Downtown Squamish may be a bit more colourful come summertime.
Council passed a unanimous motion of support for two rainbow painted crosswalks as a symbol of welcome for lesbian, gay bisexual, queer and transgendered people.
Adriana Smith of the advocacy group Safe ’n’ Sound Squamish proposed the crosswalk idea in a brief presentation to council Tuesday night, to “create a new vision of Squamish as a tourist and recreation destination for LGBQ+ the world over and more importantly a safe place for our current population.” She added that there would be an economic benefit from drawing diverse tourists.
The two crosswalks Smith proposed were for Victoria and Cleveland avenues: one to run across from the Copper Coil Still and Grill to the Squamish Integrated Health clinic and one from the vacant lot to the Chieftain Hotel. The business owners support the plan, she said.
Smith said although she has been out as a bisexual in Squamish for 24 years and has not had a negative experience, others have not been so lucky.
“There’s still stories of abuse and intolerance,” she said. “Young people are still committing suicide, or attempting and they still feel isolated and disenfranchised, and the most tragic of all is they are leaving Squamish because they don’t feel safe.”
Smith told The Squamish Chief that she hopes the crosswalks can be funded and painted by the end of June.
The council motion also called for district staff to work with Safe ‘n’ Sound Squamish representatives on rolling out the program.
After the meeting, Smith was flabbergasted at how quickly the motion received council’s support.
“Wow,” she said. “That went really well. Oh my God. I am so excited.”
Safe ’n’ Sound Squamish posted on its Facebook page Tuesday night about the rainbow crosswalks. “Squamish council said ‘yes’! … Love this community!”
