The following article appeared in the October 12 edition of the Guelph Tribune:
Coun. Vicki Beard apologized at Thursday’s allcandidates Ward 2 meeting for comments she’d make on national radio earlier that day on the subject of massage parlours.
On the CBC program The Current, Beard said, she’d “misrepresented the facts” about licensing of body rub parlours. The truth, she said at the allcandidates meeting, is that Guelph does not license massage parlours and has no zoning category that permits them to exist.
“I apologize if my comments caused harm to the city’s reputation,” she said in response to a question put to all candidates about whether body rub parlours should be licensed. She also apologized to people who have holistic businesses in Guelph.
In 2008, council approved new rules aimed at regulating businesses providing massage services.
The changes deleted the “alternative health care” category from the city’s business licence bylaw and added a new “holistic services” category that includes massage.
The new rules, aimed at discouraging erotic body rub parlours, included a requirement that operators and practitioners have city-issued photo identification. They must also be members in good standing of an approved holistic association.
“It is important to remember that no single provision will be effective in regulating activities related to massage services,” a city staff report said at the time. “It will be a combination of regulations as well as active enforcement that will improve the city’s ability to regulate massage services.”
At the time, the Reflexology Registration Council of Ontario applauded the new rules, including fees and restrictions on hours of operation.