Boystown — Halsted Street Strip

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The stretch of North Halsted Street between Belmont Avenue and Addison Street is Boystown — America's first officially recognised gay neighbourhood, designated as such by the City of Chicago in 1997. The designation was marked by the installation of 18 stainless steel Rainbow Pylons along the street, each 30 feet tall with rainbow rings. The pylons have become one of Chicago's most recognisable landmarks and a site of pilgrimage for LGBTQ+ visitors from across the United States and the world. The street itself is a concentration of gay bars, restaurants, shops, and community services unlike anywhere else in the Midwest: Sidetrack, Roscoe's, Hydrate, Steamworks, and the Center on Halsted are all within this corridor. During summer evenings, the Halsted Street strip functions as an outdoor social space — people lingering on patios, talking between venues, the street alive with the visible presence of a community that has successfully claimed public space as its own. During Chicago Pride weekend in June, this strip becomes the most densely populated area in the city.