# Mega-Brothel Voted Down in Sydney **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 22, 2011, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211 "2011-09-22T16:34:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/1 "2011-09-22T16:34:05Z")
Story [here](http://news.yahoo.com/australian-mega-brothel-scotched-055339537.html). The current Stiletto brothel in the Camperdown section of Sydney, promotes itself as “the world’s finest short stay boutique hotel and Sydney brothel.” And at A$370 (US$361) an hour, it had better be! But they wanted to turn themselves into Australia’s largest brothel, with 40 working rooms and a wing for group bookings. Alas! It was not to be. City councilor’s rejected the application, not out of moral qualms, but rather because it would have threatened all the mom-and-pop brothels in the area. Really! “‘This brothel is the Westfield of brothels,’ said councillor Shayne Mallard, referring to Australia’s largest shopping mall chain.” He went on to say: “… we have a policy of anti-clustering, spreading them out.” Gee, I wonder how much Stiletto charges for that. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/2 "2011-09-22T16:46:42Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > because it would have threatened all the mom-and-pop brothels in the area. What do they do on “take your kid to work” day? ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/3 "2011-09-22T16:51:03Z")
Typical government getting in the way of the free brothel market. We need megabrothels! They provide important jobs at great prices for the consumer. ---
**Author:** ![Teufelblitz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@Teufelblitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teufelblitz)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/4 "2011-09-22T17:16:26Z")
Would they get old people to greet customers at the door? ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/5 "2011-09-22T18:48:11Z")
You save a quite a few dollars using the self check out. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/6 "2011-09-22T18:57:11Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > Typical government getting in the way of the free brothel market. We need megabrothels! They provide important jobs at great prices for the consumer. Aus$370/hour is great prices? Granted, I’ve never visited a brothel, so I’m not aware of current market prices, but that sounds pretty high to me. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/7 "2011-09-22T19:23:52Z")
Yeah, that seems like a lot of money to me. According to their website, if you want one of the Level 2 suites, you have to book it for a minimum of 3 hours. ---
**Author:** ![polar\_bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ec9cab/32.png) [@polar\_bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/polar_bear)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/8 "2011-09-22T20:06:34Z")
[quote=“Gary “Wombat” Robson, post:6, topic:597211”] Aus$370/hour is great prices? Granted, I’ve never visited a brothel, so I’m not aware of current market prices, but that sounds pretty high to me. [/QUOTE] That really is mightily pricy. You’re better off in one of the German mega brothels. I love the anti monopoly reasoning though:p even though there is plenty of countries that have legalized prostitution, it is alway surprising when politicians treat it like any other business. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/9 "2011-09-22T20:32:13Z")
_Brothel Going Down, Full Nudes at Sex_ ---
**Author:** ![Agent\_Foxtrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc29f/32.png) [@Agent\_Foxtrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agent_Foxtrot)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/10 "2011-09-22T20:37:43Z")
> [@Teufelblitz](#): > > Would they get old people to greet customers at the door? No, they’d get young people. My god, it’s the beginnings of, “Welcome to Costco. I love you.”!! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/11 "2011-09-22T21:33:40Z")
I think “Mom and Pop brothels” has to be the phrase of the day. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/12 "2011-09-22T21:54:26Z")
That’s expensive? I have clients who are brothel workers in NV (I work for a tax prep firm, get your mind out of the gutter!) and the cheap ones start at like, $500 an hour with the average price being almost $1000 an hour. The prices in the OP seem pretty inline with professional, regulated prostitution. ---
**Author:** ![Incubus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c68b51/32.png) [@Incubus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Incubus)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/13 "2011-09-22T22:32:24Z")
Depends on the venue. Back when Craigslist had ‘erotic services’, the going rate for escorts seemed to be between 200 and 300 an hour. I fully support megabrothels, after all, the savings are present when you buy in bulk! I’ll take a pack of 5 hookers for $875 please 😉 ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/14 "2011-09-22T22:38:10Z")
> [@DiosaBellissima](#): > > That’s expensive? I have clients who are brothel workers in NV (I work for a tax prep firm, get your mind out of the gutter!) and the cheap ones start at like, $500 an hour with the average price being almost $1000 an hour. > > The prices in the OP seem pretty inline with professional, regulated prostitution. You forgot to add “on a very limited scale, in the United States”. I’m sure pricing is much lower in places in Europe where you have a lot more competition and levels of service quality. Where it also can be professional and regulated. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/15 "2011-09-22T22:42:12Z")
AskNott: > [@](#): > > I think “Mom and Pop brothels” has to be the phrase of the day. I dunno, “I have to go clean my fruit fly ovaries” is hard to beat. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/16 "2011-09-22T22:44:24Z")
So, if they became the largest like Walmart amongst the smaller mom and pop cathouses, would that make them a big box brothel? And would anyone want to go to a _big box_ brothel? I do like the idea of Walmart someday expanding into the brothel fields - if you look at the clientel that goes to our local Walmart, they already have their customer base as well as their potential employees. ---
**Author:** ![polar\_bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ec9cab/32.png) [@polar\_bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/polar_bear)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/17 "2011-09-22T23:05:07Z")
> [@DiosaBellissima](#): > > That’s expensive? I have clients who are brothel workers in NV (I work for a tax prep firm, get your mind out of the gutter!) and the cheap ones start at like, $500 an hour with the average price being almost $1000 an hour. > > The prices in the OP seem pretty inline with professional, regulated prostitution. > [@Incubus](#): > > Depends on the venue. Back when Craigslist had ‘erotic services’, the going rate for escorts seemed to be between 200 and 300 an hour. > > I fully support megabrothels, after all, the savings are present when you buy in bulk! > > I’ll take a pack of 5 hookers for $875 please 😉 Most brothels in Germany start a 50 euro for half an hour and either 75 or 100 for an hour. Needless to say there are both cheaper and more expensive venues to be found. Don’t ask how I know 🙂 If you’re not to particular about the girls you’re having sex with, there are also flat rate clubs that charge less than 100 euro a day… ---
**Author:** ![Gleena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b3f665/32.png) [@Gleena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gleena)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/18 "2011-09-22T23:18:01Z")
As someone who literally lives in the neighborhood, the council here is spot on. There are small, unobtrusive (yes, Mom and Pop) brothels everywhere. You would almost not know they were there unless you knew what you were looking for. (Generally, this is an ambiguously open door to a stairway with bright pink walls.) Most of the names are the street address (The 70 Enmore Road or something.) A huge one would not only put these smaller ones out of business, but also increase traffic. Good on them, I say. Now, my favourite brothel story: I went for a massage (an actual, Chinese massage, not the sort that has a happy ending, plus I’m a girl, for god’s sake) and there was a brothel upstairs. It was a Saturday, around noon, so not Prime Brothel Activity Time or anything. While I’m getting my massage, there was an almighty CRASH from upstairs, then furniture moving, then some argument, then another CRASH, then more furniture moving, then people stomping around, then…silence. The Chinese lady of about 70 years of age who was giving me a massage stopped, looked up and said, “I hope she make good money!” Could not. stop. laughing. ---
**Author:** ![Throatwarbler\_Mangrove](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8c91f0/32.png) [@Throatwarbler\_Mangrove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Throatwarbler_Mangrove)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/19 "2011-09-22T23:33:36Z")
Australia is in the throes of [Dutch disease](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_disease), which explains the high prices in USD terms. The manufacturing sector is also shrinking as a result. Brothels are too important to be left to the free market. A single payer solution would improve economies of scale and ensure equal access for all. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2011, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211/20 "2011-09-22T23:45:12Z")
> [@Incubus](#): > > I’ll take a pack of 5 hookers for $875 please 😉 One of the problems with buying perishables in bulk is that they may go off before you have them. I guess with buying hookers in bulk it would be the other way around. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mega-brothel-voted-down-in-sydney/597211.md?page=2)