Acceptance and the web change the idea of the gay neighborhood CFL

Acceptance and the web change the idea of the gay neighborhood CFL

Did you move into a neighborhood because it felt safer than where you were from? Where do LGBT people go to see and be seen?

More importantly, how is the concept of the â┚¬Å”gayborhoodâ┚¬Â changing in the age of the internet and more widespread acceptance of our community?

â┚¬Å”Central Florida never did have a concentration like New York City's Chelsea or San Francisco's Castro,â┚¬Â said The Center's executive director Randy Stephens. â┚¬Å”Anyone who says we've had something comparable obviously hasn't been to those other places.â┚¬Â

When exploring the concept of gay neighborhoodsâ┚¬â€where gay and gay-friendly businesses and homeowners gatherâ┚¬â€Central Florida offers a whole suite of complications. US census data, collected every 10 years since 1990, shows that Orlando has the 10th highest LGBT concentration by percentage, and the metropolitan area (including other cities nearby) has the ninth highest percentage. By neighborhood, Orlando may only have small pockets of gayborhoods. The Mills50 area once called ViMi (for Virginia and Mills, streets that bisect in the area) may have more LGBT presence, but the census still misses those of us who don't self-identify.

Another complication is how spread out Central Florida population is as a whole, with small klatches of gays in all over and even as far down as Davenport, with performers wanting to live near the theme parks. Central Florida is known nationally for its exurban sprawl, where suburbs are built around suburbs. An October 2007 National Geographic article brought us to national attention.

â┚¬Å”Gays have always been known for re-gentrifying areas of cities,â┚¬Â said Stephens, â┚¬Å”but statistically, that does not make a Christopher Street or a Castro.â┚¬Â

Yet, Stephens points out that recently, the 6-block Mills50 area has seen resurgence in LGBT businesses. Other areas, like nearby Ivanhoe Row, also has a growth of LGBT presence, with four LGBT businesses within half a block of each other. In the 2012 Advocate list of America's gayest cities, Orlando ranked second, partly because of city and county antidiscrimination laws and domestic partner registry.

At the same time, the census also showed that many of us are exiting Orlando for the quieter areasâ┚¬â€some suburban, some even rural. Youth culture, social media sites, a more transient workforce, and sprawl all affect our gayborhoods, creating more questions than answers.

Our History at Home
â┚¬Å”I lived in Deltona for over 10 years. I was harassed and stalked, had very hostile neighbors, and had a lot of problems out in the woods. Glad to have concrete under my feet!â┚¬Â said Orlando City Commissioner Patty Sheehan.

That is not an uncommon sentiment for LGBT people across the nation who, for decades, left less-tolerant areas for the protection of big cities. In fact, 2010 census information shows that Orange County had the third highest reported number of gay households in Florida.

â┚¬Å”For us, it was about being downtown,â┚¬Â said Scottie Campbell of his and partner Brendan O'Connor's abode in the Mills50 District. Campbell is now the executive director of the Ivanhoe Main Street Project, boosting business in the Mills50-adjacent neighborhood. Campbell and O'Connor moved from gay Thornton Park to Mills50, next door to Paradise, a gay bar, but it wasn't for the camaraderie.

â┚¬Å”Being gay has always been only one part of who I am,â┚¬Â said Campbell, â┚¬Å”so I was never looking for the gay area, per se.â┚¬Â

In fact, a quick Internet search of real estate sites for gay-friendly neighborhoods turns up multiple references to Mills50, College Park, Lake Highland, Winter Park, and Audubon Park, plus many more.

â┚¬Å”Orlando is too small of a city, too spread out, and too transient to have only one gay area,â┚¬Â said Rudy Wright, co-owner of Framing of Central Florida. He and his partner live in small-town Debary, 27 miles away from their Orlando shop.

â┚¬Å”When I moved to MetroWest, I thought I was the only one out there,â┚¬Â said Stephens. â┚¬Å”The internet proved me wrong,â┚¬Â noting that social networking made him more aware of his many LGBT neighbors.

In fact, our community if becoming less centralized: Sheehan said, â┚¬Å”Colonialtown [the area around Mills50] does not have as high of a concentration of LGBT households [in 2010] as the last census [2000], but everyone is more welcome in other neighborhoods. Look at College Park, Spring Lake Manor and Baldwin Park. We have spread out, so to speak.â┚¬Â

Orlando's LGBT Business Timeline
â┚¬Å”I believe it was always more business-oriented than housing-oriented,â┚¬Â Stephens said of the idea of Orlando's gayborhood.

The Mills50 district is still considered the city's primary example. In 1991, the Gay Lesbian Bisexual Community Center, (GLBCC, precursor to The Center) opened on Colonial-SR 50, a couple blocks from Mills. However, many people credit the May 1992 opening of Out & About Bookstore on Mills by Bruce Ground as the real start of an LGBT business area. Soon, drag performer Leigh Shannon's Ritzy Rags opened next door, and in late 1994, a competition book and gift shop, Rainbow City, moved in nearby. Big box retailers and competition eventually shuttered both bookstores, but Ritzy Rags is still in its location today, having expanded its sales floor.

â┚¬Å”When we opened our original shop on Virginia Drive in 1993, we were looking for an artsy districtâ┚¬Â says Wright of Framing of Central Florida.

The Center moved closer, buying its Mills address in 1999. Other gay-owned or LGBT-friendly non-retail/restaurant businesses also moved into the area, including Balloon World, Orlando Immunology Clinic, Ranger's Pet Outpost and Loch Haven Veterinary Clinic. Mojo replaced Out & About, and Peacock Lounge is still going strong.

Still, for many recent years, the area was marked with empty storefronts as businesses would come and go, including Mad'Lyn's cafe, The Cactus Club (now Paradise Bar), and Friend's Restaurant.

Rejuvenation and Propagation
â┚¬Å”It was always our intention to revitalize the area,â┚¬Â said Eddie Nickell, the co-owner of Funky Monkey Restaurant and Wine Company, and Bananas Café; all now exist in the same Mills50 block that Out & About opened.

In fact, the popularity of these restaurantsâ┚¬â€and the see-and-be-seen aspectâ┚¬â€have effectively revitalized the LGBT presence in the area. Business has been so good for Nickell and co-owner and Nicolas Olivieri that they have expanded to restaurants in Thornton Park, downtown, and at International Drive.

However, even these expansions call to question the notion of a gayborhood, since the drag shows that marked Funky Monkey as different now also occur in the family-friendly tourist corridor.

â┚¬Å”We're bringing a bit of Vegas to I-Drive,â┚¬Â said Nickell.

Still, in order to help support the Mills50 district and The Center, Nickell and Olivieri signed a long-term lease on property The Center owned, opening their corporate offices and a wine & gift shop called The Vault.

â┚¬Å”We definitely want to be a strong, positive force in the area,â┚¬Â said co-owner Olivieri.

Yet this is not the only gay-friendly district. Even today, â┚¬Å”about 50% of our business is still gay clients,â┚¬Â added Framing of Central Florida owner Rudy Wright. Recently his business moved from Mills50 to Ivanhoe, less than a mile away, for a better lease. â┚¬Å”Our clients followed us not because we're gay, but because we're dependable,â┚¬Â Wright surmises.

As populations everywhere become more accepting, the concentration of LGBTs in metropolitan areas is going to shift to smaller towns like Oviedo, population 32,961. Oviedo Exchange Mall owner Richard Jones says, â┚¬Å”Since we've advertised in Watermark, sales have increased 10 to 15%. In the last month, we've been watching who comes in to pick up Watermark, and often they come in just for the publication.â┚¬Â

There's No Place Like Home
â┚¬Å”I think our members don't care if they live in a gay neighborhood,â┚¬Â said Orlando Youth Alliance executive director Michael Slaymaker. â┚¬Å”They're looking for someplace inexpensive, close to school or work, with good public transportation.â┚¬Â

Living in a large metropolitan area may be enough for kids who still today face bullying and difficulty coming out.

Yet, overall, with heightened media presence and internet access, people may feel less alone wherever they live.

Paul Driver, who's been with husband Steve Brooks for 24 years, lives in the old suburban Spring Lake Manor: â┚¬Å”While our area is not considered to be one of the â┚¬Ëœgayborhoods,' we have a very high percentage of gay and lesbian couples. But it’s also very mixed, including racially.â┚¬Â

LGBT are also represented further out, even in rural Lake County. Andre Provencher directs theater in Clermont, whose population is less than 30,000. He's been with partner John Faix for over 20 years: â┚¬Å”Most folks are actually pretty cool with it and treat John and me as just another married couple.â┚¬Â

In fact, the 2010 census saw the number of Lake County gay-identified couples double to 895.

More in Orlando

See More