Waltham nail salon owner waits months to turn dark storefront into ‘Sun & Me’

Melody Luo unlocks the darkened storefront alongside her Main Street nail salon every few days, stepping past bubble-wrapped manicure tables that have sat unused for nearly a year.

She expected to open by spring of this year. Instead, the expansion of Queen Nails – a rebrand called Sun & Me – stalled for months amid miscommunication, language barriers and a permitting requirement that was lost in translation.

“I thought it would be simple,” Luo said in an interview conducted in Mandarin Chinese. “Just prepare the space and start building. I didn’t expect every step to take this long.”

Luo signed a lease for the adjoining commercial space in January 2025 after a driving school business closed. Her landlord offered three months of free rent, and she believed the city permitting would be finished in that time. Luo planned to add additional manicure and pedicure stations and relaunch as a consolidated business, Sun & Me.

Originally from Guangzhou, China, Luo immigrated to Massachusetts in 2012. She first met her husband, Sunny Li, years ago in Cambridge, where she had gone to him as a customer at the nail station where he worked. Years later, they became partners in both life and business. Today, Li works most days at their established shop in Westwood while Luo manages Queen Nails full-time.

“We thought expanding would make everything more comfortable,” he said.

Second life for an old salon

To avoid misunderstandings, Luo hired a Chinese-speaking contractor. But the contractor relied on a permit expediter to communicate with the city, creating a chain of translation between city staff, the expediter, the contractor and Luo.

Trouble began in February, when the building permit application was filed. Waltham’s commercial approval guidelines require projects with increased water and sewer demands to include a design-flow worksheet, known as an I&I (Infiltration and Inflow) calculation. The requirement passed through several people before reaching Luo, with the meaning shifting in Chinese and English along the way.

By the time the message reached Luo, “design-flow worksheet” had transformed into something she believed was a “sewer analysis report,” a term that triggered a search for the wrong craftsmen and wrong documents.

“We didn’t really understand what the city wanted,” Luo said. “Everyone kept telling us something different.”

Eventually, Luo asked her architect to visit the Waltham Building Department and Engineering Division with her. Speaking to staff, the intermediaries learned exactly what was needed. The permit was approved on July 10, nearly five months after the original submission.

Consistency is the city’s goal

Chief Building Inspector Brian Bower said the permitting system is meant to be predictable. Applicants receive a renovation checklist and are walked through each step.

Language barriers can widen communication gaps, Bower said. The department has one Spanish-speaking inspector but no Chinese-language resources. All forms are in English.

“People come in and say they were nervous,” he said. “When that happens, I bring them into my office and we go through everything together.”

Since becoming chief three years ago, Bower has emphasized internal consistency so applicants receive the same guidance regardless of who helps them. Whether it is explaining zoning basics, clarifying forms or reviewing documents, he said the goal is to make the department’s guidance stable and predictable.

More permits, more delays

Approval of the building permit did not mean construction could begin, however. Luo still needed plumbing and electrical permits, each requiring separate applications and inspections.

Then the communication chain broke again. Luo said the licensed expediter stopped responding.

“He would read my messages but barely reply,” Luo said. “Sometimes I sent so many messages and got only one very short answer.”

Her contractor found a replacement this fall and the change was immediate. Both the plumbing and electrical permits were approved on Nov. 20, allowing the contractor to build her illuminated Sun & Me sign and begin seeking city approval for it.

Bower said that although Luo’s case did not involve zoning issues, he often sees other business owners run into preventable setbacks. He said anyone considering purchasing or renting a new commercial space should visit the Building Department before signing a lease.

“People should come in and make sure their use is allowed in that zone,” Bower said. “I don’t want people to be afraid to come to the Building Department. My door’s open all the time for anybody.”

Waiting for lights

In July, Queen Nails closed for more than 20 days for repainting, the installation of new flooring and equipment upgrades. Customers now walk into a brighter, cleaner space, even though the expansion next door remains unused.

Luo unlocks the darkened unit every few days. She points to where she hopes customers will one day choose polish colors from a wall display, wider walkways and a Sun & Me sign glowing over Main Street.

“I’ve already invested so much time and money,” she said. “Now I just hope everything can move forward.”

This story was written in collaboration with the Boston University local journalism program.