Originally Posted on terb.ca

MASSAGE PARLOURS - A SCOURGE IN OUR NEIGHBOUHOODS? Newsletter of Councillor Bill Saundercook
I've become increasingly concerned about the operations of massage parlours and "holistic centres" in our neighbourhoods. I am upset and worried about the types of activities that take place within some of their premises, and the various unsavoury criminal elements that they sometimes attract.

A Federal sub-committee was recently struck to study the adequacy of current Criminal Code provisions relationg to prostitution. You may not know this interesting fact; at present it isn't illegal to pay or receive payment for sexual services. What is illegal is to communicate in a public place for purposes of arranging that service.

Following a Februray 28th stabbing in front of a massage parlour on Dundas Street West, I decided to vigorously pursue the unsavoury aspects that are often associated with these businesses, and I am attempting a multi-prong approach.
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(Note concerning this stabbing in front of Sunshine Spa which had nothing whatsoever to to with the massage parlor: "I work in the area, Sunshine Spa is literally a few hundred steps from his office. I've never heard of Sunshine Spa ever having a problem. Yet the 7-11 staff in the area tells me of packs of teens going into his store and robbing him. Whats the posturing Bill Saundercook doing about that? Nothing! He'd rather see his name in the paper as some self-rightous "champion of morality". As was mentioned before he chooses to neglect the fact that the A& R incident was about an vengeful ex-boyfriend but blames the massage parlour. Typical politican grandstanding!")
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The City's Municipal Licensing and Standards department regulates massage parlours and holistic centres. At a recent Planning & Transportation Committee I succeeded in getting the Committee's support to require that there be more stringent controls of massage parlours. The Committee agreed with my request for staff to prepare a report that looks at the following issues.

- Clarification of current definitions and classifications of holistic centres and body rub parlours.
- A requirement that all employees of body rub parlours must be twenty-one years of age or older.
- A requirement that all employees of body rub parlours must be Canadian citizens, or legally in Canada.
- A requirement that body rub parlours provide proof of proper filing of GST and PST.
- A requirement than an annual audit be conducted on all body rub parlours.
- A requirement that body rub parlours' hours of operation be restricted to 9:00am-5:00pm.
- A requirement that all employees of body rub parlours be required to have appropriate certification and training in proper hygiene practices and expertise in their speciality.
- A requirement that the names of all body rub parlours be reviewed and approved by the city.

If you live close to one of these operations, and observe suspicious activities, please don't hesitate to call my office. You may want to record licence plate numbers and any other pertinent information. If we want to change what is tolerated today, we will all have to work together.

As someone else said, which I agree with:
I agree that there is a need to control criminal elements and exploitation of foreign, under age sex workers (that's a no brainer, like saying yes to Mom and Apple pie) but I disagree with his basic assumption that it it's wrong for 2 consenting adults to do what ever they agree to do behind closed doors, for a fee or otherwise. he says "You may not know this interesting fact; at present it isn't illegal to pay or receive payment for sexual services. What is illegal is to communicate in a public place for purposes of arranging that service." I say "SO? What's the matter with that!""

I also don't have a major beef with most of his proposed requirements except the 9-5 one, (that's ridiculous) and his encouraging people to write down licence plate numbers.
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A counter proposal:
CONVENIENCE STORES AND GAS BARS - A SCOURGE IN OUR NEIGHBOUHOODS?
I've become increasingly concerned about the operations of convenience stores and gas bars in our neighbourhoods. I am upset and worried about the types of activities that take place within some of their premises, and the various unsavoury criminal elements that they sometimes attract. These type of business are very cash oriented and attract gun weilding criminals who rob such establishments on a daily basis. In fact, in the past year alone, seven people have been murdered in an around such Convenience stores and gas bars. This would in and of itself not be so alarming but for the fact that these guns were not duly registered.

Since I before I last got laid, Federal sub-committees have been studying the the adequacy of current Criminal Code provisions relating to price fixing at the gas bars and the tobacco industry's targetted advertsing towards encouraging children to begin smoking. This is a great example of the type of economic growth sector that our Toronto economy is becoming increasingly based upon. This complex issue of outrageous gas prices in an oil rich country and cigarettes causing billions of dollars of medical expenses issue is not so easy to address as -say- hand jobs ant massage parlours- but "Great Minds" and consultants are hard at work drafting new funding requests for next year's round of budgeting for these "studies".

You may not know this interesting fact; at present it isn't illegal to raise or lower prices in sync with other neighbouring businesses nor is it illegal to sell the deadly cancer causing tobacco products they sell at these establishments. What is illegal is to sell these products without the municipal, provincial and federal governments recieving their portion of the sale of these over priced, deadly but surprisingly legal products.

Following a stabbing in front of a convenience store in which a completely unrelated ongoing domestic dispute resulted in the boyfriend of the victim coming to the victim's place of work, luring her out onto the street nd stabbing her when she refused to continue their relationship I decided to use this as a flimsy excuse to grandstand and vigorously pursue the unsavoury aspects that are often associated with these businesses,

I am attempting a multi-prong approach.

It is my intention to ensure that from now on all convenience store sales are removed from fixed premises with even the most basic of security and supervision. Such transactions, including the sale of gasoline will likely be conducted on an ad hoc basis in various locations throughout the ward. Please do not be alarmed when you find cigarette wrappers, spilled gasoline or other evidence of this unsavoury business on your driveway, back alley, or neighbourhood school parking lots.

Also, please do your part and do not dispose of such debris in your Green Compost Bin or recyling bin. City workers will be kept very busy in the foreseable future enforcing this crackdown and resources may have to be diverted from litter collection (oops there I go showing my age- there IS NO litter collectors anymore. Silly me!)

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