If it were up to Mayor Halsema, the erotic center would come at the Europaboulevard in South. The mayor just announced this in a letter to the city council. The mayor has been waiting anxiously for months for the final preferred location to be announced.
AT5 / municipality of Amsterdam
Three locations were still in the picture for the new location for sex workers, two in the South and one in the North. According to the mayor, the Europaboulevard in South is the most suitable location. According to Halsema, research and discussions with stakeholders show that this location is ‘the most promising and has the fewest disadvantages’.
“The location is located in a strong, socially resilient neighborhood compared to the other investigated areas in the city. The location is outside the A10 ring road and is easily accessible by both public transport and car. There are good connections to existing events and visitor flows. The location is not in a residential area, the nearest homes are on the other side of a wide road that provides access to the A10 ring road,” says Halsema.
Reducing nuisance in the Red Light District
The erotic center should provide space for about a hundred sex workers and is intended to reduce nuisance in the Red Light District. According to the mayor, the situation in the red light district is no longer sustainable, and residents of the Red Light District have also been pushing for measures to improve the quality of life for years. According to the mayor, the center should be a place ‘where sexuality, eroticism, diversity and inclusivity are welcomed and celebrated’. There will also be catering, entertainment and culture in the building.
With the arrival of the hundred places in the erotic center, the city council wants to close about a hundred workplaces for sex workers in the city center. Halsema sees various options for closing the windows in the Red Light District, including an exchange of windows between the Red Light District and the erotic center, the buyout of operators or the adjustment of the zoning plan with the possibility of expropriation. In any case, closing the windows will cost money, for which the city council is setting up a fund.
Part of Amstelpark may become the Zuidasdok work site
The intended location for the erotic center is in the working area of the multibillion-dollar Zuidasdok project. The municipality is therefore investigating with the project organization whether replacement space can be found for this work area. The inventory of locations for alternative work areas is still ongoing. According to Halsema, it cannot yet be ruled out that part of the Amstelpark will have to be made available for this purpose. The Amstelpark is part of the Main Green Structure and a municipal monument.
“The simultaneous development creates a number of similarities with the contractor
Zuidasdok (e.g. safety zones, construction roads and accessibility). These interfaces
may result in additional costs and a longer lead time for the implementation of Zuidasdok
to have. These costs will be borne by the municipality of Amsterdam.”
Protest in South against the arrival of the erotic center – AT5
Lots of noise
There has been a lot of commotion about the plans for a year now. In the remaining neighborhoods on the shortlist (around the Rai in South and the NDSM wharf in North) there were well-attended and heated information meetings. Many local residents are not looking forward to the arrival of such a center in their neighborhood; they fear unsafe situations, nuisance and traffic congestion.
“Let’s just say what it really is,” said a speaker at the meeting in the Rai, “it will be a mega-large brothel with a hundred tendon rooms. It would be the largest brothel in Europe. And that will be here in our neighborhood full of schools My daughter goes to primary school here. It’s really incredible.” Both district councils also issued negative recommendations.
A Monster Alliance was even founded against the arrival of the erotic center of very diverse groups such as business associations, sports clubs and residents. Instead of an erotic center, the association would rather see the city council tackle the problems in the Red Light District itself.
Protest by the Monster Association against erotic center – AT5
Many sex workers also see no point in setting up an erotic center and prefer to continue working in the Red Light District. “We want to do something about the problems in the area,” protesting sex workers said earlier. “Do something about the drug dealers and the disrespectful behavior. Relocating us is not a solution.” They think they can work more safely in the Red Light District than in the newly established center.
But of course there are also supporters of the plans. Many LGBTIQ+ sex workers see such a center as a more inclusive and safer workplace. Some of the Red Light District residents, united in the Stop the Madness action group, are also in favor and hope that by reducing the number of windows, the neighborhood will become more liveable.
A majority of the municipal council supports the arrival of an erotic center in principle – it is also in the coalition agreement of PvdA, GroenLinks and D66 – but there are still many questions about the location and what that means for the realization of the plans. Halsema’s plans will be discussed in the council early next year.
Last week, AT5 made this overview of the history of the erotic center:
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2023-12-18 15:29:51
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