San Francisco could be getting a new gay bathhouse, and for a city with this much queer history, that is considerably more interesting than a new sauna.

Sanctum Baths, proposed for 40 12th Street, won unanimous Planning Commission approval on November 5.

According to the Bay Area Reporter’s coverage of the 7–0 vote, businessman Kevin Born is targeting a late 2027 opening for the two-story venue.

The estimated price tag is around $5 million, and substantial work remains before anyone checks in a bag and collects a towel.

A place to meet, in every sense

Bathhouses have always had an obvious attraction: men meeting men for sex.

But their place in gay life also includes something less easily reduced to a punchline: conversation, companionship and the chance to spend time among people who understand your desires without an explanation.

In its history of the 1984 bathhouse battles, the San Francisco AIDS Foundation describes spaces that combined sexual encounters with social life.

Their closure came amid a devastating epidemic and bitter arguments about health, civil liberties and how best to protect gay men.

Importantly, the legal history is more complicated than a single blanket ban: restrictions on private rooms and requirements to monitor sexual activity effectively closed the traditional bathhouses, while other sex clubs later operated under different conditions.

Sanctum would revive a particular kind of venue, rather than introduce sexual meeting places to a city that had none.

Privacy is part of the plan

Born’s presentation to the Planning Commission outlined controlled entry, changing facilities, showers, saunas, steam amenities and lounge areas, alongside cleaning procedures, trained staff and access to prevention information.

Street-facing windows presented a practical challenge: storefront transparency rules do not necessarily suit customers seeking discretion.

PinkNews reports that zoning administrator Corey Teague said he would grant an exemption from the clear-window requirement.

That is meaningful progress, but planning approval is not a completed building or final permission to operate.

Architectural work, further permitting and construction still stand between this proposal and opening night.

For now, the significance is the possibility: another place where gay men could connect in person, with pleasure and community both part of the picture.

The towels can wait. The history is already worth talking about.

📷 Illustration photo (Pexels)

Pete Buttigieg left the Department of Transportation in January 2025. After a nationwide flight disruption on November 13, his name was once again being invoked by people pointing backwards for responsibility.

Among them was Hollywood executive Ari Emanuel — whom Deadline identifies as someone Donald Trump considers a close friend.

That connection gives useful context to an attack that arrived while Trump’s own administration was handling the crisis.

A familiar direction for the finger-pointing

Emanuel accused Buttigieg of making “zero progress” modernising the FAA despite four years in office and infrastructure funding. He began by acknowledging that responsibility was shared, before directing the substance of his criticism at the former secretary.

Current Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy also criticised the handling of aviation infrastructure under previous administrations.

This was not his first public attempt to place responsibility on the Biden years.

During Newark’s air traffic disruptions in May 2025, ABC News reported that Duffy specifically blamed Biden and Buttigieg, alleging that their administration had mishandled infrastructure and a transfer of air traffic control responsibilities.

Those were Duffy’s accusations, rather than an independent finding resolving responsibility for those problems.

The recurring political message is clear: when disruption happens now, the administration points to what it inherited.

Pete’s response: focus on the work

Buttigieg disputed the suggestion that his administration had failed to make upgrades.

As TheWrap reports, he recalled responding to an outage during his tenure by concentrating on fixing the problem instead of blaming the preceding Trump administration.

He also praised the career employees working at the FAA and Department of Transportation and called for clearer answers.

Buttigieg, who is married to teacher and author Chasten Buttigieg, remains a prominent gay public figure. In this exchange, however, the dispute concerns his record in office and the responsibilities of those who succeeded him.

What still needs explaining

The FAA initially reported communications problems affecting multiple air traffic control centres.

The Associated Press reported that the ground stop was lifted Friday evening after approximately five hours. Officials described new technology overloading older equipment while also saying the cause remained under investigation.

That does not settle which decisions caused the failure or how responsibility should be divided.

Previous administrations’ records deserve examination. But inherited problems do not remove the current administration’s obligation to explain its own decisions and response.

For passengers facing missed connections and disrupted plans, looking backwards is useful only if it helps produce a more reliable system now.

The blame game already has plenty of departures. Travellers are waiting for their flights.

📷 U.S. Congress / Wikipedia

People stopped at tables offering free government-sponsored cellphones. Federal prosecutors say their personal information then became the starting point for HIV medication prescriptions they had never sought.

That is the human concern behind a Jacksonville fraud case involving approximately $51 million in insurance reimbursements.

What prosecutors allege

The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced the charges on November 12.

Pharmacy owner Charlie Bernard Griffin III is charged with health care fraud and money laundering. Accountant Ethelbert Chinenye Nwanegbo is charged with money laundering in the same federal indictment.

Both are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

According to prosecutors, Griffin’s First Coast Community Development operated a pharmacy that worked with a marketing company to obtain referrals for HIV post-exposure prophylaxis medications, known as PEP.

Marketers allegedly collected insurance details alongside the information needed for cellphone sign-ups, generally in low-income areas.

Gayety’s coverage describes the government’s allegation that prescriptions were authorised by a nurse practitioner who had not spoken with, examined or assessed the people concerned.

Prosecutors further allege that false diagnosis codes indicating HIV, a sexually transmitted infection or exposure were entered into medical records to secure insurance payments.

The alleged reimbursements came from Medicare, Medicaid and private insurers. The $51 million figure describes the scale of the alleged billing scheme, rather than a judgment already entered against the defendants.

PEP is legitimate, time-sensitive care

The allegations concern how prescriptions and claims were generated. PEP itself is an established method of preventing HIV after a possible exposure.

CDC guidance says treatment should begin as soon as possible, ideally within 24 hours and no later than 72 hours after exposure. The course lasts 28 days.

PEP is different from PrEP, which is used before potential exposure as ongoing prevention.

Assessment and follow-up are part of proper PEP care. However, the CDC says an indicated first dose should not be delayed while waiting for test results.

Anyone concerned about a recent possible HIV exposure should seek urgent medical assessment.

Why the records matter

The allegations involve more than money. They also concern what was recorded about people who had not sought this care.

Health information is deeply personal. A false entry involving HIV or another infection can carry significance far beyond an insurance form.

For people seeking sexual-health care, accurate records and respectful communication are fundamental to trust.

That is what deserves attention as the case moves through court: the evidence, the people affected and the integrity of care they should be able to rely on.

📷 AI