City centre business owners are “amazed” at how quickly the LGBTQ+ community came together to support them.
Fed-up LGBTQ+ bars The Poste House and The Masquerdale, found on Cumberland Street in the city’s Pride Quarter, are currently urging the Liverpool City Council to give their street “the much-needed revamp it deserves”.
The businesses are asking for the council to “take a look” at the street which contains so much history and fame – with it having welcomed the likes of Oasis, The Beatles, Rylan Clark, Gogglebox’s Jenny and Lee and Chrissy Rock to name a few.
READ MORE: Hidden street home to some of Liverpool’s most historic clubs
The two safe spaces created a petition after being “sick of how ragged the street looks” – already within a week, there have been 1,000 signatures secured online and on paper.
Manager of The Poste House, Ciaran Robinson, from Huyton but now living in Vauxhall, told the ECHO: “I thought it was going to take weeks to get our first few hundred signatures. So to already have this amount is amazing. It’s great to see our little community coming together to support one another to get things done.”
John Kenny, the owner of The Masquerade Bar, echoed similar gratitude. The 49-year-old from Walton said: “For both bars, it is so heartwarming to see the support that we’re getting from everyone in our area, and further afield.
“From our customers, local residents and other local businesses, it clearly shows that so many people believe these improvements are required to our street to make it a nicer and safer place to be. The number of signatures is still building, and we are excited to hit our next target.”
Cumberland Street is situated in the heart of Liverpool’s gay scene. Despite this, the campaigners said it is “an overlooked street in the city centre due to looking like an alleyway”.
The street currently has two businesses operating within it but has seen many others come and go including Lomax, Roxie’s, Angels, Out, and Profile amongst others.
The campaigners hope a revamp will see more footfall, create more revenue and increase the chances of investors wanting to open new venues in the current empty spaces.
An ideal revamp for the campaigners would include repaving and new pathways on both sides of the road. To make the street more “attractive” to bypassers, the campaigners are also asking for Pride road markings and street crossings so people are aware it’s an LGBTQ+ friendly street and possible tributes to Scouse LGBTQ+ icons.
City Centre North Labour councillor Nick Small previously announced his support for the calls for change. He said: “There are some quick wins here like rainbow streets signs and some longer-term asks like investment in the new public realm. I’m listening very carefully to what residents, businesses and people who visit Cumberland Street are saying and will ensure their views are heard loud and clear.”
The two bars came together after the world’s attention turned to Liverpool as it hosted a key event in the LGBTQ+ calendar – the Eurovision Song Contest.
John, who now lives in Orrell Park, said: “Eurovision saw thousands of people enter the area and I personally saw these people, most out-of-towners, looking around them as they allied towards the venue with surprise at the state of the road.
“The businesses are doing what they can to clean up outside, but there’s not much that can be done other than clean. I personally jet-washed the pavement from the top of the street to outside the old Angel's Paradise which really helped, but it can only do so much.”
Liverpool City Council were approached for comment. You can sign the petition online.
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