Hamilton massage parlour rubbed wrong way by city's fee hike

Increased fees used to hunt down dozens of illegal parlours

By Samantha Craggs, CBC News

Posted: Jan 24, 2013 7:03 AM ET

Last Updated: Jan 24, 2013 10:36 AM ET

 

Darlene Miller knows council doesn't like her occupation. But lately, she can't help but feel that it's legislating her out of existence.

Miller owns the Garden of Eden spa, an erotic massage parlour on Kenilworth Avenue North. She got a cold awakening last year when her new manager went to city hall for a license to be a body rub parlour manager.

In one year, it had increased from $307 to $1,235 — a steep fee for a minimum-wage position, she said.

For Miller, the impact is clear. The increased fee makes it harder for Hamilton's two licensed body rub parlours, which adhere to strict city guidelines and bylaws.

And it's not incurred by the estimated 35 underground fly-by-night operations who tax the limits of city bylaw enforcement officers and create a less safe environment for the women who work there.

Miller feels discriminated against "in a big way" for her profession, she said.

"It's insane," she said of the licensing fee increase. "They really want to cut down (the number of licenses) to zero. That's what I think they're doing."

Two locations allowed

Erotic massage parlours are included under a city bylaw covering "various businesses." It states that there can only be two parlours in the city, and specifies their locations. One is the Garden of Eden spa and the other is King Sherman Sauna on King Street East.

The licensed places are strictly enforced according to hours and standards of operation. The underground ones are not.

Attendants seem to prefer working at licensed establishments, Miller said. The city bylaw dictates that there must be a manager on at any time, so the women can't work alone. It also mandates that they close at 1 a.m., which eliminates some of the more drunken, rowdy clients. They can also work without the threat of legal action.

Council voted in March 2012 to increase the licensing fee. It was recommended with numerous other licenses that could be boosted to recover the city's cost of dealing with them, said Al Fletcher, Hamilton's acting manager of licensing and permits.

Part of the cost in question includes the expense of finding and busting illegal body rub parlours. The city finds them through ads in View magazine, neighbour complaints and other word-of-mouth tips, Fletcher said.

Cracking down on illegal parlours

The city struggles to keep up as they pop up with different names. They masquerade as holistic wellness services, or regular massage services. There are only five bylaw enforcement officers to keep up with all of them, Fletcher said.

It would make it easier for bylaw enforcement if more licenses were issued so the city knew where the parlours were and could make sure they followed the rules, he admitted.

"There's two sides to it, definitely."

Coun. Brad Clark was chair of the planning committee when the licensing fee increase passed. The fee helps the city crack down on illegal parlours, Clark said. The city just closed one in Clark's Stoney Creek ward after a two-year battle.

"The justification for the larger fees on adult services was based upon the cost to actually dig out the ones that were illegal and shut them down," he said.

Fees similar to other places, councillor says

As for whether the city is trying to discourage the licensed places, "it would be inappropriate to try to shut businesses down simply by higher fees," he said.

"If you look across Ontario, most of the fees for those types of places are very close."

Miller will appear before the city's licensing tribunal on Feb. 6. The tribunal looks at revoking, suspending or adding additional conditions to licenses, although the city will not yet identify which one applies to the Garden of Eden.

The city has also increased the licensing fee for a body rub attendant — from $304 to $435 in 2012. The Garden of Eden in the heart of Hamilton's industrial area, and in the past 10 years, business has slowed.

Miller worries that with the increased fees, competition from illegal parlours and the decline in business, her parlour has a rough future.

"Not only is the economy getting bad, but we're faced with competition from so many illegal places in one small city," she said. "It's been bad, bad, bad."

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