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Can't Miss It: Weekend Edition Nov 20-22
Well, it's been announced. Gay Pride, one of the Hill's too few moments in the spotlight, has gotten too big for its stylish b(r)itches and will be held at Seattle Center next year. This decision will surely solve the problem of it being too large - We predict dueling Prides for 2006. There will be the official Seattle Center version which will draw a couple thousand squares, heteros and family-types and then there will be the Capitol Hill version which will rage on as its gay old self. Neither will approach the massive crush of humanity of last summer's celebration, but hopefully the intensity can be maintained in at least one location. All that extra leg room at the Seattle Center will not be needed, of course, because people go to Pride because of the charm of Capitol Hill, not despite its shortcomings. Not unexpectedly, Capitol Hill businesses haven't been pleased to hear that the event will be moving.
We give this Gaylife experiment one year before organizers realize that you can take Volunteer Park out of Pride but you can't take Pride out of Volunteer Park. Alright, we're not quite sure what that means, but we're sticking with it. Finally, isn't there a big new park available just off Broadway to accommodate even more partiers on the Hill? Why doesn't that factor into any of these discussions?
And when are they going to announce what's to be done about that crusty old parade?
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Isn't Volunteer Park a lot bigger than Cal Anderson?
Yeah. I guess I wasn't clear. It should still be held at Volunteer, but Cal Anderson can also be incorporated.
I never understood that. If everyone wants the parade to be held on the Hill so bad, then why not just organize and hold a parade on the hill anyway? Let the organizers who sold out and their cronies assemble near the Space Needle like idiots, everyone else who wants to stay on the hill can throw their own parade on Broadway, and to hell with whoever assembles at Seattle Center.
Here's their press release:
Pride Festival to Move to Seattle Center
Organizers site growing size, safety concerns for move from Capitol Hill
SEATTLE - The organizers of the Seattle Pride Festival have announced they will move this year’s event from its traditional Volunteer Park setting to the Seattle Center. Seattle Pride decided to move the event because of the amazing growth of the Festival, which is creating safety issues and adversely affecting the Capitol Hill neighborhood.
The decision to move the Festival was made after numerous public meetings. The vote was conducted this week to include the incoming board members, allowing them to have a voice in this decision.
While recognizing the Hill as the traditionally “queer center” of Seattle, crowd size and safety demand a move to a larger site,” said Seattle Pride Board Member Dale Kershner. “We would love to collaborate to stage an event on the Hill during the weekend of Pride to commemorate that history, but the bulk of the Festival will happen at the Center,” he said.
Kershner said that with the small group of volunteers that stages the event each year, and with no help from outside groups, it is easier to stage the event at the Seattle Center location. Additional venues at the Center allow organizers to offer community groups a forum for their membership, as well as creating a place for them to make political statements. In addition, he said, the parade route, which will now run through downtown, will allow for taller and more elaborate designs. Kershner said that Seattle Pride will still be a “no charge” event, as it always has been in the past.
Organizers announced last summer their plans to move the two-day festival from Volunteer Park to the Seattle Center and the parade route from Broadway on Capitol Hill to Fourth Avenue in downtown Seattle. Although Seattle Pride had reserved the Seattle Center and received approval from the city of Seattle to move the parade route to Fourth Avenue starting in 2006, a final decision had not been made until Seattle Pride’s board meeting this week.
At that time, Board President Tammy Zoch said, “We know a lot of emotions are involved here. We understand and appreciate that for a lot of people in the Capitol Hill neighborhood, particularly business owners on Broadway, these proposals represent a dramatic change. We strongly believe that over the years Seattle Pride has grown to such an extent that continuing to hold the festival at Volunteer Park and the parade on Broadway represents not only a hindrance to the event’s natural growth, but also a greater potential risk to those who attend and to the city’s facilities at Volunteer Park. We think Fourth Avenue and the Seattle Center are better suited to handle Seattle Pride’s record-setting crowds.”
Seattle Pride Committee organizes the largest Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual and Transgender Pride March and Rally in the Northwest United States. The organization relies on an all-volunteer force to organize and operate the Seattle Pride festival. Members strive to make the event representative of everyone in the LGBT community in Seattle, and across the Northwest. Seattle Pride is a non-profit corporation and is not affiliated with the Northwest Pride Foundation.