Results tagged “boystown”

Well folks, it's that time again to throw together a last-minute costume, load up and stumble down the streets of Boystown for the notoriously zany North Halsted Halloween Parade, which kicks off tomorrow evening.

Despite the Chicago Police Department's apparent attempts to pretend otherwise, the fact that allegedly anti-gay officer Richard Fiorito remains on active duty in the heart of Boystown continues to embroil members of the neighborhood's gay community. On Aug. 26, the GLBT subcommittee of the CPD 23rd District used its monthly meeting to pass a resolution against Fiorito, the subject of a joint lawsuit filed by nearly 20 plaintiffs who accuse the officer of falsifying DUI arrests in addition to verbally harassing and using excessive force against them. The resolution urges the CPD to:

These days, when people refer to Scarlet, the popular Boystown bar, as “smokin’-hot” they’re referring to the bar’s posh new interior, and not to the fire that destroyed the establishment in February of this year. Nearly a 100 firefighters responded to the early-morning blaze which leveled the bar and the residences that occupied the second and third floors of the building. Neighboring gay bars and clubs rallied around owner Paul Cannella and his employees by hosting a series of fundraisers to help those suddenly out of job, and some cases, out of home. Fast-forward to a few months later, and Cannella is ready to re-launch Scarlet, a bar often described as “Wicker Park comes to Boystown,” in late September. “After the fire, my initial reaction was to rebuild it exactly the same as it was and to get the doors open as fast as possible. But as more time went by, we were able to think things through and take the best of the best of the bar and incorporate it into the new Scarlet,” says Cannella, 39, a Lincoln Park resident.

Chicagoist certainly is a hard and serious Halloween celebrator, with info on costumes, zombie pin-up calenders -- and adding to our previous list of A&E Halloween treats -- here are a few more events to keep on the radar.

If memory serves correctly, for the last several years the weather at the Pride Parade has either been blisteringly hot, rainy, or a mix of both. For the 39th year of the event, however, Mother Nature seems to be cooperating and it looks like it's going to be a cool, sunny day for heading over to Boystown to participate in the revelry. The parade steps off from Halsted and Belmont at noon.