The rainbow flags, costumes and crowds of people may have looked the same, but there was one major difference at this year’s St. Pete Pride parade, the location.

  • Some still unhappy with parade move from Historic Kenwood
  • Event organizers say between 180,000 - 196,000 attended
  • Have feedback for this year's parade? Visit stpetepride.com/en/contact
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The parade was moved from the Grand Central District and Kenwood neighborhood to Bayshore Drive downtown in a compromise move between event organizers and the city of St. Petersburg.

The results of the move drew mixed reviews.

“I thought it was great. It compared to when it was on the Grand Central area," said Josie Gallows, who walked in the parade. "There was a lot more space for people to fan out and enjoy the festivities.”  

“I don’t like it at all," said Stephen Stefankl. "I want it at Grand Central District. I mean, Kenwood and Grand Central District -- we made this pride. We’re the largest in Florida, and I didn’t see the crowd like I did last year."

Love it or hate it, organizers say the people showed up, even with the move downtown.

“We’re looking at about what we typically received in years past, between 180-196 for the parade,” said St. Pete Pride Executive Director Eric Skains. “To us it’s never been a 'here' or 'there.' It’s how can we celebrate diversity all over the city of St. Petersburg, and we showed that we did that this weekend.”

Aside from a few hiccups with the parade route moving faster than organizers planned, and the need for better crowd control in North Straub Park, organizers say the parade went off without a hitch.

Businesses near the parade route, like The Canopy, said the parade was a success for them too.

“From a business standpoint, it’s up there with Super Bowl,” said Canopy manager John Griffiths. “I mean, it really is when you have a quarter of a million people coming from all over to be part of this, it really is. It’s something you can’t compare to any holiday throughout the year. It really is something special for us.”

It’s a special feeling many business owners in the Grand Central district and Kenwood said they always enjoyed until now.

John McMahan, who owns the "Right Around The Corner" bar, said his loyal customers helped them deal with the parade relocation on Saturday.

“We were sort of busy,” said McMahan. “We’ve got some people who came down and actually took the trolley to the parade to come and actually help support us and the Grand Central district, because they knew the parade would be detrimental to the businesses here.”

McMahan said he’s writing a letter to the mayor to ask to sit down with him leaders from St. Pete Pride before next year’s festivities. But organizers for the event said it will stay downtown, and there’s a possibility that the Sunday Pride Festival could move, too, but that decision has not been made yet.

St. Pete Pride organizers are encouraging people to give their feedback on this year's event. To join the conversation, visit www.stpetepride.com/en/contact.