It's a Beautiful Day in the Gayborhood: Philadelphia Recognizes Potential Tourism Boost

Long referred to as the Gayborhood, thirty-six new signs, accompanied by rainbow flags, now line its streets in Philadelphia. The historic moment took place on Wednesday by Mayor John Street who was joined by members of Philadelphia's LGBT (lesbian / gay / bisexual / transgender) community.

Residents also shot rainbow confetti into the air and sang "Somewhere Over the Rainbow".

The rainbow symbol, or "freedom flag", was created by San Francisco Artist Gilbert Baker and has long been the symbol for gay pride.

The city, long committed to diversity and inclusiveness, is hoping to attract even more of the gay tourism market- a 54 billion dollar industry. Philly's gayborhood rests in the heart of town from Chestnut Street to Pine Street between South 11th Street and Broad Street.

"If we're welcoming gays and lesbians, then we need to show them where the gayborhood is," said Tami Sortman of the Philadelphia gay tourism caucus.

The effort to replace existing street signs with the new gay-friendly ones has taken two years to plan and complete. The move was headed by the members of the Philadelphia Gay Tourism Caucus with support from the City of Philadelphia, Washington Square Civic Association and Philadelphia City Councilman Frank DiCicco.

The gayborhood also goes beyond just residence. A strong concentration of gay-friendly business, bars, nightclubs, coffee shops and restaurants are all readily available. The folks at PhillyPride.org have even posted a map to some of the finer destinations such as Woody's, the 12th Air Command and the Bottom Line.

Alas, no good deed goes unpunished and gayborhood resident Kathleen Vaughan is ready to start trouble.

"It's a mixed group of people. The Parker Hotel used to be a place for mentally ill," said Vaughan, who opposes the distinction.

Other cities to establish an official gayborhood include San Francisco (really?), Chicago, Montreal and Toronto.

For more information on the Philadelphia gay scene, please visit www.phillypride.org, www.gophila.com/gay and/or www.gayphiladelphia.org. And don't forget to mark your calendars for the Philly Pride Parade and Festival which happens on Sunday, June 10th. It'll be so gay.

Sources:
Staff Writer, "36 Rainbow Street Signs Dedicated by Philadelphia Mayor in 'Gayborhood'" PR Inside
URL: http://www.pr-inside.com/rainbow-street-signs-dedicated-by-r97836.htm

Staff Writer, "Gayborhood Gets Official Designation, Recognition From City" NBC10
URL: http://www.nbc10.com/news/12420943/detail.html

Staff Writer, "Philadelphia Recognizes The Gayborhood" 365gay.com
URL: http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/04/041807philly.htm

For more news by writer Anthony Caroto, please click here.