Warren council committee discusses sexually oriented businesses

WARREN — Advertisements in out-of-town newspapers and items on the Internet may portray Warren as a place where sex can be purchased at massage parlors, but the city must treat them as legitimate businesses unless they are proven otherwise, the city’s safety-service director says.

“It’s not good for the image of the city,” Doug Franklin said of the ads. “We need to examine these businesses and make sure they’re following the laws.”

But Franklin said massage parlors are not sexually oriented businesses, despite their reputation, so legislation on such businesses is not the answer to that problem.

If they are breaking the law, the police department will have to root it out, Franklin said. The department has conducted undercover operations in the past, he added.

Franklin said the discussion today by city council’s health and welfare committee was designed mainly to address businesses such as those selling adult magazines and providing peep shows.

For the complete story, see Tuesday's Vindicator and Vindy.com