Yeah, retail involves too much stuff that attracts attention, especially foot traffic. In my area, that'd be noticed immediately by nosy neighbors. And naw, not east coast here - I'm in the land of Busch beer, the conservative backwards state of Misery...er, Missouri. (Go Cards!)

As for the MH, if you keep it far enough away when the plants are young, should be okay. But...seen an awful lot of people fry seedlings too. Since all they really need when they're very young (like less than 2 inches tall or so) is a little light, I'd just use a few CFLs, then when they get a set of real leaves or two, hit them with the MH from a distance. Save a little electricity that way too. Of course, cold weather season is almost upon us, so could be you'll WANT some extra heat from the lights. Kill two birds that way, good for plants, less expense on your gas bill! I closed all the vents on the floor with the lights here, and so far, the lights are all the heat that floor has needed. I wonder if running the lights is cheaper than gas heating. Heh.