Editor’s note: This story has been corrected to accurately state Pride San Antonio’s stance on the rainbow sidewalks. The group didn’t oppose installation of the sidewalks, and the Current regrets the error.
Work on the rainbow colored sidewalk in San Antonio’s Pride District is now underway, even though there’s been no formal council vote on the project.
City officials confirmed that work on the first phase of the sidewalk celebrating the city’s LGBTQ+ nightlife district at the intersection of North Main Avenue and Evergreen Street began over the weekend. The project, which also included removing the rainbow-colored crosswalk banished by order of Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, is expected to cost taxpayers $170,000.
Via email, city spokesman Brian Chasnoff said the funding for the project came from the Fiscal Year 2026 budget, as well as “Task Order contracts approved by City Council in 2024 and 2025.”
The Texas Conservative Liberty Forum (TCLF), argued in a lawsuit that the project and its subsequent funding should have been put to a public discussion and city council vote.
While Pride San Antonio joined the Texas Conservative Liberty Forum in a legal challenge to San Antonio removing the rainbow crosswalk, the LGBTQ+ advocacy group has since issued a statement saying it has no opposition to the rainbow sidewalks.
“Pride San Antonio has always supported the Rainbow Sidewalks initiative,” founder James Poindexter said. “Pride San Antonio sued the City of San Antonio with respect to the Rainbow Crosswalks. The Rainbow Crosswalks were installed with community funding and maintained by community funding.”
District 9 Councilwoman Misty Spears and District 10 Councilman Marc Whyte, the two conservatives on the dais, echoed those concerns in a joint statement earlier this month.
However, District 1 Councilwoman Sukh Kaur — who spearheaded the project in conjunction with Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones, the city’s first openly LGBTQ+ mayor — told the Texas Tribune late last week that the upgrades didn’t need council approval because of the area’s designation as a cultural heritage district.
The Express-News previously reported that the decision whether to move forward with the sidewalk project rested with City Manager Erik Walsh.
Even so, TCLF San Antonio President Joe Garza, in a Monday night statement eFacebook declared that “the fight is not over” and that his organization is planning to “escalate this issue further.”
“This issue is not about opposition to any community,” Garza wrote. “It is about government conduct. Public sidewalks are shared civic spaces, and decisions involving taxpayer dollars and political or ideological expression must be made openly and with public input.”
Stay tuned.
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