In a move that’s already stirring debate far beyond city limits, officials in Minneapolis are considering whether to roll back long-standing restrictions on bathhouses that permit sexual activity between consenting adults.

The proposal—now under review by the City Council—would effectively revive a type of venue that disappeared decades ago during the height of the AIDS crisis. Critics say the shift reflects misplaced priorities, while supporters argue it’s about modernizing public health policy.

At the center of the debate is a plan to rewrite city ordinances by stripping what proponents call “stigmatizing language” and replacing it with “new definitions to be inclusive of establishments where sexual activity between consenting adults may be facilitated,” according to reporting that first brought the issue to light.

These establishments, often referred to as bathhouses or “gay saunas,” were once common. But in 1988, Minneapolis outlawed businesses that enabled what it termed “high-risk sexual conduct,” including “oral, anal, and vaginal sex for pay,” as officials scrambled to respond to the AIDS epidemic.

Now, nearly four decades later, activists and some city leaders want to revisit that decision.

The push gained momentum after a 2023 update to the ordinance language, driven in part by the Safer Sex Spaces Coalition. The group has been explicit about its mission, describing it as “repealing the outdated and ineffective local laws (ordinances) that made facilitating sexual conduct in commercial spaces illegal and modernizing the code to allow for safer sex spaces.”

Supporters argue that prohibition hasn’t eliminated such activity—it has only pushed it underground.

The coalition contends: “The Minneapolis Health Department and other public health organizations acknowledge this ordinance is no longer the tool needed to promote public health. Social science research tells us that commercial sex spaces, like gay saunas, are important for promoting safer sex practices, enhancing HIV prevention, and increasing access to testing and treatment.”

They add, “These spaces also enhance feelings of identity, camaraderie, authenticity, and belonging. They are spaces where people overcome isolation and develop a sense of community and pride.”

Still, not everyone is convinced. Opponents question whether city leaders should be normalizing or regulating venues centered on explicit sexual activity—especially given the historical context that led to their closure in the first place.

City Council member Jason Chavez has defended the proposal, framing it as a matter of civil liberties and community equity. “LGBTQIA+ gathering spaces, including bathhouses, have long been targeted by criminalization and policing, and our communities have paid a devastating price for that,” he said.

The last such venue in the city, the 315 Health Club, shut down in 1988 just before the ban took effect. Notably, it had already scaled back its most controversial offerings—closing so-called “orgy rooms” two years earlier—while reportedly distributing free condoms and AIDS prevention information prior to its closure.