Visitors head to ‘lesbian paradise’ for civil unions
If the rainbow-painted deck chairs, fluttering rainbow flag and
purple shutters do not make it clear, the Highlands Inn’s toll-free
number, 877-LES-B-INN, leaves no doubt as to whom this White
Mountains resort in New Hampshire caters to.
Innkeeper Grace Newman began hosting commitment ceremonies at
this self-proclaimed “lesbian paradise” - in the 1980s.
Newman says she has lost track of the number of commitment
ceremonies that have happened there; she estimates about 300
couples have honeymooned at the inn after getting civil unions in
Vermont or marriages in Quebec, Canada, both short drives away.
In 2008, the inn’s 25th anniversary coincides with another
milestone: legal recognition of civil unions by New Hampshire
beginning January 1.
Newman, veteran host and overseer of many a union, has not
wasted any time in getting bookings from her own state.
From the North Country to the Statehouse steps, other gay
couples are making similar plans.
“It would be pretty easy to take a little break from the party
and celebrate some civil unions,” said Newman, who plans to get her
own civil union with longtime partner Maria Doyle in September at
the inn.
The new law plants another rainbow-coloured flag in the
northeastern New England states, which has grown increasingly
gay-friendly since Vermont became the first state to legalise civil
unions in 2000. It has been a quick reversal for New Hampshire,
where as recently as 2004 politicians reacted to Massachusetts‘ gay
marriage law by passing a ban on recognising those unions here.
The new law makes civil unions the equivalent of marriage in all
respects but name.
Beginning in 2008, five of six New England states will provide
some form of legal recognition to same-sex couples: marriage in
Massachusetts; civil unions in Vermont, New Hampshire and
Connecticut; domestic partnerships in Maine.
Rhode Island does not allow same-sex marriages, but is among the
few states that recognise ones performed in Massachusetts.
As ceremonies for gay couples go mainstream in New Hampshire,
some innkeepers, hotel managers and tourism marketers are working
to get some of the expected upswing in business.
“I think it can turn into another niche market for lodging
properties and all of our wedding folks who provide services:
photographers, florists, bakers, sleigh rides, the whole gamut,”
said Janice Crawford, executive director of the chamber of commerce
in the Mount Washington Valley - a tourism-rich swath of ski
resorts, retail outlets and small amusement parks in northern New
Hampshire.
Crawford said she started thinking about civil unions packages
when the law passed in northern spring 2007. The chamber markets a
gay-friendly businesses web site and features civil union packages
as they come available, she said.
Speaking recently in her office, Crawford tossed out her pitch:
“Plan your civil union ceremony around your vacation,” she
said.
In Bradford, innkeeper Lesley Marquis said she has heard from
couples who have seen her advertisement on the state tourism web
site for a $US350 ($A399) civil unions package at her Rosewood
Country Inn.
“Weddings are big for us. Whether it’s regular couples or gay
couples,” she said. “I think there are going to be a lot of people
trying to do it, so I think that having it on the state site will
benefit us.”
Marquis’ first civil-union booking is from Sian Strobridge and
Katie Bosse of Manchester, who are planning their ceremony to
coincide with their third anniversary on February 2.
Strobridge and Bosse have their details set: A weekend at the
Rosewood Country Inn with family and close friends; a beaded ivory
gown for Sian and a tuxedo for Katie; a gourmet dinner by caterers
at Canterbury Shaker Village; calla lilies for the bridal bouquet;
hair and makeup appointments for Sian.
“In one aspect I see myself as a typical bride,” said
Strobridge, 34, an assistant manager at a Manchester boutique.
So far the couple have committed $US5,000 ($A5,699) for the
event and weekend; they plan to follow up in June with a weekend
party for 200 at an apple orchard, Strobridge said.
“That one we haven’t even come up with a budget yet. That’s
going to be quite expensive,” she said.
State recordkeepers recently distributed thousands of civil
unions documents to city and town clerks, who began offering the
licences for a $US45 ($A51) fee on December 10.
William Bolton, director of the state Vital Records
Administration, said officials took the number of civil unions
performed in Vermont in 2000 - 1,704 - and roughly doubled that for
their estimate that 3,500 to 4,000 couples will get civil unions in
New Hampshire in 2008. About 10,000 couples in New Hampshire marry
every year, Bolton said.
While the civil unions estimate could be high - ceremonies in
Vermont spiked early on before dropping significantly as other
states legalised them - some estimate that civil unions could add
millions to New Hampshire’s economy.
A 2005 study predicted that legalising same-sex marriage in New
Hampshire would bring in an additional $US630,000 ($A718,071) a
year in rooms and meals taxes in the first three years.
The study, by The Williams Project on Sexual Orientation and
Public Policy at the UCLA School of Law, was funded by two national
gay rights groups. It estimated that half the 2,703 same-sex
couples counted in the 2000 census in New Hampshire would choose to
marry within three years if marriage was offered to them.
A subsequent study in 2006 calculated that 1,352 gay couples,
each spending about $US7,600 ($A8,662) - or one-quarter of the
$US30,510 ($A34,775) straight couples spend on weddings in New
Hampshire - would spend more than $US10.3 million ($A11.74
million)
on weddings if they were allowed to marry.
Given a new census estimate for 2005 of 5,500 same-sex couples
in the state - more than twice the 2000 total - the spending could
be even higher, said University of Massachusetts economist Lee
Badgett, author of both studies.
Cindy Sproul is co-owner of Rainbow Wedding Network, an online
wedding registry for gay brides and grooms. She says her website
has recorded a noticeable increase in New Hampshire users since the
company hosted a gay wedding expo in Portsmouth in October.
“The amount of registries that come through is about 25 to 40 a
week, and I can tell you that more is coming from New Hampshire
right now than any other area,” said Sproul, who is based in North
Carolina.
Back at the Highlands Inn, Newman expects business to be
brisk.
“I think what we’ll find is that there are an awful lot of gay
and lesbian couples in New Hampshire, so there will be lots, I’m
sure, of civil unions in the first year or so,” she said. “I’ve
already talked to people about 2009, so I think that there will be
many.”
IF YOU GO:
Highlands Inn: Bethlehem, New Hampshire: visit
http://www.highlandsinn-nh.com/
or call 1-603-869-3978 or, if you are already in the United States,
877-LES-B-INN. “Civil Union” three-night package starts at $US680
($A775).
Rosewood Country Inn: Bradford, New Hampshire;
visit: http://www.rosewoodcountryinn.com/
or call 1-603-938-5253. “Civil Union For Two” package, $US350
($A399).
Rainbow Wedding Network: visit: http://www.rainbowweddingnetwork.com/
AP
