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News and Media

1 April 2009
Brothels in Burwood

Burwood Council was joined by an unlikely ally in opposition to a proposed brothel in Railway Pde - another brothel.
Burwood mayor Lesley Furneaux-Cook said she found it interesting that one of the objectors for a development application at the March 24 meeting was one of the area’s existing legal brothels.

“[They objected] to this brothel because they said they had to jump through a few more hoops [during their own application],” Cr Furneaux-Cook said.
“That brothel went through by the Land and Environment Court.”
Council officers recommended refusal of the proposed Railway Pde brothel for a variety of reasons, including that it was near a church and businesses often visited by children, and concluded that is was not in the public’s interest.
“Whether it is legal or illegal, I say no to brothels in Burwood,” Liberal councillor John Sidoti said.
“While I am here in Burwood I will guarantee that I will never support a brothel here, legal or illegal.”

The application was for the use of an existing two storey commercial building as a brothel on the ground level and residential use of the units located on the first floor.
During the meeting Cr Furneaux-Cook said she was also surprised that one of the arguments the applicant used to maintain operations was that it had been operating for years -illegally - without any problems.

In the council’s report it states that council staff were not satisfied with documentation that claims the brothel began operations in 1989 and was exempt from closure.
Burwood has had a long stance against brothels in the area. Last year it fined an illegal brothel $90,000 for using the premises without development consent.
Currently there are two legal brothels operating in Burwood, both of which had been granted approval by the Land and Environment Court, after council rejected their applications.
A council spokesman said it constantly investigated illegal brothels, and “thanks to strict and rapid legal action, they normally leave the premises or cease the activity”.