Midtown Rainbow Crosswalk Permanence in Question

Atlanta’s LGBTQ community is at odds with city officials who say that a planned project to paint a set of crosswalks in Midtown to resemble the community’s flag cannot stay permanently.

In a seeming about face, the City of Atlanta has declared that the crosswalks at the intersection of 10th Street and Piedmont Avenue can only be painted in rainbow colors until the end of the Atlanta Pride Festival, which concludes on Oct. 19. Supporters of the project, including its founder Robert Sepulveda, Jr., were led to believe the crosswalks would be painted permanently.

“The LGBT community is here all the time, not just for PRIDE weekend and a temporary art permit from October 3rd to October 19th is not fair,” The Atlanta Rainbow Crosswalks wrote on Facebook Sunday. “10th St. and Piedmont Ave. has been the epicenter of the LGBT community in Atlanta for decades and these crosswalks are the culmination of the thousands of people who have and continue to fight for LGBT rights in Atlanta. Its more than just paint on the ground, its an acknowledgement of acceptance, it will also be a beacon of hope and progress to the many that will travel through them.”

City officials told WABE that the crosswalks would have to be returned to normal due to safety concerns.

Supports of the permanent rainbow crosswalks are at City Hall asking the Atlanta City Council to reconsider the decision to only allow a temporary art permit for the project.