Landmark status sought for Boystown Legacy Walk
Boystown’s iconic rainbow pylons along North Halsted Street could soon be designated as a city landmark under a new proposal from city officials and an LGBTQ history group.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel is set to formally announce the push for landmark status for the Boystown Legacy Walk on Sunday, the day of the annual Pride Parade.
“The Legacy Walk is not only a historically significant legacy of the LGBTQ community of Chicago, but a signal that the entire city is a safe and welcoming place for everyone,” Emanuel said in a statement.
The stretch of Halsted from Briar Street north to Grace “is a magnet for people all over the United States,” Ald. Tom Tunney ( 44th) said Friday. “When you’re a gay or lesbian person and you see those affirmative pylons, it not only says that this place is safe, it gives a sense of identity for people who are questioning their own identity. . . . There’s really nothing else like it in the country.” Historic preservation staffers from the city Department of Planning and Development will research the site and make a recommendation to the Landmarks Commission, which will then make its own recommendation before a full City Council vote— a process that could take at least six months, Tunney said.