Amy Bartner

amy.bartner@indystar.com

The Circle City IN Pride festival will move to Military Park at New York and West streets in June 2017 after outgrowing the space at the American Legion Mall, Indy Pride announced today.

Attendance at the 2016 LGBT festival and parade was more than 100,000 people — double what it was in 2010, the first year the festival was held at the American Legion Mall, between Pennsylvania and Meridian streets and St. Clair and North streets.

The Indy Pride board of directors also announced the search for an executive director, the first since the nonprofit began in 1995. Board President Jason H. Nolen­-Doerr was appointed as interim executive director, to hold the position until the end of June 2017.

These changes in the state's largest LGBT organization have been discussed as the organization has grown, Nolen-Doerr said.

"This is something that has been ongoing for many years and we finally hit a point where it was possible," he said.

The festival, on Saturday, June 10, will end a week of Indy Pride events. The new location opens up about three more acres, Nolen-Doerr said. That means safety lanes for better movement for emergency vehicles if needed and allows for accessibility for attendees with mobility challenges.

"As we've moved to be more inclusive in the past year, that has moved into the forefront of our thought process," he said.

Before 2010, the festival was at University Park.

2016 Pride Parade and Festival

American Legion's "shotgun" layout doesn't lend itself to letting people hang out and spend time with friends at open spaces or picnic tables, but Military Park will. As more and more children come to Circle City IN Pride, too, organizers are recognizing the need for a more defined family zone. The 2017 festival will have a dedicated area for children's entertainment and activities.

"When we look at life for the LGBTQ community post marriage equality, we see a lot of families coming to the festival," Nolen-Doerr said. "If you looked around last year, you would've almost felt like you were at Disney World because of the amount of strollers and the number of children, and we weren't able to accommodate all of them."

Nolen-Doerr attributes the growth to the progress with LGBT civil rights in the past few years and the growing support from allies in the state.

"Change is also possible when you have community members who support you," he said, adding that Indy Pride serves the community in a number of ways throughout the year outside of the pride festival.

"We're far more than the social aspects of our festival."

Indy Pride conducted a survey at the 2016 festival to learn more about the demographics and interests of its participants and presented this research at a town hall meeting Tuesday. The board discussed possibly changing the date of the Cadillac Barbie Pride Parade on Mass Ave. and charging a $5 cover to festival admittance, but neither issue was resolved. Nolen-Doerr said board members will get more input from community members before making a decision on either change.

Call IndyStar reporter Amy Bartner at (317) 444-6752 and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.