
April 22



Barry Square resident Thomas Mooney says that until about a month ago, his children recognized the prostitutes in their neighborhood.

They worked regularly at three massage parlors in Barry Square that police and residents say were fronts for brothels.

"They had been there since I was a kid," Mooney said. "My kids knew who the prostitutes were. We knew what corners they were on. We don't see that anymore."

In the past month, two of the massage parlors, The Aristocrat and Whispers, were closed down by a court order prohibiting the properties' owners from operating any businesses on the sites.

Tuesday evening, the Barry Square Revitalization Committee of Hartford Areas Rally Together celebrated by honoring 30 people and organizations who helped close down the parlors.

Among those honored at the committee's monthly meeting at St. Augustine's Church on Campfield Avenue were police officers, and representatives from the city manager's office, public works and the office of the state's attorney. The honorees received certificates and were toasted with three bottles of champagne, symbolizing the three massage parlors.

A court hearing is scheduled for Dec. 3 to decide if the parlors will be closed permanently. The third massage parlor, Alpha, is still under investigation.

"We want to acknowledge and thank these people and keep the momentum going," said Peg Stewart, co-chairwoman of the committee. "Folks are still skeptical about the permanence of the closings, but they do feel that when the city and the neighborhoods work together, things can happen."

Abraham Ford, director and zoning administrator for the city's department of licenses and inspections and one of the honorees, encouraged residents to continue to fight against the parlors.

"The people who kept vigilant and kept after these parlors to shut down are the ones to thank," he said. "If the neighborhoods pressure these people and let them know that they don't like what's going on, we can get rid of these problems. . . . Our main objective is to try to keep the neighbohood clean and neat."

Myrna Metayer-Rivera, a Barry Square resident for eight years, said the closing of the parlors is a major accomplishment in making the area safer as well.

"Since the massage parlors closed, I can walk freely around the neighborhood and not be hassled by drivers and men who think that just because I'm a woman walking around in the area that I'm a prostitute," she said. "I am more comfortable and not worried about being hassled. It's gotten better with a lot of hard work."

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