In the 1970’s and early 80’s San Francisco was home to dozens of gay bathhouses. But by 1987, they had all been shut down.
Now, the city has one official queer sex club: Eros, on Turk Street. But it’s a dry facility. If you want a steam room, a sauna, or a hot tub, you have to cross the bridge and head to Berkeley’s Steamworks.
Since 2020, Board President Mandelman has introduced four pieces of legislation to help bring gay bathhouses back to the city.
“The good news is that would-be operators are attempting to use these pieces of legislation and actually reopen the bathhouses. The bad news is that each operator who does this finds seemingly a new barrier,” Mandelman explained.
The legislation introduced on Tuesday was co-sponsored by Supervisor Matt Dorsey. It exempts adult sex venues and adult businesses from a planning code rule that requires them to have transparent, street-facing windows. Things like reproductive health clinics, religious institutions, and schools are all exempted from this rule already.
"This ordinance would extend that recognition or that exemption to adult sex venues and adult businesses,” said Mandelman.
The legislation heads next to the planning commission.
