Tampa city council has given preliminary approval to stricter regulations pertaining to spas and massage parlors.
Tampa city councilman Mike Suarez says the state has addressed the regulation of bathhouses, spas and massage parlors. But he says those measures haven't done enough to crack down on the prostitution that police say goes on inside many of these places.
That's why the city has spent the past six months crafting an ordinance that would more tightly regulate those businesses, many of which police say are also fronts for sex trafficking.
Council has re-tooled the city's bathhouse ordinance to require those businesses to be licensed and subject to inspections.
Council will hold a final public hearing and vote on the measure January 11th.