L.S.D That Isn’t
You always know when you cross the Delaware border; the malls spring up like daisies. The state may revel as “the Land of Tax-Free Shopping,” but did you know that it is also home to one of the gayest towns in the USA?
There was a time when Rehoboth Beach was the only gay resort (or “gay friendly” resort) on the East Coast between Fire Island and South Beach. Asbury Park, Myrtle Beach, and lots and lots of other seaside towns have since joined the pack, but Rehoboth Beach, AKA “Rehomo Beach,” still has that much of a head start.
Nothing against South Beach or Ft. Lauderdale, but the commercial development can be a bit “much.” Rehoboth is the exact opposite, and has been gay-friendly since at least the 1960s. Deep in the southern region of the state, what the locals call L.S.D. — Lower, Slower Delaware — the town is about four hours south of Philadelphia, but don’t like size or locale fool you. It is to the Mid-Atlantic what Fire Island is to New York or Palm Springs to Los Angeles: the gay getaway. It is so popular with boys from Philly, Baltimore, and Washington that Rehoboth is today renowned as one of the best gay beaches in the country.
So how did a bump on a log get so popular? Unlike a lot of Johnny-come-latelys, Rehoboth Beach is still a charming, quaint, beach resort. After a few high-rises went up in the 1970s, forward-thinking Mayor Reed Booth mandated that no building along the beachfront could be more than five stories tall. Not only did that ensure that sunlight would continue to stream down onto the sand and not the ass of a hotel after 2:00 PM, but it acted as an inadvertent break against the runaway development that swallowed up many another beach town. Rehoboth stayed small, and has only reaped the benefits since. Don’t believe me? Check out the modern strip-mall hell that recently rose up just outside the city limits. Ick.
Rehoboth is so gay that there is no gay section; LGBTQs saturate the town east to west, north to south. The famous boardwalk is pretty typical of a beach town — surf shops, pizza joints, and Dolle’s, the best place in town for a sugar rush — but along Baltimore Avenue is where things get fun, the Blue Moon is the drag bar of town and when the ladies finish for the night, the tables vanish and the dancing gets hot and heavy.
To be sure, it’s not London or Berlin. And that is the point — somebody already has those jobs. But a relaxing seaside escape? Rehoboth wins.
For more info, go to cityofrehoboth.com.