Modesto eyes temporary ban on more massage parlors

The city may temporarily ban new massage parlors from opening in Modesto and existing ones from expanding or relocating because of concerns over the growing number of these businesses, and human trafficking and prostitution.

Officials are expected to ask the City Council on Tuesday to approve an urgency ordinance for the 45-day moratorium. The moratorium can be extended for as long as two years with additional council approval.

The temporary ban comes after the city received eight applications for new massage and bodywork businesses in the first quarter of this year, which a city report says is double the number of applications from the same time period last year.

The report says the moratorium will give Modesto time to determine whether its regulations need to be changed to “protect against the potential harmful impacts on the community that may occur if the location of these massage and bodywork businesses are not regulated.”

Assembly Bill 1147, which took effect Jan. 1, gives California cities and counties more control over these businesses, including using zoning and land use regulations for determining the locations.

The Los Angeles Times has reported the bill was in response to local governments’ complaints that a 2008 state law regulating the massage industry created a loophole that made it difficult for them to regulate massage parlors and close ones suspected of illegal activity.

Modesto “has received numerous complaints from the public and local law enforcement officials regarding the increasing number of massage and bodywork establishments within the city and the negative impact that illegitimate massage and bodywork establishments are having on the city,” the proposed moratorium ordinance states.

“We do have a large number of massage parlors,” Police Chief Galen Carroll said in an email. “I have no issues whatsoever with legitimate businesses. However, there are many that are used as fronts for illegal operations, such as human trafficking/prostitution.

“One of my goals in the future, if staffing allows it, would be to create an undercover team that deals strictly with vice-related crimes, which includes keeping close track of massage parlors, conducting stings to ensure there are not illegal operations, working human trafficking complaints and cases as well as working with sex registrants. This is an area we have not had enough resources to truly give the attention and focus it deserves.”

There even is the paid website www.rubmaps.com, in which customers rate massage parlors around the country. The reviews describe sex acts performed by masseuses and warn potential customers to stay way from a parlor or spa if they are looking for something more than a massage.

The website lists reviews for about four dozen Modesto massage parlors, spas and bodywork businesses, though about a dozen are closed.

The proposed moratorium does not apply to current massage and bodywork businesses that renew their business licenses, provided they are complying with all applicable laws and regulations and the renewal is not for a relocation or expansion.

This story was originally published May 10, 2015 at 6:44 PM with the headline "Modesto eyes temporary ban on more massage parlors."