Hospitality industry also opposes Amsterdam's plans for erotic center

The Amsterdam branch of the hospitality association KHN has joined the protest against the Dutch capital’s plans to close some window brothels in the Red Light District and open an Erotic Center. Catering entrepreneurs in the Red Light District are very worried about the plans, the trade association told De Telegraaf.

“Everyone realizes that this is not the solution,” the KHN’s regional spokesperson told the newspaper. “We do not believe that the windows create the crowds here. There is much more going on. It is a compact area that is very attractive to tourists.”

According to the KHN, all the recent measures taken by Amsterdam focus much more on the municipality’s image than actually addressing problems. The spokesperson referred to the ban on smoking weed on the street in the Red Light District and earlier closing times for window brothels and catering establishments in the area. “Every few months, there are new restrictions, which do not lead to fewer criminals in the area.”

The city wants to open an Erotic Center and move most sex workers out of the Red Light District in an effort to reduce pressure on the crowded area. Mayor Femke Halsema previously said that a “substantial number” of windows would close. She wants the Erotic Center to be an “attractive alternative” to the Red Light District, according to AT5.

The city’s plans sparked immediate protest from residents of Noord and Zuid - the potential locations for the Erotic Center - and from sex workers who don’t want to leave De Wallen.