[mywittyname]

I don't think so. It makes sense that people in an area should have some say in the businesses that open nearby. You probably wouldn't want a nightclub opening up down the road from you. Or if you ran a call center, you might not want an Harley Davidson Custom Exhaust shop to open next door.

Even thought the article buried in the article, the objections to opening were not upheld. But giving people a chance to voice their opinions on new businesses does seem reasonable (and is probably very common).