Q-Seattle Events: Tacky Tourist Clubs

The nondescript office building at 1216 Pine Street at Melrose [see map] that has for several years served as the home of Seattle Counseling Service is about to get just a little more, well... descript. On Wednesday, August 8 at 6 pm, SCS will hold a lighting ceremony for two new signs that will identify the building as the home of the long-time LGBT service agency.

Unremarkably, one of the new signs will be mounted on a tall pole at the edge of the parking lot on Melrose Avenue, marking the entrance to the building. It's the other sign that is, indeed, remarkable. It will span seventeen feet across the west face of the building and will feature a large neon rainbow.

The large sign will be clearly visible to traffic on I-5 and from many spots downtown. It's also likely to be prominent to motorists and pedestrians as they make their way up Pine Street from downtown.

"We really wanted to mark our building as a safe and welcoming space for all members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities. And we wanted to remind Seattle that Capitol Hill is still our neighborhood," said Ann McGettigan, executive director of SCS.

The new signs takes advantage of SCS's location at the edge of Capitol Hill, where it borders downtown. "The rainbow will serve as a beacon to the community, an icon to mark the 'gateway' to Capitol Hill," said McGettigan.

The large sign was funded largely through a grant from the Employees Community Fund of Boeing, according to SCS.

It is being added to the agency's long-time home as the group undertakes an expansion program that will give it more room for its programs. The first phase of the expansion program, announced in March, has been completed. It added five additional rooms that are used for individual and group therapy, a 40% increase in number of rooms. The new rooms allow SCS counselors to see more clients and also offer more flexible scheduling. The group has also leased 3,000 sq ft of additional administrative office space in the building.

A more elaborate reconfiguration of the agency's space is planned, but is on hold pending additional funding.

Although it's probably the longest-lived LGBT service in Seattle, and one of the oldest in the country, SCS has been largely invisible -- except to its many clients -- through much of its long history. Their website offers this capsule history:

Seattle Counseling Service was founded in 1969 and is the first and oldest community mental health agency for lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, and transgender persons in the United States.

The counseling service started as part of the Dorian Society in Seattle, later expanding to become an independent organization. It began in a rented house, with a telephone and several volunteers, who were ready to answer the phone, talk with people who dropped by, and offer counsel and support.

SCS was licensed as a mental health center and has provided services to our community since 1974. Among the programs pioneered by SCS, the Domestic Violence Program (started in 1982) provides intervention to persons who perpetrate violence in same-sex relationships.

Ann McGettigan, the current executive director, explained the agency's decision to increase its visibility with the new signs: "Social stigma surrounding mental health and chemical dependency issues has in the past encouraged us to be a low-key kind of agency. But it's time SCS came out of the closet. No one benefits from hiding."

And even though there are many who insist we should "get over" the idea of having a gay neighborhood, it's nice to see a sign that so clearly marks one of our many spaces in this place.

If your group wants to take advantage of the easily-identifiable location for meetings or events, a large community space in the building, called -- appropriately -- the Rainbow Room, is available after-hours and on weekends for use by community groups. Email info[at]seattlecounseling.org to reserve the space or for more information.

Labels: gay organization, Gay Seattle