May 25, 2007 | Sex & Society

CocoDorm under fire -- again

It's a quiet, tree-lined neighborhood where kids play in the streets, and a Catholic Church sits just around the corner. Oh, and don't forget the Internet sex-site nestled in amongst them all. Just another sunny day in suburbia, until the neighbours start talking. 

CocoDorm, a porn site focussed on young black men, has come under fire for using a home in a south Miami neighborhood for their online live-sex operations. Local residents and the media were first notified about it when an anonymous flyer and DVD were sent around town exposing the house and all that went on inside.

On Tuesday, the Miami Police, code inspectors, and a very eager news crew from NBC approached the home. When no one answered, a notice was posted advising the company of several local codes they were violating, including operating an adult business in a residential area.

The media, of course, played up the gay porn angle, interviewing shocked and disgusted neighbors. They were also very quick to relate the story to CocoDorm's past difficulties in Chicago.

As BananaGuide reported last year, the company was accused of putting their actors at risk for STDs. "We uncovered significant amount of sexually transmitted diseases, a significant number of cases of HIV along with syphilis and gonorrhea," said Chris Brown, an assistant commissioner for the Chicago Department of Public Health. CocoDorm has been known to showcase bareback sex in their videos.

Rather than facing the charges, the company packed up and moved to Miami.

Frank Roberts, who writes for FlavaLife - a g-rated magazine related to CocoDorm - has come to the defence of the beleagured company. He argues that CocoDorm has changed since the Chicago incident. "One year later, and it seems as though the company has remained totally consistent: there have been no instances of unsafe sex documented in CocoDorm Miami nor have their (sic) been any new raw videos produced." However, the orginal bareback titles are, of course, still available.

Philip Bleicher, owner of CocoDorm, has not commented on these recent issues. Perhaps he's too busy checking out real estate listings for his next last minute move.

• Cocodorm arouses the city's ire [Miami New Times]
• The house next door [NBC6]