St. Pete Pride hears the heat complaints but isn't moving
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
People fan themselves during last year's St. Pete Pride parade. Photo: Octavio Jones/AFP via Getty Images
June in St. Petersburg comes with a couple of traditions: the Pride parade, and conversations about whether you're going because it's so dang hot.
Why it matters: Another scorching Pride weekend has some locals questioning whether it's time for a change.
- "We received heaps of comments from locals and visitors alike who feel the end of June is becoming an unsafe time of year to safely celebrate outdoors," coffee shop Bandit wrote in a recent comment on Instagram.
- It's gathered more than 100 likes and responses from some users saying the heat kept them home or made them not want to attend next year.
State of play: Organizers for now aren't considering moving St. Pete Pride's mainstay parade and street fair, which typically occur during the last weekend of June and draw hundreds of thousands of people.
- June has historical significance for the local and national Pride movement, board president Byron Green-Calisch told Axios.
- Shifting it to cooler months could interfere with other local and state Pride events, including St. Pete's Winter Pride in February or Orlando's Come Out With Pride in October.
- And while they've heard complaints about the heat over the years, they've also heard from business owners who appreciate the boost from Pride goers during what's normally a slow season.
The big picture: Climate change is making extreme heat more common, but June temperatures in St. Pete have stayed pretty constant, National Weather Service (NWS) Tampa Bay meteorologist Paul Close told Axios.
- "Upper 80s, lower 90s around St. Pete — that's common" throughout the month of June, Close said. "That's the way it's been for decades."
Still, that heat plus summertime humidity is no joke, even in the evening, when the parade steps off.
- Over the last three Pride parades, St. Pete Fire Rescue helped 210 people experiencing signs of heat illness and transported 23 people for further care, according to Deputy Chief of Emergency Services Brett Ciskoski.
- The Sunday street fair on Central Avenue — which starts in the middle of the day but is lined with air-conditioned shops and restaurants — saw six heat-related encounters over the last three years.
The bottom line: "It's not ever lost on us how hot it is," Byron-Calisch said, and organizers have made changes with that in mind.
- For example, this year's Friday night concert was moved indoors, from Al Lang Field to the Coliseum.
- Organizers have also added events throughout June, including some that are indoors, Green-Calisch said, although to continue that programming the organization needs to close a fundraising gap.