{"id":4853,"date":"2026-06-21T07:04:11","date_gmt":"2026-06-21T07:04:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=4853"},"modified":"2026-06-21T07:04:11","modified_gmt":"2026-06-21T07:04:11","slug":"fort-lauderdale-plans-to-end-fight-with-state-over-street-art-announces-circle-of-love-instead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=4853","title":{"rendered":"Fort Lauderdale plans to end fight with state over street art, announces \u2018circle of love\u2019 instead"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The city of Fort Lauderdale is planning to end its fight with the state of Florida over its street art, officials said Saturday, instead announcing a \u201ccircle of love\u201d rainbow installation as part of an alternative solution on private land.<\/p>\n

Read more Pink boots are everywhere at the World Cup as the color becomes a soccer star<\/a><\/p>\n

The circle was installed last week next to Sebastian Street Beach, a popular LGBTQ beach, on the property of Selene condominiums, as part of an agreement between the city and the developer of the property, Mayor Dean Trantalis said at a news conference Saturday.<\/p>\n

He was joined by Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, commissioners Steve Glassman and Ben Sorensen, and the developer, Bob Vail, as well as local residents and members of state and local LGBTQ advocacy organizations, who celebrated the new installation as a symbol of the city\u2019s commitment to diversity and to its large LGBTQ community.<\/p>\n

But the installation also signifies the removal of the rest of the city\u2019s colorful street art, including the large rainbow flag by Sebastian Street Beach, as Fort Lauderdale seeks to settle its ongoing legal battles with the state. Fort Lauderdale was the last remaining city to resist the Florida Department of Transportation\u2019s efforts to remove rainbow crosswalks and other decorative street art throughout the state, including Key West, Delray Beach and outside of the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, after a ban on art in travel lanes that went into effect last year. State officials previously said the decision was made for safety reasons, but critics said it was an attack on the LGBTQ community.<\/p>\n

Now, Fort Lauderdale\u2019s street art will soon be paved over as well, Trantalis confirmed Saturday.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are here today to not only say that we are going to never be erased, but we\u2019re going to find a way to still be able to appreciate and embrace the diversity of our community,\u201d the mayor said in a prepared speech. \u201cBecause if there\u2019s anything that Fort Lauderdale represents, it\u2019s diversity. People from all walks of life should be able to come here.\u201d<\/p>\n

The city\u2019s decision to stop fighting the state, an effort which spanned four lawsuits, came just before a state administrative law judge was set to make a decision following a hearing earlier this month. Instead, Trantalis told the South Florida Sun Sentinel that the city is \u201cabout to settle on terms for an agreement\u201d with the state, which will then begin removing the art at its own expense. Part of the city\u2019s incentive, Trantalis said, was the fact that state officials had threatened to pull all of Fort Lauderdale\u2019s transportation grants.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t want to pursue it anymore,\u201d he told the Sun Sentinel. \u201cWe were the sole holdout in the whole state but we found a way to work with the state, to collaborate with the state, to follow the law and yet at the same time celebrate who we are as a community.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Instead, the city reached out to Vail, the president of Kolter, the development company that built the Selene condominiums across from Sebastian Street Beach, about putting a rainbow installation on the property. Because the installation is technically on private land, the state won\u2019t be able to remove it, officials said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were really excited and eager, frankly, to help,\u201d Vail said at the news conference. \u201cAnd we understood the situation and we understand the importance of it to the residents here. And we know the history of this area of Fort Lauderdale that we dropped these giant buildings into. So really there was no hesitation on our part.\u201d<\/p>\n

The fight over street art has been particularly symbolic in the Fort Lauderdale area, which is known for its large gay community. The announcement came the same day as\u00a0the annual Stonewall Pride Parade in nearby Wilton Manors.<\/p>\n

Read more Undav scores twice as Germany beats Ivory Coast 2-1, advances to World Cup knockout phase<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThis expression in the circle of love, with the city working with a developer in the city to make sure that there continues to be a very public display of support for equality and the LGBTQ+ community, is remarkable and I\u2019m so proud of them,\u201d Wasserman Schultz told the Sun Sentinel.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\u201cIn a place like South Florida but in Broward County in particular, where in Fort Lauderdale and the greater Fort Lauderdale region we have one of the largest LGBTQ+ communities in the whole country, it makes it all the more important that this community projects support for equality and love and that we reject hate.\u201d<\/p>\n

The announcement received mixed reactions from Fort Lauderdale residents, however.<\/p>\n

Troy Liggett, a resident of Middle River Terrace who had urged the city to fight the state\u2019s street art ban, told the Sun Sentinel on Saturday that he saw the circle as \u201ccheesy\u201d and the city\u2019s decision to stop pursuing the legal battles as \u201ctotal capitulation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI had faith that they would fight this, but apparently they didn\u2019t have the energy or motivation to do so and it\u2019s very disappointing,\u201d Liggett said, adding, \u201cIt would be a different story if that little park had a half-dozen rainbow flags flying around it. You can\u2019t even see that circle unless you happen to walk up on it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some confusion remained Saturday as to the terms of the settlement with the state, how close the parties are to that settlement and how much of the city\u2019s street art would be removed under that agreement. Multiple areas of the city contain decorative roadways that could fall under the state\u2019s ban.<\/p>\n

John Burns, who lives four blocks away, told the Sun Sentinel immediately following the announcement that he was happy about the installation, though he expressed concern about what it meant for the rest of the city\u2019s street art. Trantalis later clarified to the Sun Sentinel after the news conference that the street art would be removed as part of a resolution with the city.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a very positive announcement, it\u2019s very beautiful,\u201d Burns said of the circle. \u201cThis is a very positive step to recognize members of the community and all different levels of diversity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Glassman, the commissioner whose district includes the circle of love and much of the city\u2019s street art, told the Sun Sentinel that he was not privy to the latest settlement talks but that he wants to be sure the city does not have to pay anything for any of the potential removals.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe devil\u2019s in the details,\u201d Glassman told the Sun Sentinel. \u201cWe need to wait and see exactly what these negotiation settlements are going to produce.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Come inside Iran\u2019s World Cup hotel in Tijuana, Mexico, where fans turn out to cheer<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The city of Fort Lauderdale is ending its fight with the state of Florida over its street art, officials said, instead announcing a “circle of love” rainbow installation as part of an alternative solution on private land.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4852,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4853","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local-news"],"yoast_head":"\nFort Lauderdale plans to end fight with state over street art, announces \u2018circle of love\u2019 instead - Orlando Relocation Report<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/orlandorelocationreport.com\/?p=4853\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Fort Lauderdale plans to end fight with state over street art, announces \u2018circle of love\u2019 instead - 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