FESTIVALS, EVENTS & COOL HAPPENINGS
IF YOU GO
A few of the many events
in this year's line-up:
JUNE 19
Kick-off party at Sirata
Beach Resort
JUNE 20
Cocktail party reception
at the Museum of Fine
Arts
JUNE 21
Free outdoor concert at
North Straub Park with
Lisa Loeb, known for her
platinum-selling song,
“Stay.”
JUNE 22
The parade begins at
2pm on Bayshore Drive
downtown
JUNE 22
Free outdoor concert
after the parade featuring
Rita Ora, British singersongwriter
whose hit
song “Let You Love Me”
was released last year on
her album, “Phoenix”
JUNE 23
St. Pete Pride Festival,
11 a.m.- 5 p.m. in the
downtown Grand Central
District with art, entertainment,
food and community
vendors
Celebrating
Diversity
St. Pete Pride
The largest pride celebration in Florida,
St. Pete Pride is certainly a testament to
the diversity and inclusivity that are part of
the DNA of St. Petersburg. In March, the
travel site Orbitz listed the ‘Burg #2 on the
list of top 10 best places in the country to
celebrate pride events, ahead of Atlanta,
San Francisco and New York City. Only
Provincetown, Massachusetts beat us.
“We’re able to produce a world-class
event with the city’s support,” says Luke
Blankenship, executive director of St. Pete
Pride. “St. Pete is a big city with a small
town vibe and people want to come here
for the unique experience, to see the artisans
and visit the shops. We’re not corporate,
it’s a locally organized and run event.”
What started out as a small festival in
2003 has evolved over the years into a
major three-day event with parties, a street
fair, outdoor concerts, arts-related activities,
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munity and the Grand Central District businesses,
many of which were LGBT-owned,”
says Blankenship. “They were shocked
when 10,000 people attended.”
Last year, 250,000 people attended.
There were also 170 parade entries and
7,500 parade participants. This year’s
event, held June 19-23, is expected to be
even bigger. “Currently the big push is
entertainment and we’re bringing in two
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offering an after-parade concert,” says
Blankenship.
The festival’s family area and art zone are
two additional important initiatives for the
event, says Blankenship. South Straub Park
will again have a family friendly art zone
with games and activities, and this year,
mural artists Derek Donnelly, Sebastian
Coolidge and Carlos Culbertson will be
doing live art installations in the park.
20 'BURGLIFE | Living, Working and Playing in St. Petersburg, FL