Town of Colonie

TIME WAS ON SIDE OF PARLOR:

The Fuller Road massage parlor that police say was run by illegal immigrants also offering sex acts for money has been raided twice in as many years -- a nuisance by most standard definitions.

But the sweeps came far enough apart -- a shade over 24 months -- to put the landlord well out of reach of the town's public nuisance law, a tool designed to crack down on problem properties.

Town officials have never used the law in the three years since it was passed -- a fact some say could be a measure of judiciousness rather than neglect.
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The public nuisance law uses a points-based demerit system similar to what the Department of Motor Vehicles uses with drivers licenses.

If business or property owners accumulate enough points within 12 or 18 months, the town could close the premises or impose a fine or a jail term.
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Nuisance abatement laws exist in cities and towns around the state, most notably in New York City, where they were used to crack down on gambling, drug use and prostitution.

Schenectady last month began trying to assert greater control over a controversial Union Street bed-and-breakfast that doubles as a hub for local swingers under its nuisance abatement law. Troy used its law to shut down the Eldorado last year, alleging numerous liquor law violations and chronic arrests at the Fourth Street bar and hotel.

Heider and Town Attorney Arnis Zilgme both cautioned that much depends on whether the property owner knew what was going on. They also stress the law's application depends a great deal on the individual circumstances of each case.