurant out of their kitchen. Other times, it’s a salon or tax preparation service.
“Another big complaint that we do have is the auto shops. You often will see individuals fixing cars in their neighborhood, in their driveway, in their garage,” said Lori Parris, senior adviser for DPIE. “That’s another illegal business that we’re looking to address as well.”
In some cases, it’s a side hustle. But other times, “they don’t understand the process, they don’t understand that there’s a need for a business license and a permit to run a certain business out of your home,” Parris said.
That’s why the county is spending the month of March educating those who aren’t in compliance with the laws about what they need to do to get there. And from April to July, county officials will worry less about punishment and more about helping those businesses get what they need to operate legally.
“If this business can come into compliance, we will not cite them,” Parris said. “The goal is to walk them through the licensing process. If they need to get a home occupation permit, we will walk them through that as well. But the goal really is to get them into compliance.”
Parris said DPIE doesn’t plan to “put the hammer down” on businesses the agency knows is willing to work with them to get the proper licensing and accreditation.
“However, if we find a business that cannot come into compliance during this period, we will cite them and … we will continue to enforce over the period,” she added.
Parris said some of these businesses will not be able to come into compliance.
“If you’re operating a home car repair business, it could be running a restaurant,” she cited as examples of commercial businesses that can’t operate from a home. “You can’t have commercial cooking in a home or in an apartment because you don’t have the proper ventilation, you don’t have the proper commercial stove. … There are some things that you can just not come into compliance. So if you are making food, you are selling food and running a restaurant out of your home, that’s something that you cannot come into compliance.”
Eventually, the crackdown will go countywide, but right now, the awareness campaign will target areas of the county including Hyattsville, Lewisdale, Adelphi and Langley Park. Lanham and Seabrook are also areas that generate a high level of complaints.
Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here.
© 2024 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.
