UPDATE 6/23/2015 7:00 AM: A project that will cover six intersections of Pike/Pine between 11th Ave and Broadway with rainbow crosswalks as a symbol of Gay Pride was unveiled early Tuesday morning.

Mayor Ed Murray, Seattle’s first openly gay mayor and a Capitol Hill resident, said the new rainbow crosswalks represent the neighborhood as “a place where we are tolerant and accepting.”

“It says something about this neighborhood and it also says something about Seattle,” Murray said during a media event in the middle of 10th Ave at Pike. “This is a city of very diverse neighborhoods throughout with different character.”

The crosswalks are being installed at six intersections totaling 11 different crosswalks on E Pine and E Pike from Broadway to 11th Ave. At around $72,600 total, the crosswalk project comes in at around $56,000 more than standard white-line crosswalks would have. Crews also have given the standard white-line walks at other intersections along this stretch of Pike/Pine a much-needed repaint. The maintenance work is being paid for by developer fees, city officials at the event said Tuesday.

The new markings — especially along the Broadway Bikeway — will add to what is some of the most colorful pavement you might ever find. Unfortunately, the rainbow Pike and Pine street signs were just for show and won’t be installed. Nothing is permanent in the city but the new rainbow crosswalks will be a lasting symbol of the LGBTQ community well after this weekend’s Pride festivities.

As for the annual talk of moving the city’s Pride parade back to Broadway, Murray said it should be a community decision be it downtown or on Capitol Hill.

“I think the message is we are everywhere,” Murray said. “We have a historic place in this neighborhood and we’re happy to represent it here.”

The upcoming Pride weekend will, again, be a busy one for Capitol Hill with many parties and celebrations at neighborhood bars and restaurants as well as a full roster of marches, festivals, and events.

Meanwhile, another project designed to create a visual sign of the LGBTQ community in Pike/Pine got its start overnight as the first message for Here and Queer was projected on the White Motor Company building home to The Stranger. CHS wrote about the project here. You can learn more and submit messages for the project here.

Original Report:

Images from the SOSea Rainbow Crosswalk Project

A project on the LGBTQ backburner for years is set to be unveiled Tuesday morning.

That likely means that now — or sometime overnight — workers are busy painting rainbow crosswalks at Pike/Pine intersections between 12th and Broadway:

Mayor Murray to Unveil Rainbow Crosswalks on Capitol Hill WHAT: As Pride Week in Seattle gets underway, Mayor Murray will unveil newly installed rainbow-colored crosswalks on Capitol Hill early tomorrow morning. WHEN: 6:30 AM Tuesday, June 23rd

WHO: Mayor Ed Murray, local community members

WHERE: Intersection of 10th and Pike St.

CHS wrote here in January 2013 about the effort from LGBTQ community groups to add a visible symbol of the Gayborhood to the streets of Pike/Pine. This year, as concerns about affordability have been joined with frustrations over the booming nightlife economy’s byproducts of increased street violence and intolerance, the symbolic effort will finally hit the pavement.

We don’t what the final design for the project looks like — what you see above are images from the project’s planning stages a few years back — we do not yet have details on the longterm plans for the new markings or the cost but we’ll find out more soon. Holler when you see the first rainbow paint.