Roswell Police on Friday closed seven massage establishments that Chief James Conroy says were operating illegally.
No arrests were made. The businesses will not be allowed to reopen during Roswell’s moratorium on business licenses for massage parlors, Police Public Information Officer Tim Lupo said.
Roswell officials are working to amend loopholes in city ordinances and prevent owners from moving to another location after being closed. Lupo said the spas were operating without valid licenses and had either been previously closed or changed ownership as a way to continue operating illegally.
The closures are not related to the ongoing investigation of a human trafficking network in north Fulton that led to three arrests and the rescue of 20 victims in Roswell and other local cities last September.
During Roswell’s regular City Council meeting Monday, Planning and Zoning Director Jackie Deibel proposed that the city require conditional use for massage and spa establishments. That would require all applications for the new businesses to be brought to City Council for a vote.
Officials will continue to work on proposed changes to the Unified Development Code and the city code throughout the moratorium, which is set to end around mid-March.
“There are a great number of sole proprietor businesses that are massage therapists in our city that we want to make sure we protect; and that do not get harmed through the process of making sure that we eradicate the illegal folks in our city,” Mayor Kurt Wilson said.
Deibel says there are about 168 massage spa businesses in Roswell.
The locations that were closed last Friday include: Mei Massage, 10779 Alpharetta Highway; Pamper Your Feet, 880 Holcomb Bridge Road; Katy Massage, 463 Atlanta St.; Jin Spa, 1020 Woodstock Road; Foot and Body Massage, 861 Holcomb Bridge Road; Star Massage, 11235 Alpharetta Highway; and Enjoy Massage, 1580 Holcomb Bridge Road.
“We will be relentless in our pursuit of illegal establishments,” City Administrator Randy Knighton said during the Monday meeting. “We want to be absolutely clear that we don’t want them to even think about coming to the city of Roswell.”
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