‘Love motel’ upsets neighbours in New Zealand

AUCKLAND - New Zealand’s first so-called “love motel”, which will allow its customers to book rooms on hourly basis for “private intimacy”, is sparking outrage in Auckland with neighbours saying it is nothing more than a sleazy brothel.

The motel Desire will look just like other love motels around the world where couples and singles come for private intimacy tied to the clock, said its spokesperson Luke Canton.

“Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people enjoy these facilities all over the world, especially South East Asia and Brazil,” he says.

The building which was earlier used as garage will be transformed into 11 themed rooms with a lobby, open between 11.00 a.m and 3.00a.m.

However, a petition has been signed and local business owners are now getting legal advice to try to stop the venture before it starts.

The owners of Desire, on the other hand, have applied for a brothel licence on the grounds that women may be available at the motel for those who go to the premises alone, reports tvnz.co.nz.

Fred Collie, a local businessman, says there is a moral issue in it for him.

“I don’t want a brothel on my back doorstep and I don’t want it interfering with my tenants,” Fred Collie, a local businessman, was quoted as saying.

But Canton says the motel will not be seedy. “It’s not a seedy back alleyway establishment that some people think it is.”