Rebranding the old Pink Triangle:

Introducing the ‘Heart of Duval’

BY C.S. GILBERT

Upper Duval has over the past several years earned the sobriquet of the classier, arty section of the street; lower Duval somewhat defiantly clings to the drink till you barf and girls-girls-girls designation.

But what of the blocks in between?

The area of central Duval that has generally been considered the Pink Triangle because of the presence of gay venues Aqua, Bourbon Street and the 801 is currently in for a marketing makeover.

Pink Triangle? “That was back in the day,” said Kimball Ingram who, with his father, architect and community leader Michael Ingram, is the new owner of Aqua Nightclub at 711 Duval St. This image of the 700 and 800 blocks as gay might be true to a degree, but the “newer generation” doesn’t make those distinctions as much, the younger Ingram said. “We want to make everyone feel welcome.”

There are certainly signs of inclusiveness: “Aqua and the 801 have always been all-welcome and Bourbon Street now has ladies night,” he said.

Both upper and lower Duval have an identity, he pointed out. Central Duval has none — or at least none appropriate for the inclusive, everyone-welcome 21st Century. “No one ever thinks about where they are in central Duval, but they’re really in the heart of Duval,” he pointed out. “We’re trying to get the word out. We have great shops and great restaurants — 915, Blackfins, Pinchers. To come to the Heart of Duval is to come to this part of town with unique offerings of dining and shopping as well as bars and nightclubs.”

Ingram also said this is not some sort of rebranding in anticipation of the summer-long series of gay festivals that are held in town: Pridefest in June, Womenfest after Labor Day and several new GLBT offerings in between. Quite the contrary. The desire is to expand the appeal of the area beyond the traditional GLBT community.

There won’t be a big, splashy Heart of Duval launch, either. “We’re using it in our advertising and hoping people will just start using it, hoping it will grab hold. It will become part of their mindset; it’ll become a destination.”

The original discussions, he said, were initiated by the bar owners — “Jimmy and Joey and my dad and I,” meaning Jim Gilleran and Joey Schroeder of 801 and Bourbon Street. After initial agreement, they successfully solicited approval from the Business Guild and the TDC. When asked for comment, Gilleran said that young Ingram was the one “spearheading the effort. Talk to him.”

It’s not all that complicated, Ingram insisted. “We’re just a bunch of small business owners trying to do something to market our businesses.” And not incidentally, “a high tide raises all ships,” he said.

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