Nahant Town Meeting to vote on massage parlor rules, regulations

NAHANT – One of the topics of discussion at the annual Town Meeting this year will be the rules and regulations governing establishments that offer massages.An article on the April 25 Town Meeting warrant asks Town Meeting to require any establishment offering massages, baths or showers for a fee to have a license issued by the Board of Selectmen, which also doubles as the Board of Health. If the article is passed by Town Meeting, the license fee for each establishment would be $100. The license would not be transferable and would expire each year on Dec. 31.If passed, the article would also restrict the operating hours of any establishment offering these types of services from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m., unless otherwise authorized in writing by the Board of Selectmen.If the proposed bylaw is adopted by Town Meeting, it would also require every room used for massage to be equipped with doors that cannot be locked and have a window “large enough to permit visual observation of the entire room from the outside of the room.” It also requires all rooms used for massages or baths to be well lit so “all parts of the room are clearly visible at all times.”The proposal prohibits individuals giving the massage from performing any act that would violate state or local laws regarding illicit sexual conduct and requires employees to wear clothing that does not expose the genitals or buttocks.Other provisions governing the establishments in the warrant article would require the premises to be sanitary, have an adequate supply of hot and cold running water and it must be connected to a sewer system that is approved by the Board of Health.If the establishment is used concurrently by both sexes, it is required to have separate bathrooms and showers for male and females. The proposed bylaw revision would also permit the treatment of any individual, who has a communicable disease unless a written statement is received the condition is no longer contagious. It also requires anyone who holds a massage permit to have a tuberculosis test every two years.If adopted by Town Meeting, the proposed bylaw would not apply to nursing homes, hospitals, convalescence homes or similarly licensed institutions.Nahant Health Agent John Coulon explained the majority of the provisions in the proposed bylaw are mandates already set forth by the state.