BY ADRIANA HERNANDEZ
Daily Post Staff Writer
A new smoke shop in West Menlo Park has drawn mixed reactions from residents and a visit from San Mateo County Supervisor Ray Mueller following its opening Friday.
Mueller visited Blazin Gifts at 3536 Alameda de las Pulgas on Friday to inform its 21-year-old owner, Hussein Omar, that the store’s opening may be violating a county ordinance.
“He’s welcome to have a business, but he cannot be operating out of compliance with the county code,” Mueller said yesterday.
Omar says people may be getting the wrong impression. His store only sells smoking accessories such as pipes, lighters and ashtrays. The shop doesn’t sell tobacco, liquor, cigarettes or cannabis, Omar said.
The shop also sells clothing, paintings, drinks, sex pills and knives, according to Omar.
Omar opened Blazin Gifts after his brother, Ahmed Omar, ended his attempt to open a smoke shop last fall after he was met with negative reaction from neighbors and a county crackdown
Ahmed Omar’s plan was rejected due to a San Mateo County ordinance that prohibits the sale of tobacco or cannabis within 1,000 feet of schools.
Blazin Gifts is located near Phillips Brooks School and La Entrada Middle School, raising concerns among nearby residents.
At the time, Mueller said a nearby Chevron station already has a tobacco license, and the county prohibits issuing another within 500 feet — a radius that includes Blazin Gifts.
According to Hussein Omar, opposition to his brother’s proposal grew so intense that someone posted Ahmed’s phone number and home address on Facebook.
Hussein Omar said the backlash against his brother motivated him to move forward with opening his shop. He said he bought all of his inventory last week and quickly opened right after paying the storefront’s rent.
A mixed crowd has been passing by his store since he opened, Hussein Omar said. Some neighbors have accosted Hussein Omar for opening up his shop, while others will come in, look around and leave.
Resident Rick Moen said he passed by the store and believed he saw tobacco products and paraphernalia being sold.
Hussein Omar emphasized that he does not intend to sell any products to minors and is considering posting a sign that restricts entry to customers 21 or older.
“Everything I’m doing wrong, I’m trying to get right,” Hussein Omar said.
Mueller said he has asked the county’s attorney’s office, Environmental Services, and the planning department to contact Hussein Omar and clarify which items he isn’t allowed to sell on the property.
“All I want this shop owner to do is comply with the code,” Mueller said.
The store is open from 8 a.m. to 2 a.m.
Quite the eclectic inventory. Smoking accessories, clothing, paintings, drinks, sex pills(?) and knives.
Such a bad location choice. This should be in South PA, EPA, or Mountain View. The demographics is this Zip will not support this establishment.
For the record, this establishment isn’t in Menlo Park proper. It is just outside of the city limits in unincorporated San Mateo County. So whatever ordinance Menlo Park City Council passed is irrelevant. It’s all up to the county government.
The store is located in unincorporated county, not The City of Menlo Park. But the point applies. Paraphernalia is not allowed to be sold there.
My thanks to Mark for his comment about the illegality of selling tobacco paraphernalia without a county tobacco retailer permit, which, as I’m sure Mr. Hussein Omar knew from his brother Ahmed’s prior experience cannot be obtained for this address. The offered CBD products — where the real money is — may not be lawfully offered for the same reason.
Everything about this setup, such as the wink-wink “gift shop” name and the logo that unmistakably says “vape/smoke shop”, the business having obtained a state (not county) tobacco retail license for this address recently, the illegally-huge signage once again erected without a sign permit, and the concealment until opening day of visibilty into the store up to 7′ above the pavement (so we couldn’t see what the “gift shop” was preparing to sell), telegraphs the business’s deliberate scofflaw nature.
Even tiny shops that offer CBD gummies, etc. (and we can wonder what’s offered from under the table) make enormous profits in modern America. That’s how a “gift shop” with only about 650 sq. ft. of retail space can make economic sense.
The owner is not complying with County law and needs to be shut down. He says he will ‘consider’ posting signs about age restrictions?! It’s the law that requires it. Yank his business license
They are selling nitrous oxide along with balloons and are open until 2 am. This store is open in such bad faith and in the wrong neighborhood. I am surprised people are not yet organizing against the landlord for leasing to such a business. This does, in fact, not only put children in harm’s way, but also will depress home values, which some may view as a positive.
I am ready to take a shift walking a sign outside these bum’s store, who’s with me ? We dont need creeps like these 2 around here. Total scum. I am gonna look up the property records and see what we can do on the landlord.
I’m surprised there aren’t calls for the brothers to be given free airline passage courtesy of ICE Barbie and her thugs. That’s just the kind of thing it seems many of the commenters here would like to see. “Resident Rick Moen said he passed by the store and believed he saw tobacco products and paraphernalia being sold.” Really? From passing by?
Ben: No, not “from passing by.”
A few days before (as it turned out) the shop opened, I walked over and was intrigued by management’s deployment of butcher paper, up to 7′, to block even the smallest peek inside. This seemed anomalous: Usually, a shop preparing to open wants to encourage awareness of its goods, not prevent that awareness.
So, I borrowed a metal chair from in front of Avanti Pizza, stood on it, waved into the surveillance camera to my left, and took photos of the interior. I could clearly see tobacco paraphernalia in the front-left display case, despite the chancy lighting. Shortly after returning the chair, a very large pickup truck arrived that turned out to be driven by Hussein Omar himself. As he unlocked the door and opened it to enter, I stepped up to the doorway behind him and peeked inside again, to reconfirm using the suddenly better lighting: Yes, definitely bongs and such.
That merch was still there when county inspectors re-visited.