Tim Adams, owner of Checkmate Pawn, has apparently abandoned plans to build a new 9,000-square-foot, two-story location for his pawnshop at 3325 Northwest Ave. in favor of a smaller location.
Wyatt Danichek, manager at Checkmate Pawn, said on Feb. 2, the business moved into a 3,200-square-foot location at 3205 Northwest Ave. near Yeager’s Sporting Goods, which is across the street from the pawnshop’s former 3,700-square-foot location at 3016 Northwest Ave.
“It is actually a better store setup for us because this building is rectangular,” Danichek said. “The other building had a lot of angles that affected what we could do with the setup.”
Danichek did not go into detail about the project’s demise, but said only that it ran into problems with the planning department.
The business’s building plans for its own space rose eyebrows in the city planning department in June 2007 when Adams first applied because the business would sell guns near Shuksan Middle School. In September 2007, the project was granted a planned development contract that restricted the sale of firearms, which was quickly appealed.
In May 2008, it was decided that the city could not restrict the sale of guns, but could mandate certain operational conditions, such the installation of “Gun Free School Zone” signage along Northwest Avenue both north and south of the property and signage that notified customers that guns must be transported in a locked case for delivery, pickup and purchase.
For more information, call Checkmate Pawn at 647-2044.
