The future status of the Phoenix Pride LGBT Center remains unknown after the community center announced its closure August 15.
Justin Owen, the executive director, said Phoenix Pride will still be maintaining its website’s online resources while the advisory board and board of directors determine the best financial steps to take in order to support the LGBTQ community in the coming months.
The decision came from Phoenix Pride’s board of directors, who decided to shut down the community center due to financial reasons until further notice.
“The funding sources to keep the center operating just weren’t there,” Owen said.
Owen attributed the lack of funding for the center to widespread services within many organizations and support groups throughout the city of Phoenix that are already currently thriving.
Many of these organizations support the youth within the LGBTQ community as well as those seeking health and wellness services, including but not limited to HIV/AIDs clinics and information services.
One n ten is the other primary LGBTQ resource open to community members downtown.
Phoenix Pride has a plethora of resources online for community members. These services include: alcohol and substance abuse resources, help with legal issues, health services, domestic violence services, family services, pet services and more.
Going forward, Phoenix Pride has plans which include raising $95,000 towards its grant and scholarship programs and nonprofit efforts in support of the LGBTQ community in Phoenix, now that its funding is not directed toward the operation of the center.
Phoenix Pride also plans to focus funds and efforts on the Rainbows Festival and Phoenix Pride Festival primarily.
“We bring all of the businesses together in one place so that our community has access to them all in one place and at one time,” Owen said.
“For 36 years Phoenix Pride has operated all of our festivals and events,” Owen said. “We are shifting back to our original services.”
Owen said the old model of running Phoenix Pride, prior to taking over the community center, can be just as effective now as it was then. He believes the online resources and community events will be just as helpful as a physical center.
Kenton Daniels, Phoenix resident and member of the LGBTQ community, said the center has typically been open about financial concerns, and encouraged community members to fundraise. Daniels said Phoenix Pride was uncommunicative in its more recent financial struggle and that, even with the history of repeat fundraisers throughout the community, they still were negligent in keeping the community center running.
He said he stopped going to Pride because it became less about showing pride in being a community member and more about a frivolous, partying lifestyle.
Disappointed in Phoenix Pride’s decision to close the community center, Daniels said that with the center closed there really is no other safe haven for the LGBTQ community downtown.
Phoenix Pride created an advisory board of prominent business and community leaders to help the Pride board of directors navigate financial and ethical decisions.
The Phoenix Pride board of directors hired this advisory board to assure full and complete representation of the community in its decisions following the choice to close the community center.
Advisory board members include local businessmen and community members Grant Miller, Bill MacDonald, Sheila Kloefkorn, Jeremy Helfgot, Brendan Mahoney, David Horowitz and Rebecca Wininger.
For now, Phoenix Pride services can be accessed on its website at www.phoenixpridelgbtcenter.org.
