The Feud between the Queen and the Diva: How a Property Dispute Underscores the Relevance of a South Beach Gay Bar

Justin Karr

Abstract

The article recounts how the gay community was instrumental in the economic and cultural revival of South Beach as its known today. But, with the area currently experiencing a decline in gay tourism, the article suggests why the city is keen to observe the cultural and social benefit provided by a robust gay population. The article details the bar’s lobby of the local government for an expansion of its outdoor drag entertainment, despite the protests of the neighboring boutique hotel, which the bar asserts is homophobic intolerance of the shows’ gay theme.

The article discusses the importance that the modern day gay bar plays in the socialization and community of gays, and why Miami Beach is correct to preserve Ocean Drive’s only gay bar, similar to how the city declares as historic its famed Art Deco buildings. Explaining how the acrimonious dispute has highlighted the bar’s illegal activity, the city government has struggled to accommodate the bar, even contemplating a site-specific amendment of the municipal code, a zoning act itself unconstitutional. The situation is clearly a precarious matter for the embattled city, which strives to seek balance between its persona as tourism hotspot and luxury hideaway. The article commends the city for its preferential treatment of the bar, as it recognizes the important societal values that are benefited by the bar and a dynamic gay culture.