Need vitamins? Soon you can roll up your sleeve in Morristown – Morristown Green

In Morristown, you can get waxed and massaged, manicured and pedicured, slimmed and trimmed, Botoxed and blow-dried.

Soon, you may be able to roll up your sleeve and get vitamined, too.

The town has ruled that intravenous vitamin drips are permitted in the downtown business zone. A Bedminster couple intends to rent a former fitness therapy storefront at 22 Speedwell Ave., next to the vacant Century 21 department store, to open The IV Vitamin Lounge.

Its envisioned as a spa-like lounge where certified nurses deliver intravenous fluids containing a blend of saline, vitamins, and supplements that are specially tailored to meet (patrons) individual needs, according to a zoning appeal by The Walsh Company.

Such hydration stations have popped up in Hoboken, Palm Beach in California, Miami and Delray Beach in Florida, and Nashville, Tenn.

Morristowns zoning department initially said no thanks, deeming this a medical use. The town core zone requires an active ground floor use, and medical doesnt qualify.

Ed and Lynn Walsh appealed the decision to the zoning board last month, arguing their venture is not a medical use, but rather a personal service, akin to a barbershop, salon or a recently approved cannabis shop.

The board agreed, memorializing its 6-1 vote in a resolution last week. Chairman Steve Pylypchuk was the lone dissenter.

It generates medical waste, its injected directly into the bloodstream, it requires licensed medical practitioners to perform it, which suggests the IV Vitamin Lounge is a medical operation, Pylypchuk said prior to his vote at Junes virtual zoning board meeting.

In October 2021, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration raised concerns about how such vitamin mixes are formulated, saying that sterile compounding activities being performed by business entities such as IV hydration clinics present risk and require continued evaluation.

The regulatory agency cited the case of a 50-year-old woman hospitalized for suspected septic shock and multi-organ failure after receiving an I.V. vitamin infusion at home. The FDA found numerous unsanitary conditions at a Santa Barbara, CA, medical clinic that prepared the vitamin mix.

The Walshes told the Morristown zoning board they will comply with state requirements for IV doses to be administered by licensed medical professionalsin this case, nurses. Formulations will meet industry standards, they said.

Its just another way to deliver vitamins, Vitolo said.

The board heard testimony portraying intravenous cocktails as antidotes to hangovers and jet lag, and a rejuvenation technique popular in Hollywood.

Ed Walsh, who runs a construction business, and his wife, a registered nurse, described their mission as enhancing wellness for walk-ins and regular clients, who will sit for intravenous sessions lasting 20 to 45 minutes. They plan to have one nurse practitioner and at least three registered nurses on staff. Their daughter also is an R.N.

In his cross-country travels over the last five years, Ed Walsh said, he has availed himself of such services for relief from migraines. Pro golfers use these services to ward off dehydration, he said, adding his frustration at having to drive to Clifton for the nearest hydration station.

The Walshes attorney, Frank Vitolo, compared intravenous treatments to chewable vitamins, in far superior form.

Theyre not curing, theyre not diagnosing, theyre not providing therapeutics to treat any disease or any ailments. Theyre simply providing hydration and vitamins in hopes of improving wellness, Vitolo said of his clients.

Such a personal service business is healthier than the sale of alcohol, cigarettes, fast food and marijuana, all permitted within this Morristown zone, the lawyer said.

Hollywood has known about this for decades, testified the Walshes prospective landlord, Doug Greenberger, asserting the IV Vitamin Lounge would be a boon to executives who needed to be fresh after red-eye flights home.

The pitch resonated with board member Anthony Murphy.

These new therapies are kind of cool, and Hollywood has known about these for a very long time. I saw something when I was in Thailand where you stick your feet in, and little fish eat the calluses on your feet.

Board member Noelle Nish supported the use, even though I cant stand needles.

Questions were raised about whether customer information required the same privacy protections as patient records. The applicants said such information would be treated with the same confidentiality one would expect from a salon.

While noting he was troubled by some medical aspects of the application, board member James Bednarz said its not strong enough for me to say this is a medical office.

After the favorable vote, Vitolo thanked the board on behalf of The I.V. Vitamin Lounge:

Hopefully, Ill see you in there on one of those big recliners, getting a post-hangover fix, he said.

This story has been updated with information from the FDA. Morristown Green has reached out to state health officials and medical experts for additional comments.

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Need vitamins? Soon you can roll up your sleeve in Morristown - Morristown Green