By summer, Philly Pride Presents-an organization that put on Philly’s Pride and Outfest celebrations for nearly 30 years-dissolved, leaving big question marks on the local gay calendar. One of the city’s last bastians for sisterly affection, Toasted Walnut, closed for good in the spring. Watching a night unfold on 13th and its neighboring streets, one may never guess that Philly’s gayborhood, like everywhere else, has seen some major changes in the past year. Notably, the neighborhood is the Philly’s queer epicenter, a cluster of gay and gay-friendly establishments connected by rainbow crosswalks. Philadelphia’s Midtown Village, which sits between Rittenhouse Square and the historic Old City district, is home to an ever-growing list of restaurants, bars, and shops. It’s sensory overload in a good way, a welcome shock to the system-and there’s so much more where that came from. Propulsive rhythms waft out of packed bars and nightclubs. Throngs of excited partygoers carouse and crowd the open street.
Al fresco diners clink glasses on the sidewalk. On any given Saturday night, the scene on 13th Street between Chestnut and Locust is, to put it mildly, electric.
