Advocates for the closure said the bathhouses were places gay men met to have unprotected sex with strangers. A movement to close them began in the late 1980s during the height of the AIDS epidemic. In a more homophobic culture, they were one of the few places where gay men could meet one another. Others have noted the popularity of so-called “hookup” apps like Grindr and Scruff, which gay men use to meet other gay men on their mobile phones for casual sexual encounters.īathhouses or spas catering to gay men have existed in the United States since at least the 1920s. “You can go to the supermarket and play with the bananas and get a date.” “You don’t have to be in the closet as a gay man,” he said. He attributed that in part to a cultural change, which he said is having an impact on gay bathhouses across the country. Peter Sykes, owner of Hollywood Spa, said traffic at his bathhouse had declined. The closing of Flex comes on the heels of the closing of Hollywood Spa in Hollywood, announced in February. No one is answering calls at the Flex Los Angeles location. in Silver Lake, says simply “business closed.” As of this posting, the owner, Fleck & Associates of Cleveland, has not returned calls from. Flex Spa in Silver Lake apparently has closed.Ī signed posted last night at the entrance to the parking lot of the gay bathhouse, which is at 4424 Melrose Ave.
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