The Logy Bay-Middle Cove-Outer Cove town council made a unanimous decision on Tuesday evening to paint two rainbow crosswalks in the Northeast Avalon town.
Deputy Mayor James Cadigan says the project didn’t come from residents. Rather, council took it upon itself to make the rainbow crosswalk happen.
“We decided to be proactive as community leaders, especially for our youth, which we consider to be the future of every community, and to show support for inclusion for our town,” said Cadigan.
“We’re simply going to move forward with having those two crosswalks installed.”
Cadigan says there was no public outreach to decide whether or not two rainbow crosswalks were something residents wanted. Residents will learn about this decision largely from reading The Telegram, partially because no member of the public attended the council meeting on Tuesday evening.
“This is a community leader move,” he said.
There are no cost estimates for the two crosswalks, which will be in front of the town hall and near Kelly Park. Cadigan says those high-traffic areas were chosen to show council’s support for the LGBTQ community.
Cadigan says the move was partially in response to the recent controversy in the town of Springdale, where the town council is still considering whether to paint a crosswalk near Indian River High School after a request from the school’s Gender Sexuality Alliance.
“Nonetheless, we see this as a proactive community leader move to ensure that our community knows that we support inclusion. That’s our point,” he said.
The town raises the Pride Flag every year, though Cadigan couldn’t describe many other activities the town uses to show inclusion for other demographics in the area.
“We’re just an inclusive town. Community solidarity is very important to us,” he said.
Logy Bay-Middle Cove-Outer Cove staff are now tasked with how best to make the crosswalks happen. The work will either be done by town staff or through public tender.
Cadigan says residents can expect the crosswalks to be installed in the coming weeks.
Twitter: DavidMaherNL
