The New York Observer, May 7th, 2007
Sonny Carson street-naming advocates aren’t the only ones who saw their community board recommendations rejected by City Hall recently.
Organizers of PRIDEfest have apparently had their request to hold an annual summertime street festival on 8th Avenue between 14th and 23rd Streets rejected by the Community Assistance Unit, according to an email forwarded to me earlier. (By the way, whose Council district is that in?)
Here's the email:
Heritage of Pride Denied Permit for Annual PRIDEfest. New York City's Mayor's Office and the Community Assistance Unit, deny permit for Heritage of Pride's 15th annual PRIDEfest street festival, which was to be held in Chelsea on June 23, 2007. Heritage of Pride (HOP), the producer of New York City's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Pride Events, has been working with community groups and representatives of elected city and state officials for nine months to enhance its annual PRIDEfest. Prior to its recent meeting with the CAU on April 27, 2007, HOP had received the unanimous approval of Community Board 4 to move the event to Chelsea's 8th Avenue between 14th and 23rd Streets. PRIDEfest has most recently been held in the West Village on Washington and Greenwich Streets, a venue that has major safety issues due to the narrowness of the street, potholes, and other logistical problems. The area also offers few amenities to the hundreds of thousands of LGBT residents and international tourists who attend this annual Pride event. After serious consideration, HOP determined to move both the location and date of PRIDEfest. The planning of this event included a well-attended community forum in November of 2006. Ongoing discussions with SAGE (Services & Advocacy for GLBT Seniors) and the LGBT Community Center's "Center Kids" and Youth Enrichment Services (YES) programs led to a formal partnership to increase outreach to all families with children, and youth, and insure the accessibility throughout the event to all seniors and the physically-challenged. PRIDEfest filed the necessary permit for the Chelsea location and date with the Community Assistance Unit of the Mayor's Office on December 20, 2006. Community Board 4 voted unanimously to approve the Chelsea location and date at their meeting of March 7, 2007, and wrote the CAU a letter stating that. The event was supported by over sixty 8th Avenue businesses, The Chelsea-Village Chamber of Commerce, and the 15-member Chelsea Cultural Partnership; which includes The Joyce Theater, Rubin Museum of Art, and Dance Theater Workshop. During the annual "All-Services" Meeting on Friday, April 27, which is convened by the NYPD, HOP organizers were told by representatives of the Community Assistance Unit that their permit would not be approved. Despite several meetings and phone calls with various City agencies and the Office of the Speaker, it seems clear that the Mayor's Office does not find the community's need for a safer, more accessible event, and the support of the Community Board and businesses in Chelsea, a compelling argument to approve this permit. In addition the Mayor's Office is insisting on labeling this 15-year-old event a new event and denying the permit on these grounds as well. Heritage of Pride is firm in its stance that holding PRIDEfest at its former location is not safe, not accessible, and not acceptable. The organization's General Membership will meet at The LGBT Center, 208 West 13th Street, Manhattan, on Tuesday, May 8, at 8 p.m. to determine whether or not the event will be entirely cancelled. - END - Heritage of Pride is the wholly volunteer-managed, non-partisan, tax-exempt, not-for-profit corporation that organizes Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Pride events in New York City to commemorate and celebrate the Stonewall Riots. These events are organized on behalf of all lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals and groups, and all others who support the struggle for the liberation of these communities. In the Spirit of Stonewall, Heritage of Pride welcomes participation of all, regardless of age, creed, gender, gender identification, HIV status, national origin, physical or mental developmental ability, race, religion or sexual orientation. LGBT Pride Week is Sunday, June 17 to Sunday, June 24, 2007.
