Belvidere leaders hope new licenses will curb illegal activity at massage parlors -...

[massage]

Susan Vela Staff writer @susanvela
BELVIDERE — Businesses will be required to get city-issued licenses that will let officials shut down any new massage parlors where criminal activity is happening.

City Council approved the ordinance tonight with a 6-4 vote.

“It takes all of two minutes to fill out,” Mayor Mike Chamberlain said of the license. “This is innocuous.”

The ordinance came to be after the Sept. 14 raids of C’est La Vie Health Spa & Modeling, 401 S. State St.; Spa Tui-Na, 120 N. State St.; Executive Relaxation Station, 134 N. State St.; and Royal Oriental Massage, 404 S. State St.

Fourteen people were arrested on charges of prostitution and Massage License Act violations.

Opposing votes were cast by aldermen Clayton Stevens, 1st Ward; Michael Borowicz and Daniel Snow, 2nd Ward; and Wendy Frank, 3rd Ward.

“I’m not a big fan of more layers of government,” Snow said. “There’s already laws in place that can curb all this illicit activity.”

The council’s majority wanted more bite in their code for those businesses suspected of criminal activity. City officials will have the ability to suspend or revoke the free licenses. Potential fines go up to $500.

Since September, a new massage business has opened in Royal Oriental Massage’s old location.

The massage parlor raids accompanied fears of human trafficking through Belvidere. The region has placed increased attention on human trafficking, with a focus on ending demand.

Susan Vela: 815-987-1392; svela@rrstar.com; @susanvela

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