St. Pete PrideFest 2021 Is Happening Without The Parade

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — A modified St. Pete PrideFest 2021 is happening in June, St. Pete Pride President and Director Nathan Bruemmer told news reporters Monday near the Vinoy.

One of the biggest changes for Pride 2021—no parade. The parade is usually one of the most anticipated events with thousands of people crowding along the streets and around the floats. Instead, Bruemmer explained that there will be Pride events on Saturdays throughout Pride month. All events are ticketed and will have reduced capacities. The board designed gatherings with the health and safety of the LGBTQ community in mind as we continue through the coronavirus pandemic.

"Pride has become one of the biggest events to host in the city," Mayor Rick Kriseman said. "It's the largest in the state of Florida, and certainly in the southeastern U.S. But celebrating Pride is more than just a parade, and it's more than just the events—it's what it represents and how it defines us as a community."

In 2019, Pride hosted more than 265,000 people...in just a number of days, Bruemmer said. In 2020, there wasn't a Pride celebration because of coronavirus concerns. It economically impacted the city by about $67 million, according to Kriseman.

"We will put on what we can this year as a non-profit," Bruemmer said. "Partnership dollars for Pride organizations across the country are down significantly. And then essentially got an 80 percent budget cut when we agreed to put this on after the beginning of the year. We're gonna do the best we can for our community collectively, and then we're gonna look toward next year."

Vendor and volunteer opportunities can be found here. Events for Pride are listed below:

• Official Pride Flag Raising: June 1, 10 a.m. at City Hall
• PrideFest Kickoff Reception: June 3, 6 p.m. at Sirata Resort
• Pride Run St. Pete 5K and Diva Dash: June 5, 7 a.m. at Vinoy Park
• Pride OUTside: June 5, 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Vinoy Park
• We Are Family: June 12, 11 a.m. at St. Pete Pier, North Straub Park, South Straub Park
• Stonewall VIP Reception: June 18 at The James Museum
• Arts & Culture: June 19, 11 a.m. at The Factory
• Taste of PrideFest: June 24—June 30 at various restaurants
• Pride Picnic & Fireworks: June 29 North Straub Park, South Straub Park

For more information, visit St. Pete Pride.